[JURIST] According to a congressional aide speaking on the condition of anonymity, an unreleased Pentagon report reveals that a top Army general rejected the recommended reprimand of former Guantanamo Bay prison commander Army Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller [Wikipedia profile] for the abusive interrogation of a detainee. The recommendation came from two generals after a military investigation into FBI allegations of prisoner abuse at the camp. The congressional aide cited offenses from the report such as female interrogators inappropriately touching prisoners, threats against a prisoner's family, chaining detainees to the floor in fetal positions, and improper use of duct tape on a detainee. The US Senate Armed Services Committee [official website] is expected to be briefed on the results of the unreleased report Wednesday. News of the report follows Saturday's release of Capt. Leslie J. McKoy [JURIST report] from his post as commander of the Guantanamo Bay naval base, although Pentagon says that that dismissal was unrelated to detention camp operations. AP has more.

[JURIST] British police are bracing for hate crimes against Muslims in response to the announcement Tuesday that the perpetrators of the London bombings were British citizens [JURIST report] and are vowing to handle any calls swiftly and vigorously. Police chiefs and community leaders have met in Scotland Yard to discuss and prepare for potential retaliation. The chief constable of West Yorkshire, where hate activity is expected because of the high Muslim population and the apparent roots of the London terror cell, urged the people to be "calm, resilient and measured in what they say and how they act." Police have reported 300 anti-Muslim hate crimes since the bombings, including the death of a man after anti-Muslim comments were yelled at him in Nottingham, an attack on a school boy in the West Country, and raids in Dewsbury and West Yorkshire. Sir Iqbal Sacranie, leader of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), expressed "anguish, shock and horror" [MCB press release] in hearing the news that "our youth have been involved in last week's horrific bombings against innocent people", and expressed the group's "resolve to helping the police bring to justice all involved in this crime." From the UK, the Guardian has local coverage.

[JURIST] The US Tuesday urged the UN General Assembly [official website] to vote against a draft resolution by the so-called G-4 to expand the UN Security Council [official website] by adding six additional permanent seats and four non-permanent seats to the current 15 members. The debate over the resolution [JURIST report] submitted by Germany, Japan, India, and Brazil has split the General Assembly and it is unlikely it will gain the two-thirds majority vote needed to pass. US diplomat Shirin Tahir-Kheli [White House biography] said that the G-4 are "friends of Washington" and expressed a desire to discuss the expansion plan, but also noted that the competing African proposal [text, PDF] and the Uniting for Consensus proposal [text, PDF] have "valuable assets" as well. Tahir-Kheli said an amendment to the UN charter would be necessary for any expansion and also any US endorsement was subject to approval by two-thirds of the US Senate. AFP has more.

[JURIST] An Egyptian court Tuesday ordered Tarek el-Zomor released from prison for his involvement in the 1981 assassination of former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat [CNN profile]. El-Zomor was a member of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad militant group [Wikipedia backgrounder] which organized Sadat's murder because it disagreed with his Camp David peace negotiations [Wikipedia backgrounder] with Israel. The court order said el-Zomor should have been released after serving 22 years in October 2003. Egypt's Interior Ministry will now decide whether to appeal the order to release el-Zomor, as it did last year, or set him free. The ministry is able to keep prisoners for five years after their scheduled release for security reasons. AP has more.

