[JURIST] Leading Friday's states brief, Florida's 1st District Court of Appeal has ruled [PDF text] that unused butterfly ballots from the 2000 presidential election can be destroyed as they are not public records. Chief Judge Charles J. Kahn, Jr. wrote that a ballot becomes public record when it is voted, but "the unused ballots, en masse, are no different than cases of blank papers held in a government office." A University of Florida history professor testified for the Plaintiff that the different styles of punch-cards had historical value. Under state law, election supervisors can either keep or destroy unused ballots with the permission of the Division of Elections [official website]. AP has more.

In other state legal news ...

• The Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled [text] today that errant golf balls coming into a homeowner's yard constitute a "continuing trespass" and thus are an invasion of the homeowner's land. The decision overturned a Superior Court ruling that the homeowners had not shown the operation of the golf course constituted a nuisance. The Plaintiff, living near the 9th hole of a golf course, said over 1,800 balls were hit into her yard in 5 years. AP has more.
  
  
• The Alabama House [official website] has passed a bill requiring mandatory castration for persons convicted of a violent sex crime against a child under 12 and lifetime electronic monitoring. The bill would also prevent convicted sex offenders from working or loitering within 500 feet of a school, park or business that educates or entertains children. A bill [text] passed by the Senate requires electronic monitoring for at least 10 years and does not have the castration requirement. Sex offender legislation that was proposed by Alabama Attorney General Troy King [Attorney General press release] has been heavily amended in the House bill, and amended once by the Senate. AP has more.
  
  
• Alaska Attorney General David Marquez has issued a statement [PDF text] advising the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services [official website] that the US Supreme Court's ruling in Gonzales v. Raich [JURIST report] does not forbid the agency from registering medical marijuana users. State law, authorized by voter initiative in 1998, authorizes medical marijuana use provided the user registers with the state and provides a doctor's prescription. Alaska was considering suspending its program after the court decision. Both Oregon and California, who suspended their programs, have resumed them. Alaska's Anchorage Daily News has local coverage.

[JURIST] Leading Friday's corporations and securities news, airline regulators have approved America West's merger with bankrupt US Airways. In a joint press release, the airlines announced that the Air Transportation Stabilization Board [official website] (ATSB) approved of the merger unanimously. The companies also said that the ATSB voted to allow the airlines to consolidate their combined $1 billion in debt, but the Executive Director of the ATSB said that the airlines will continue to repay the debt separately [Reuters report]. MarketWatch has more.

In other corporations and securities law news...

• New York City has sued Sprint, T-Mobile, and Nextel for misleading advertising. The lawsuit seeks fines against the cell phone providers for misleading advertising in defiance of New York law. The suit alleges that the companies would make bold promises in large, prominent type but would include caveats in fine print. The city's Department of Consumer Affairs [official website] issued a press release detailing the suit and saying, "You can't promise a great deal in the headline and hide the true costs in the fine print." The city also said that Cingular and Verizon had settled the city's claims against those companies. Reuters has more.
  
  
• California has won a $700 million decision in punitive damages against French holding company Artémis. Artémis, owned by French billionaire François Pinault [Wikipedia profile], was sued for its role in the 1990s sale of Executive Life, a now-defunct insurance company that California's Insurance Commission [official website] took over following the sale. The jury did not find actual damages for the state, which Artémis' lawyers say precludes the rewarding of any punitive damages. The state's attorneys argue that California law allows punitive damages in place of actual damages where the defendant had received "ill-gotten gains" through its acts. Bloomberg has more.

[JURIST] A UN legal expert has recommended urgent action be taken to restore the rule of law in Ecuador following last December's Congressional ouster of 27 of 31 Supreme Court judges [JURIST report]. The Special Rapporteur of the UN Commission on Human Rights on the independence of judges and lawyers [official website], Leandro Despouy, concluded in a report that the country's Congress had failed to replace the judges, simply establishing rules for a new selection committee, violating UN principles and international norms. UN News Centre has more, including Despouy's report on his recent visit to Ecuador.

