Nine former federal judges sent a letter to Congress on Thursday raising concerns about a provision in the proposed Military Commissions Act of 2006 that, according to the judges, would "strip the federal courts of jurisdiction to test the lawfulness of Executive detention at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Station and elsewhere outside the United States." [...]
The Supreme Court of the Netherlands on Friday refused to extradite the leader of the Kurdistan Worker's Party to Turkey, citing the possibility that she could be tortured after returning to the country. Nuriye Kesbir is accused of participating in 25 attacks in eastern Turkey between 1993 and 1995 as part of Kurdistan's battle for [...]
Three former employees of the Election Commission of Thailand received their second conviction on Friday for dereliction of duty in the April 2 election . The officials, who are appealing a July four-year sentence for abuse of power , were found to have aided the ruling Thai Rak Thai party in presenting mock candidates. The [...]
The US House of Representatives Thursday adopted a new rule requiring lawmakers to disclose their sponsorship of so-called "earmarks" inserted into bills to fund special spending projects. H.Res. 1000 requires that bills coming out of committee, bills containing tax measures, and conference reports list all earmarks and the names of the congressperson who requested them. [...]
Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos acknowledged Thursday that US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) planes transporting detainees to secret prisons in Europe may have stopped over on its soil. Moratinos told a European Parliament committee that although the US had assured Spain that no suspects were aboard the planes, the islands of Palma de Mallorca [...]
The Supreme Court of Japan rejected a death penalty appeal Friday by former cult leader Shoko Asahara , who was convicted of masterminding the 1995 nerve gas attacks on the Tokyo subway system . Asahara, the former head of Aum Shinrikyo , was convicted of murder and attempted murder in 2004 for releasing sarin nerve [...]
The US House of Representatives voted 283-138 Thursday for a bill providing for the construction of a 700-mile fence along the US-Mexico border designed to curb illegal immigration . The Secure Fence Act of 2006 also provides that the Department of Homeland Security take control of the border in 18 months and gives border patrol [...]
The Colorado Division of Civil Rights (CCRD) has ruled that an employer violated the state's anti-discrimination laws when it fired an employee who was preparing to undergo gender reassignment surgery. Intermountain Testing claimed David Cornwell, now known as Danielle Cornwell, was let go because of a decline in business and a low performance rating. Cornwell, [...]
US Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) is expected to plead guilty to at least one criminal charge stemming from his involvement with lobbyist Jack Abramoff , Republican officials announced Thursday. Ney is expected to admit to filing a false House disclosure report, where he claimed to visit members of the Scottish Parliament in 2002 when in [...]
The US Senate Armed Services Committee voted 15-9 Thursday to send a bill authorizing military commissions drafted by Republican Senators John Warner, Lindsey Graham and John McCain to the full Senate for consideration despite objections from the White House, which has offered its own proposal . The stricter Bush administration bill to establish military trial [...]