[JURIST] US District Judge Royce Lamberth [official profile] blasted the US Interior Department Tuesday and ordered it to admit to American Indian plaintiffs [Indian Trust website] that information being provided to them regarding outstanding lost royalties on earnings from Indian land may be unreliable, calling the Department's handling of a trust fund [DOI Indian Trust Fund website] the "oblivious hand-me-down of a disgracefully racist and imperialist government that should have been buried a century ago." Lamberth's vitriolic opinion [link to text, PDF] left little doubt as to his views on the ongoing Corbell v. Norton litigation for an adequate accounting: "one would expect, or at least hope, that the modern Interior Department and its modern administrators would manage it in a way that reflects our modern understandings of how the government should treat people." The judge ordered the DOI notice to accompany letters being sent informing individuals that they may be members of a class action lawsuit filed in 1996 by Eloise Cobell. She claims that the government owes over $27 billion to over 300,000 American Indians from a trust fund formed in 1887 to pay royalties for timber, gas, oil, and grazing. Lamberth has previously held current fund administrator Secretary Gale Norton [DOJ profile] and her predecessor Bruce Babbitt [Wikipedia profile] in contempt of court for failing to produce factual information on amounts owed. AP has more.

[JURIST] Leading Tuesday's states brief, a Kentucky circuit judge issued two stays of execution today to allow two prisoners to continue their challenge to the state's use of lethal injection as a form of execution. Last week, the same judge ruled that the use of lethal injection was constitutional [JURIST report]. While no death warrants are in effect for either defendant, Assistant Attorney General David Smith [KY Attorney General official website] said the stays amount to a "pre-emptive restraint" on the governor's ability to sign such warrants. The stays will be effective for 60 days. AP has more.

In other state legal news ...

• New York Governor George E. Pataki has signed into law a bill that allows the State Ethics Commission [official website] to pursue cases and possible civil penalties against state employees after they have quit their state job. The bill was passed in response to a 1995 court decision, Flynn v. State Ethics Commission [Cornell LII text], in which the state's highest court ruled that the Ethics Commission did not have jurisdiction over former state officials and employees who violated ethics laws while working for the state. Governor Pataki stated, "By closing the 'Flynn' loophole, we are sending a message to the public that officials who violate their trust will be held accountable, regardless of whether or not they have left state service." The legislation becomes effective immediately. AP has more.
  
  
• The Wisconsin Supreme Court Tuesday threw out the conviction of a man serving a life sentence for a 1980 murder today. The court's opinion [text] found that a new trial was necessary after recent testing done by Ralph Armstrong's defense team showed hair and semen found at the murder scene was not his. At the time of the original trial, DNA technology was not developed enough to pinpoint the source of the hair and semen, though experts testified that two hairs found at the scene were consistent with the defendant. Dane County District Attorney Brian Blanchard said he planned to retry Armstrong. AP has more.
  
  
• The state of New Jersey and E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company [corporate website] have reached a settlement regarding polluted groundwater under eight of DuPont's facilities in the state. Under the agreement, DuPont has agreed to plant 3,000 trees, pay $500,000 for water restoration projects and help preserve 1,875 acres of land. Department of Environmental Protection commissioner Bradley Campbell said the settlement reflected his promise that he would go easier on companies if they paid their natural resource damages voluntarily. View the state's Department of Environmental Protection news release here. New Jersey's Star-Ledger has local coverage.

[JURIST] Leading Tuesday's corporations and securities law news, American Express [corporate website] has settled a lawsuit with New Hampshire and residents of the state. The state said it sued after learning the company had pressured agents in New Hampshire to sell its own underperforming options. New Hampshire had originally asked for $17 million in damages. Reuters has more.

In other corporations and securities law news...

• The IRS has settled with 80 individuals and 33 companies over an abusive stock option scheme. In a press release, the IRS said the companies and executives had tried to defer taxes on their stock options for 30 years by transferring them to a family-held partnership. The IRS offered to settle with all infringing companies and individuals in February for a 10% penalty and has withheld over $400 million from those who agreed to settle. Reuters has more.
  
  
• As reported earlier on JURIST's Paper Chase, the judge in former WorldCom [JURIST report] CEO Bernard Ebber's [Wikipedia profile] criminal trial has rejected his motion for a new trial. Ebbers attorney claimed that Ebbers [JURIST news archive] was entitled to a new trial because the judge, Barbara S. Jones, gave incorrect directions to the jury and because witnesses who could have supported Ebbers' case were not granted immunity. Ebbers was convicted of fraud in March [JURIST coverage] and is expected to be sentenced tomorrow. MarketWatch has more.
  