[JURIST] Italy and France announced new security measures Friday designed to combat terrorism following the recent London bombings [JURIST report]. Although neither nation has been the target of Islamic terrorists, both have tightened security on transit systems and are investigating ways to crack down on militants and gather information. French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy [BBC profile] announced "an increase in funds for video surveillance, an acceleration in techniques for gathering telephone material and data storage and a reinforcement of early monitoring of radical elements." Italy proposed new regulations making it a crime to prepare explosives for a terrorist attack or to train others on using explosives. Italy also extended the time police have to identify detainees, from 12 hours to 24 hours and allow police to take DNA samples from suspects who can't be identified. Bloomberg has coverage of Italian anti-terror measures. AP has coverage of French measures. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The Japanese parliament passed a measure Friday giving Japanese Minister of State for Defense Yoshinori Ohno [official profile] the legal power to shoot down incoming missiles without consulting the prime minister or cabinet. The bill, which passed in the lower house last month, is seen as a response to Japan's growing worry about North Korea's nuclear weapons and missiles programs. Japan's post-war pacifist constitution [JURIST report] prevents the use of military force in international conflicts. However, Japan is involved in a joint missile defense program with the US [BBC report] and has recently relaxed its stance on arms, reaching an agreement with the US [AFX report] in March to produce PAC-3 missiles. Aljazeera has more.

[JURIST] Western intelligence security services believe that Ratko Mladic [Wikipedia profile], who has been indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia [official website; JURIST news archive] for war crimes, is still being protected by covert members of the Serbia-Montenegro army and is "running rings around" intelligence agencies seeking to capture him, UPI reported Friday. Eurofor [official website], a NATO-supported group hunting down Mladic and former Bosnian Serb president Radovan Karadzic [Wikipedia profile], is said to have been hampered by bureaucratic red tape and demoralized by their lack of success. The Washington Times has more.

[JURIST] California Superior Court Judge Gail Ohanesian removed Proposition 77 [proposition text], a redistricting plan by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger [official profile], from the November 7 state ballot Thursday, holding that supporters violated California's constitution by using two significantly different versions during the qualifying process. Attorney General Bill Lockyer [official profile] told the court that the version used to gather voter signatures to put the measure on the ballot was significantly different from the version submitted to the Attorney General's office for review. California's Constitution [text] requires that before signatures can be gathered, the proposed initiative must be given to the Attorney General's office for a title and 100-word summary, which is included on the document voters sign. The two documents had at least 11 differences, but the bill's author argues the differences are primarily stylistic and did not affect the prepared summary. Proposition 77 removes the power to draw legislative and congressional districts from the legislature and assigns it to a panel of three retired judges. The University of California has in-depth coverage of California redistricting. NBC4.tv has more.

[JURIST] AP is reporting that London police arrested a man Friday in the south London neighborhood of Stockwell, near where a suspect was shot earlier today [JURIST report], in connection with Thursday's bombing attacks [JURIST report]. In related news, two men arrested Thursday [JURIST report] on suspicion of involvement in the bombings have been released without charge. AP has more.

[JURIST] Leading Friday's international brief, the main political opposition party in South Africa, the Democratic Alliance [official website], has called on South African President Thabo Mbeki [profile] to reject a request by Zimbabwean officials for financial aid to support the rapidly collapsing Zimbabwean economy. DA officials also called on Mbeki to formally denounce Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe [Wikipedia profile] and his program of forced evictions, called Operation Murambatsvina [Wikipedia backgrounder] in light of the excerpts revealed so far from UN Special Envoy Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka's report on the situation in Zimbabwe [JURIST report]. Mbeki had announced that he would make no official comment concerning the evictions until the report was finalized. DA officials warned that any financial support for Mugabe would be a donation, since Zimbabwe would be unable to repay, and would "shock the democratic world" as an endorsement of Operation Murambatsvina. South Africa's Mail & Guardian is reporting that a draft outline between Zimbabwe and South Africa concerning a loan amount was agreed to, but that no formalized understanding has been signed [Mail & Guardian report] authorizing a transfer of funds. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Zimbabwe and South Africa [JURIST news archives]. ZimOnline has local coverage.

In other international legal news ...

• the previously approved and widely popular Bomas draft of changes to the Kenyan Constution was altered late Thursday night after a coalition of political parties supporting the Kenyan government [official website] sponsored changes to the Bomas draft passed the new version in the Kenyan Parliament [government website]. The approval of the new draft gives Kenyan Attorney-General Amos Wako [official website] power to create a constitution review bill that will formalize the document to be submitted to Kenyans in a national referendum by the end of November. If approved, the new constitution would take effect on December 12. The new draft version changed several key provisions of the Bomas draft, including lessening the power given to the new post of Prime Minister, keeping most of the executive power in the office of president, and retaining a single chamber legislature. Oppositions members have alleged that the government is using the new draft as a way to keep power away the populace and in the hands of a select few in government. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Kenya [JURIST news archive]. Kenya's Daily Nation has local coverage.
  
