Prosecutors in East Timor questioned former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri Thursday about allegations that he illegally distributed weapons to local militias and ordered them to kill political opponents. An investigation began after Vincent "Railos" da Concecao, claiming he was the leader of the alleged hit squad, told reporters that Alkatiri and former Interior Minister Rogerio [...]
During an uncommon open session of the US House Intelligence Committee on Wednesday, several legal heavyweights debated whether the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) should be revamped to meet the challenges presented by terrorism. Under the current procedure authorized by FISA, the US Justice Department (DOJ) must seek a warrant from the court established by [...]
Relatives of four Iraqi citizens who were allegedly murdered by US soldiers in the town of Mahmudiya (also "Mahmoudiya") are refusing US requests to exhume the bodies, complicating the US case against the six soldiers. No rape test was performed on the body of a 14-year-old girl who US officials believe was raped, forcing the [...]
A federal grand jury in Atlanta has indicted two US citizens charged with participating in paramilitary training in Georgia in anticipation of terrorist acts. The suspects, Syed Haris Ahmed and Ebsanul Islam Sadequeee, allegedly developed contacts with jihad supporters and have been connected with at least three of the 17 men arrested on terrorism charges [...]
The US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a measure to seize land on Mount Soledad in San Diego to resolve a dispute over whether a 29-foot cross honoring Korean War veterans on the property is a government endorsement of religion. The House agreed to transfer the land to the Defense Department before an expected [...]
Pledge Protection Act of 2005 , passed by the US House of Representatives July 19, 2006 . Read the full text of the bill . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.
Retail Industry Leaders v. Fielding et al., United States District Court for the District of Maryland, Judge Frederick Motz, July 19, 2006 . Read the full text of the opinion . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour Wednesday threatened perpetrators of wanton violence against civilians in the current Middle East conflict with liability for war crimes. In a pointed statement directed equally at Israel and Hezbollah and warning both combatants and their leaders, Arbour said: Indiscriminate shelling of cities constitutes a foreseeable and unacceptable [...]
Message from the President to the House of Representatives on H.R. 810, the "Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005", George W. Bush, July 19, 2006 . Read the full text of the statement. Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.
The US House of Representatives voted Wednesday to block federal judges from ruling on the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance , which contains the controversial phrase "under God." The Pledge Protection Act provides that "no court created by Act of Congress shall have any jurisdiction, and the Supreme Court shall have no appellate jurisdiction, [...]