  
• Also as reported earlier on JURIST's Paper Chase, regulators from the EU raided Intel offices in Germany, Spain, Italy, and the UK today. The EU has been investigating Intel [corporate website] for antitrust violations for 4 years and an EU spokesperson said "the investigations are being carried out within the framework of an ongoing competition case." BBC News has more.

[JURIST] Italian Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu [official profile] presented new anti-terror measures in Italy's parliament Tuesday amid increased fears of attacks in Italy in the wake of Thursday's bombings in London [JURIST report]. The measures, including provisions allowing police to hold suspects longer who have not been charged, would give police greater investigative powers and provide incentives for those who aid authorities in exposing terrorist cells. Pisanu is expected to present more detailed provisions to the parliament in coming days and is seeking the backing of all parties for the legislation. Italy raised its alert level and tightened security [JURIST report] countrywide after the London explosions. AP has more.

[JURIST] US Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter [official website], co-sponsor with Senator Patrick Leahy [official website] of a bill to end asbestos injury lawsuits and pay the claims from a private fund instead, said Tuesday he was still urging the bill to be brought forward despite criticism [anti-bill advocacy website], a tight legislative calendar, and a looming battle in the Senate over a new Supreme Court nominee. The Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act of 2005 (FAIR) [PDF text], approved by Specter's committee [JURIST report] in May by a vote of 13-5, is to be paid for by companies facing asbestos litigation and their insurers in an effort to end lawsuits over asbestos exposure. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said he had not ruled out July as the time to bring it to the Senate floor, but added, "I really just don't know the timing." AP has more.

[JURIST] Lawyers for former star investment banker Frank Quattrone asked an appeals court Tuesday to throw out his conviction [JURIST report] due to confusing jury instructions given at his trial. Quattrone, sentenced to 18 months in prison [JURIST report], was convicted on charges [indictment, PDF text] of obstructing a federal stock investigation after he sent out an e-mail to employees at Credit Suisse First Boston [corporate website] that instructed them to "clean out their files." Quattrone's lawyer, Mark Pomerantz, argued that when the judge told jurors to find that Quattrone directed workers to destroy files that were subpoenaed for a federal jury trial, he did not order the jurors to recognize whether Quattrone knew that the documents that were destroyed were subpoenaed documents, as the bank regularly destroyed outdated documents. AP has more.

[JURIST] Leading Tuesday's international brief, the Joint Electoral Management Body [official webiste] in Afghanistan released the final list of approved candidates [official JEMB list] on Tuesday for the upcoming national parliamentary elections currently scheduled for September 18 [JURIST report]. Under Afghanistan's new constitution [text] in force since January 2004, candidates wanting to run for office must first be approved by an independent complaints body that excludes any candidates violating the rules governing the holding of office. Nearly 6,000 individuals gained approval to run for office, with only 17 people being listed as officially barred, most for ties to illegal armed groups or militias. Read the JEMB press release [official PDF text]. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Afghanistan [JURIST news archive]. BBC News has more.

In other international legal news ...

• The UN Security Council [official website] issued a statement Monday urging the Ethiopian government [DC Embassy website] to accept the finality of the 2002 ruling by the UN-sponsored independent border commission [official website] which awarded the contested town of Badme to Eritrea. Ethiopia refused to accept the division in 2002, and later claimed to accept the ruling in principle in 2004 but wanted to conduct diplomatic talks with Eritrean officials in the capital city of Asmara first. Eritrea refused and reiterated its insistence that Ethiopia abide by the terms of the 2000 peace agreements that gave the independent border commission binding authority. Eritrea has recently appealed to the international community and the UN to enforce the decision against Ethiopia, warning that recent shooting in the UN-patrolled border zone [UN Mission official website] would only escalate the longer that Ethiopia thought it could use violence to avoid implementing the decision. Read the official press statement. The Sudan Tribune has local coverage. The UN News Centre has more.
  
