The Russian Duma Friday approved by 355-85 a bill that would end jury trials on charges of terrorism and treason . Ostensibly directed against lenient juries , the bill is excepted to be quickly approved in the Federation Council , the upper house of the Russian parliament. The measure may have only limited effect given [...]

Richard C. Dieter : "Death penalty cases are taking longer to resolve. In 2007, the average time between sentencing and execution was 12.7 years, the third year in a row in which the time was over 12 years. Many cases, like Cone v. Bell, which was recently argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, take much [...]

Rania Atalla : "Women in eastern Congo know exactly what it takes to end the conflict: They want the fighting to stop. They want to make a living for their families. And they want the men who are killing, maiming, and raping to be brought to justice. Despite the uneasy peace, it is a good [...]

A panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled 2-1 Friday that Seattle's parade law is unconstitutional. The court was asked to decide whether the Seattle Municipal Ordinance violates the free speech guarantees of the First Amendment by granting a city licensing official unduly broad discretion. Judge Raymond Fisher wrote for [...]

A Superior Court of Georgia jury Saturday sentenced Brian Nichols to consecutively serve seven life terms, four terms of life without parole, and 485 years following his conviction last month for the murders of court and law enforcement personnel committed in a March 2005 escape from Atlanta's Fulton County Courthouse , where he was in [...]

French President Nicholas Sarkozy told reporters in Brussels Friday at the conclusion of a two-day meeting of European Union leaders that the Lisbon Treaty on EU reform had been "revived" after Ireland agreed to hold a revote on ratification . An initial referendum on the Treaty failed in Ireland in June. Sarkozy, whose country holds [...]

The US Supreme Court granted certiorari Friday in two cases. In Polar Tankers v. City of Valdez , the Court will consider whether a municipal tax that falls exclusively on large vessels in the city’s harbor violates the Tonnage Clause (Art. 1 § 10 cl. 3), Commerce Clause (Art. 1 § 8 cl. 3), or [...]

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has called for Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas to abandon arms and release political hostages, promising those who respond to the call a reward and freedom. Uribe Wednesday likened the offered terms to a "humanitarian exchange" . He specified that he was not promising amnesty or an official pardon, [...]

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan on Friday filed a motion with the Illinois Supreme Court to have Governor Rod Blagojevich declared unfit and removed temporarily from office. Blagojevich and his chief of staff John Harris were arrested Tuesday by federal agents on charges of corruption . Madigan asked that the court appoint Lieutenant Governor Patrick [...]

The Luxembourg Chamber of Deputies on Thursday voted to amend the country's constitution to eliminate the requirement that its Grand Duke approve legislation before it becomes law. The country's parliament passed the amendment by a vote of 56-0, with one abstention. It reduces the Grand Duke's legislative role under article 34 of Luxembourg's constitution from both [...]