  
• 12 nations comprising the "Uniting for Consensus" group submitted their version of a proposal to reform the current structure of the UN Security Council as a final attempt to prevent the G4 nations' proposal [JURIST report] from being approved. The UFC proposal opposes the introduction of any new permanent membership spots on the Security Council and recommends the introduction of ten new seats that would be open for "re-election" after a normal two year term, instead of automatic exchange with another nation. Any reform to the Security Council's current structure must be approved by a two-thirds vote in the UN General Assembly and survive a veto review by the current permanent members of the Security Council. The UFC is comprised of South Korea, Italy, Canada, Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Pakistan, Turkey, Columbia, Costa Rica, San Marino and Malta. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of the United Nations [JURIST news report]. Chosun Ilbo has local coverage.
  
  
• Official spokesperson for the Royal Nepalese Army [official website] Brigadier General Deepak Kumar Gurung has announced that six RNA soldiers accused of sexual misconduct while serving in the UN peacekeeping mission to the Congo were found guilty and sentenced by military tribunal. The six soldiers were convicted of sexual misconduct and were sentenced to three months incarceration, with one of the soldiers being demoted. The UN Department of Peacekeeping [official website] requires peacekeepers alleged to have violated its new, tougher standards on sexual conduct to be recalled by their home governments. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Nepal [JURIST news archive]. NepalNews has local coverage.

[JURIST] Senior magistrates in Spain's Audiencia Nacional, the country's primary terrorist court, say that they are contemplating refusing to extradite Spanish nationals to Germany after German officials refused to extradite [JURIST report] and later released Mamoun Darkazanli [BBC report], a German national and suspected al-Qaeda financier wanted in Spain on terrorist charges. Germany's Federal Constitutional Court, Bundesverfassungsgericht (BVerfG) [official website, in German] ruled this week that the European arrest warrant violated the German Constitution [text], which prohibits the extradition of its own citizens. The Spanish magistrates said that if the German court's ruling only affects German nationals, "then those petitions with the objective of detaining or handing over Spanish nationals to Germany will have to be denied." The Financial Times has more.

[JURIST] The US Department of State urged senators Thursday not to pass the UN Reform Act of 2005 [PDF House version], legislation introduced by Senators Norm Coleman (D-MN)[official website] and Dick Lugar (R-IN) [official website], that cuts the dues the US pays to the United Nations. The House of Representatives passed similar legislation [JURIST report] introduced last month [JURIST report], voting to reduce payments by up to 50% if reforms were not enacted. US Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns said it was likely the body would agree to a series of reforms by September and that, "it is vital that the US lead at the United Nations, that we have faith in the UN, pay our dues, promote reform and contribute to strengthen the UN." UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has also spoken out against the measure [JURIST report]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit [official website] on Friday denied an appeal [PDF opinion] from convicted spy Jonathan Pollard [advocacy website] to reduce the life sentence he received for selling classified documents to Israel while working as a civilian intelligence analyst for the US Navy. The court ruled that Pollard should have contested his 1987 sentence earlier, that he failed to convince the court that his legal counsel was inadequate, and that the court did not have the authority to review Pollard's document request. Pollard's case has been a source of friction in US-Israeli relations with Israel repeatedly urging his release. AP has more.

[JURIST] Former Myanmar prime minister Khin Nyunt [Wikipedia profile] received a 44-year suspended sentence Friday after he was convicted on eight charges including bribery and corruption, according to a legal source in Yangon. The secret tribunal at Insein prison also handed down long jail terms to two of Khin Nyunt's sons; 68 years and 51 years respectively for Zaw Naing Oo and Ye Naing Win. The convictions come as a group of 10 Southeast Asian ministers plan to meet in Laos to discuss whether Myanmar leads the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) [official website] in 2006. It is believed Nyunt will be kept under house arrest, where he has been held since his ouster during a purge in October 2004 [JURIST report]. It is unknown whether the convictions can be appealed through the Myanmar courts. AFP has more.

[JURIST] Detroit teenager Andrew Osantowski, accused of planning a massacre at his suburban high school, was sentenced Thursday to at least four years in prison for threatening terrorism and stockpiling weapons in his home. Law enforcement officials noted that the case seems to be among the first in the nation in which anti-terror laws were applied to school violence. Osantowski was convicted last month [JURIST report] of threatening an act of terrorism via computer after authorities found messages he posted about killing Chippewa Valley High [school website] classmates in an Internet chat room. A search of Osantowski's home turned up weapons, ammunition, and Nazi propaganda among other things. At his sentencing Ostantowski said he was "truly sorry for the things I have done. My family never raised me like this." AP has more.