  
• Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] released a critique of the Indonesian judicial system Tuesday following an Indonesian appellate court overruling [JURIST report] of a 2004 human rights court conviction of 12 soldiers involved in the alleged massacre of 24 people in Jakarta's Tanjung Priok port area [official website] in 1984. HRW alleged that the overturning of the human rights court's decision only further reinforced the reality that the Indonesian military was not properly controlled and was capable of twisting justice to its own ends. Advocates of the relatively recent human rights courts argued against normal appellate court review of their cases, saying that it would simply preserve the status quo of impunity for military personnel. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Indonesia. Read the official HRW press release. The Jakarta Post has local coverage.

[JURIST] King Mswati III of Swaziland [government website] has officially refused to sign the final draft of the country's proposed constitution [link to PDF text], which passed through both the House of Assembly and Senate of Swaziland in June [JURIST report]. The king had already sent the constitution back to parliament [JURIST report] a week ago, asking parliament to reconsider adopting Christianity as the country's official religion. King Mswati III, Africa's last absolute monarch, ordered parliament to reconsider passages in the constitution that require members of parliament to receive their salaries should parliament be dissolved early. The king also expressed unhappiness with sections that would require taxation for royals, as they are currently free from paying taxes. If parliament does not accept the king's changes, he has the authority to make them law. King Mswati has been criticized by many for his lavish lifestyle during a time when most Swazis live in poverty and over 30% are HIV positive. BBC News has more. South Africa's Mail and Guardian has local coverage.

[JURIST] Judge Barbara Jones [NYT profile], in a ruling made public Tuesday, has denied a petition by former WorldCom [MCIWorldCom website] CEO Bernard Ebbers [JURIST news archive] for a new trial, opening the way for him to be sentenced as scheduled on Wednesday for the huge WorldCom business fraud. Ebbers had made various arguments claiming that the judge or prosecutors should have granted immunity to certain witnesses that he believes could have aided him in combatting some of the fraud-related charges. He was convicted in March [JURIST report] of orchestrating the $11 billion accounting scam that led to the telecommunications giant's downfall. AP has more.

[JURIST] European antitrust investigators raided Intel Corp. [corporate website] offices in Britain, Germany, Spain and Italy Tuesday as part of an ongoing probe of the chipmaker European affairs by the European Commission, which over the last four years has been looking into allegations that the computer chip giant used unfair business practices to encourage client's to purchase its microprocessors. The raids come some two weeks after rival Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) [corporate website], filed federal anti-trust lawsuits [US complaint, PDF] against Intel in both the United States [JURIST report] and Japan [JURIST report]. The EU decided to continue its investigation in March when Japanese investigators announced that Intel violated anti-trust restrictions there. Intel has denied all allegations of wrongdoing. AP has more.

[JURIST] The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights [official website] Tuesday again called for an independent probe [press release] into the May killings of hundreds of protestors by government troops [JURIST report] in Uzbekistan. The Uzbek government has resisted previous calls [JURIST report] for an investigation, drawing accusations of a coverup [JURIST report]. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour called for an investigation [JURIST report] shortly after the killings amidst disputes about the number of people killed, and the circumstances of their deaths. The UN News Centre has more.

[JURIST] Despite earlier doubts [JURIST report] that the Iraqi constitution will be completed and ratified on schedule in a referendum, Farid Ayar, a member of Iraq's Independent Electoral Commission [official website in Arabic], said Tuesday he is "optimistic" that the vote on the constitution will be held as planned on October 15, followed by general elections in December. Xinhuanet has more.

[JURIST] BBC television is reporting that UK police have made a "series of arrests" in the London bombings case after they identified the body of a bomber who died in the Tavistock Square bus blast. It is not clear whether the bus bomber was a suicide bomber or whether the bomb went off while it was being transported. Earlier Tuesday, police carried out a number of raids in West Yorkshire, but it is still unconfirmed where the arrests were made. A news conference has been scheduled at Scotland Yard for 5 PM London time (12 Noon ET).

