The chief investigator from the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea on Thursday appealed to the UN Security Council to refer North Korea to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged crimes against humanity. The call to act came as a result of February’s report in which [...]
Russia, Ukraine, the US and the EU on Thursday issued a joint statement on the situation in Ukraine after a Ukrainian military base was attacked in an act of increasing violence between government troops and pro-Russia militias. The statement promises amnesty “to protesters and to those who have left buildings and other public places and [...]
The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas and the Arkansas Public Law Center filed a complaint Wednesday in Arkansas state court challenging the constitutionality of the state’s voter ID law. Act 595 , passed in 2013 by the Republican-led Arkansas legislature , requires that Arkansas residents present government-approved ID in order to vote. The complaint, [...]
JURIST Guest Columnist W. David Ball of Santa Clara School of Law argues that the recent trend of states and cities—most recently in Washington, DC—to pass legislation decriminalizing marijuana is a step in the right direction, but does not go far enough towards elevating the problems and costs of prohibition. Professor Ball instead argues that [...]
The Kyrgyz parliament on Wednesday approved amendments to Kyrgyzstan’s Criminal Code that criminalize the spreading of false information through the media. Under the new amendments, which lawmaker Eristina Kachkarova said are not meant to target journalists or media outlets , those found guilty of intentionally spreading false information through media outlets will face a fine [...]
A trial judge for the Supreme Court of New York dismissed a lawsuit on Thursday challenging the state’s strict gun laws. The plaintiffs, a group of gun rights activists, argued that the New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act of 2013 (SAFE Act) infringes upon rights granted by the state constitution . Judge Thomas [...]
A same-sex couple filed a lawsuit on Wednesday with the Wisconsin Supreme Court seeking to strike down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage. The Wisconsin Constitution was amended in 2006 to include Article XIII, section 13 which states that, “Only a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a [...]
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) on Wednesday released statistics that show a steady decline in new deportation cases brought by the Obama administration in US immigration courts over the last five years, and that more judges have begun ruling against deportations. The numbers indicate a 43 percent drop in the number of deportations through [...]
Amnesty International (AI), Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) urged Nepalese legislators on Thursday to reject certain sections of the proposed Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) bill for violating international law. The advocacy groups are concerned that the bill includes language from a 2012 executive order that allowed amnesty for crimes [...]
Notable human rights lawyer Waleed Abu al-Khair was was taken into custody in Saudi Arabia Tuesday after a hearing at the Specialized Criminal Court in Riyadh. Abu al-Khair, founder and chief of the human rights group Saudi Arabia Monitor of Human Rights, faces charges that include inciting public opinion. Amnesty International (AI) on Wednesday condemned [...]