[JURIST] In a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) a spokesman for North Korea's Foreign Ministry stated Friday that the Korean War Armistice Agreement [text] ending the war in 1953 must be replaced by a peace treaty to resolve Korea's nuclear crisis [BBC Q&A]. The comments precede a meeting of regional leaders in Beijing Tuesday, intended to result in an exchange of Pyongyang's nuclear powers program for security guarantees and economic assistance. According to a foreign ministry spokesman, the peace treaty, "would lead to putting an end to the US hostile policy toward [North Korea], which spawned the nuclear issue and the former's nuclear threat, and automatically result in the denuclearisation of the peninsula." He added that a peace treaty would "give a strong impetus to the process of the soon-to-be-resumed six party talks to settle the nuclear issue." North Korea pulled out of the six party talks [DoS backgrounder] when it acknowledged that it had nuclear weapons [JURIST report] in February. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] In a report [PDF text] released Friday the UN condemned [press release] "Operation Restore Order," an initiative implemented by the government of Zimbabwe [JURIST news archive] to reduce crime by razing urban slums. Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka [official profile], Executive Director of the UN Human Settlements Programme [official website], prepared the report following a two week tour of the country [JURIST report]. Despite British and US pressure and the report urging cessation of the demolition, the UN Security Council [JURIST report] has yet to take up the issue as several member nations have refused to allow it into their agenda. "Operation Restore Order" has resulted in over 46,000 arrests and between 330,000 and one million people have been left homeless. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Thursday ordered [opinion] the US government to sell writings and other materials seized from the home of Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski [Wikipedia profile] in 1996 and use the proceeds to contribute to the $15 million awarded to his victims. Kaczynski wanted to donate his works, including journals, letters, an autobiography, and writings arguing that technology reduces human freedom, to the University of Michigan's Labadie collection of social protest [library website], while the government wanted to keep them. Countering the government's argument that forcing Kaczynski to sell the proprty would allow him to profit, Judge Michael Daly Hawkins said, "Applying the revenue from the sale of Kaczynski's property, even inflated by his criminal celebrity status, to his restitution debt would benefit not Kaczynski but the victims of his crimes." AP has more.

[JURIST] London police shot and killed a man wearing a thick coat and possibly a "bomb belt" at London's Stockwell Tube station Friday, a day after the city was hit by the second round of terrorist attacks [JURIST report] in two weeks. Passengers said a man, South Asian in appearance, ran onto a train at the south London station wearing a large coat. When police pursued him, he tripped, before police in plain-clothes tackled and shot him. One passenger told the BBC that the man had been wearing a "bomb belt with wires coming out." Former Flying Squad officer, John O'Connor said that the man "must either [have been] one of the bombers or a potential suicide bomber." BBC has more.

10:40 AM ET - AP is reporting that London police chief Ian Blair said Friday that the fatal shooting at the subway station was "directly linked" to the bombings investigations.

[JURIST] Two days after his nomination to the Supreme Court [JURIST report] by US President Bush, John Roberts made progress Thursday towards his goal of Senate confirmation when he received a rating of "non-activist judge" from moderate Republican Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Arlen Specter [official website]. Roberts has yet to receive public opposition from a single Senate Democrat and Wednesday Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) [official website] said Roberts did not meet the definition of "extraordinary circumstances" that would justify a filibuster under a compromise worked out by 14 senators earlier this spring to avert the so-called "nuclear option [Wikipedia backgrounder]." But on his second day of courtesy calls Roberts also met with Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) [official website] and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) [official website], two of the three Democrats who opposed his nomination to the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit two years earlier. Schumer gave Roberts a list of questions, some dealing with abortion, and told him to "be prepared to answer them in the best way he can" when the hearings commence. AP has more.

[JURIST] The US House of Representatives [official website] voted Thursday to extend the Patriot Act [text], a key document used to combat terrorism in the US. The measure was approved 257-171 [roll call] with 43 Democrats joining 214 Republicans in voting to extend key provisions of the Act that were set to expire at the end of the year. The majority of the nine-hour debate centered on language making permanent 14 of 16 provisions that had four-year sunset provisions. The bill also includes 10-year extensions to two provisions; one allowing roving wiretaps and another allowing investigations into library and medical records. President Bush praised the vote while some democrats expressed concern that the law may allow civil liberties to be trampled. AP has more.

[JURIST] The White House said Thursday it would veto the Senate bill for next year's defense spending if members of the Senate moved to regulate or set up a commission to investigate conditions at US detention camps. Democrats stated Thursday they will present an amendment to create an independent national commission to investigate detainee abuses at US facilities such as Guantanamo [JURIST news archive] and Abu Ghraib [JURIST news archive]. Also, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) [official website] and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) [official website] have said they will present amendments next week addressing "the standard of treatment of prisoners" and the defining the legal status of enemy combatants, respectively. The White House said such amendments would "interfere with the protection of Americans from terrorism by diverting resources from the war." Reuters has more.