11:39 AM ET - London's Sky News is reporting that all four suspected bombers died during the London terror attacks. The BBC is saying that, according to police, all four of the bombers were British-born.

11:51 AM ET - The BBC is reporting that British security sources have said that the three bombers killed in the tube bombings were likely suicide bombers, although the status of the bus bomber is still unclear.

12:14 PM ET - At a briefing [transcript] in London, police have said that Tuesday morning they searched the homes of 3 of the 4 bombers in West Yorkshire. All the bombers are now known to have came to London by train on the morning of July 7, where they were filmed at King's Cross subway station by closed-circuit CCTV cameras shortly before 8:30 AM London time. One arrest has been confirmed in West Yorkshire.

12:25 PM ET - Sky News now has more; see also this BBC News report.

2:05 PM ET - The BBC reports that the British-born bombers were British citizens of Pakistani origin.

[JURIST] Echoing earlier statements [JURIST report] by UK Home Secretary Charles Clarke after last week's London bombings, British Prime Minister Tony Blair told the House of Commons Monday that he intended to stick by the current timetable for new counter-terrorism legislation, scheduled to go before parliament in the fall and come into effect by the following spring. Blair did say, however, that that timetable could be changed it became appropriate to do so:

If, as the fuller picture about these incidents emerges and the investigation proceeds, it becomes clear that there are powers that the police and intelligence agencies need immediately to combat terrorism, it is plainly sensible to reserve the right to return to parliament with an accelerated timetable.

[JURIST] In his first in-person consultation with Senator leaders on his upcoming nomination of a replacement for retiring US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor [JURIST report], President Bush met Tuesday with Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA), ranking Judiciary Democrat Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). He did not, however, hint at who he might actually pick. All four called the meeting a positive step. Bush reiterated his desire to see a new Justice on the bench by the start of the new term in October, which would require a nomination soon and perhaps a special August session of the Senate. Senator Leahy has issued a press release. AP has more.

4:35 PM ET - Later press reports say that at the morning meeting Senators Specter and Leahy encouraged the President to appoint someone other than a judge to the Supreme Court slot. Specter said afterwards of such candidates, "If they had a little more practical experience and didn't work so much within the footnotes and the semicolons, you might have a little different perspective, and I'd like to see that added to the court." Democrats also suggested a number of possible Hispanic moderates - Judge Sonia Sotomayor of the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Ed Prado of the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and US District Court Judge Ricardo Hinojosa. Meanwhile, First Lady Laura Bush said during an interview during a visit to South Africa that she would like to see a women taking the place of retiting Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. AP has more.

[JURIST] After last week's bombings in London, UK foreign minister Jack Straw [official profile] has joined with European Union justice commissioner Franco Frattini [official website] in calling for new EU rules to allow government access to telecommunications data [AFP report]. "I believe that provided there are proper safeguards that no one's civil liberties are threatened by retention and access to data, but the protection of everybody is more greatly enhanced," Straw said. Frattini has also proposed the creation of an info-sharing network between EU nations; both proposals are expected to be debated [AP report] at a Wednesday meeting of EU ministers called in response to the bombings. UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Goron Brown has has also called for stepped up EU-wide efforts to provide for the seizure of terror-related assets. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] The European Court of Justice Tuesday ruled in favor [judgment text; press release, PDF] of the controversial EU Food Supplements Directive [text], scheduled to come into effect August 1. The directive, approved by EU governments in 2002, uses a "positive list" system under which substances allowed in health supplements are limited to those included on an approved list. Since health food manufacturers had until today to submit scientific reports proving their ingredients are safe there is no current list of approved substances. Opponents of the legislation, headed in the UK by the Alliance for Natural Health (ANH) [official website], had argued that the legislation unfairly burdened health food manufacturers with application costs to have products they've been selling for years added to the approved list. They also said the law could outlaw thousands of supplements and bankrupt health food stores. The court promised to simplify the process to approve substances, stating "An application to have a substance included on a list may be refused only on the basis of a full risk assessment, established on the basis of the most reliable scientific data available and the most recent results of international research. A refusal must also be open to challenge before the courts." The Times has more.

[JURIST] Issam Ghazzawi, a lawyer with Saddam Hussein's defense team, currently in some disarray after the resignation of its Jordanian leader [JURIST report] last week, said in an interview [transcript in German] in Tuesday's edition of the Vienna newspaper Die Presse that Iran, not Iraq, is responsible for the 1988 gas attack that killed thousands of Kurds. The gas attack is said to be a centerpiece of the crimes agianst humanity case against the former Iraqi president pending before the Iraqi Special Tribunal. Most US officials and international experts have blamed the attack on the Saddam regime, but in January 2003 Stephen Pelletiere, the CIA's senior political analyst for Iraq during the Iran-Iraq war, published an op-ed in the New York Times stating "We cannot say with any certainty that Iraqi chemical weapons killed the Kurds." AP has more [registration required].

[JURIST] US House Judiciary Committee [official site] Chairman James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-WI) [official profile] introduced a House bill [HR 3199 text] Monday to make existing provisions of the Patriot Act [JURIST news archive] permanent, but stopped short of adding new provisions recommended by the Senate Intelligence Committee and requested by the Bush administration. He had earlier objected [JURIST report] to granting federal law enforcement the authority to issue "administrative subpoenas" without judicial approval. Sensenbrenner's bill would entrench 16 Patriot Act provisions conferring broad anti-terror investigatory powers [Washington Post report] set to expire at the end of the year, and would also tighten some requirements for the FBI to obtain documents. The bill faces opposition not only from House Democrats, but also from Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) [official website], who prefers extending the deadlines of the Act's powers to a blanket permanency. AP has more.

[JURIST] The European Court of Justice [official website] Tuesday fined [judgment text] the French government 20 million euros ($24 million) for its failure to comply with EU fishing laws, and then, for the first time in the court's history [press release, PDF], imposed an additional 57.7 million euros fine every six months until the government is in compliance. The court first found France in violation of fishing regulations in 1991. AFP has more.

[JURIST] After a US Supreme Court ruling [JURIST report] in March, the US Tax Court has announced important changes to its procedure, ending the 20-year practice of keeping secret reports [JURIST report] prepared by judges at hearings. At issue in the Supreme Court ruling was the case of Burton Kanter [New York Times report], where the "secret report" differed sharply from the final opinion. What should be done about other cases closed during that time period remains unclear. The Chicago Tribune has more.

[JURIST] The Racial and Religious Hatred Bill [text] passed final reading in the UK House of Commons [official website] Monday in a 301-229 vote. The bill will now go to the House of Lords [official website], where it faced strong opposition when first introduced in 2002. If passed, the law will criminalize written or public verbal comments "that are threatening, abusive or insulting [and] likely to stir up racial or religious hatred," carrying a maximum sentence of 7 years. Islamic rights advocates support the law as a means to protect British Muslims from post-9/11 (and now post-London bombings) hatred directed against that community, while critics fear the legislation's impact on free speech and religious expression [JURIST report]. CNSNews has more.

[JURIST] Royal Dutch/Shell Group [corporate website] announced Tuesday that it has settled a civil suit [press release] brought by employees in response to the company's overstatement of reserves for $90 million. The plaintiff employees were part of a retirement savings plan and filed suit under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 [US Department of Labor backgrounder]. Shell had previously settled civil investigations [JURIST report] by both the US and UK governments into the reserves misstatement and had accepted the resignation of its chief financial officer [JURIST report]. The US Department of Justice has declined to prosecute [JURIST report]. AP has more.