JURIST's legal news service, powered by a team of over 40 law student reporters and editors led by Professor Bernard Hibbitts at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. http://jurist.org/paperchase JURIST@pitt.REMOVE_THISedu [JURIST] Hungarian prosecutors on Tuesday charged Laszlo Csatary, a 98-year-old Hungarian man, with the unlawful execution and torture of people in connection with the Holocaust. Slovakian authorities began the investigation [JURIST report] of Csatary in September after he was arrested on allegations of abusing and assisting in the deportation of thousands of Jews to concentration camps during the Holocaust. The arrest came after the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) [advocacy website], a Jewish human rights organization committed to finding and prosecuting Holocaust war criminals, submitted new evidence [JURIST report] to the Budapest prosecutor's office detailing the war crimes allegedly committed by... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/hungary-prosecutors-charge-accused-nazi-with-war-crimes.php 2013-06-18T13:19:27-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/hungary-prosecutors-charge-accused-nazi-with-war-crimes.php Theresa Donovan ... [JURIST] The International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] on Tuesday conditionally granted the request [press release] of Kenyan Vice President William Ruto [ICC materials; JURIST news archive] to be excused from parts of his upcoming trial. The Trial Chamber, however, will still require Ruto to be present for certain parts of his trial, such as for opening and closing statements and for presentations by victims. The Chamber also stated that this conditional grant is for the purpose of allowing Ruto to continue fulfilling the demanding requirements of his position as vice president. Any violation of the conditions may result in... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/icc-grants-kenya-vps-request-to-skip-parts-of-upcoming-trial.php 2013-06-18T12:23:52-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/icc-grants-kenya-vps-request-to-skip-parts-of-upcoming-trial.php Theresa Donovan ... [JURIST] Senior Libyan Judge Mohammed Naguib was assassinated Sunday by an unidentified gunman outside of the courthouse in Derna. Chairman of the Court of Cassation in Green Mountain province Judge Abdel-Aziz Mustafa al-Trabelsi confirmed [LANA report; in Arabic] that his colleague was killed outright in the drive-by attack. This attack is the latest of an increasing number of threats and attacks on the judiciary in Derna, a city known to be an Islamic stronghold and which houses extremist Salafist militias such as Ansar al-Shariah, the group that claimed responsibility for the 2012 raid of the US Embassy in Benghazi. In... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/libya-senior-judge-assassinated-outside-courthouse.php 2013-06-18T09:29:06-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/libya-senior-judge-assassinated-outside-courthouse.php Elizabeth LaForgia ... [JURIST] UN independent expert Chaloka Beyani [official profile] commended [press release] the government of Georgia Monday for its ongoing commitment to improving the living conditions of internally displaced people (IDPs) but called for the country to develop an integrated approach to address all waves of IDPs. Specifically, Beyani encouraged the government to address equal land, housing and property rights for displaced women in accordance with international standards. Beyani stated:New opportunities now exist for taking an inclusive integrated approach for all waves of IDPs, in the country. ... These include: the proposed revised legislation on IDPs; the realignment of the 2007... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/un-rights-expert-praised-georgia-for-its-commitment-to-improve-lives-of-internally-displaced-persons.php 2013-06-18T08:14:57-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/un-rights-expert-praised-georgia-for-its-commitment-to-improve-lives-of-internally-displaced-persons.php Elizabeth LaForgia ... [JURIST] The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania [official website] on Monday upheld [opinion, PDF] the mandatory retirement provision for judicial officers. The complaint [JURIST report], originally filed by six Pennsylvania judges, alleged that the mandatory retirement provision in the Pennsylvania Constitution [text] was in violation of the equal protection and due process clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment [text] to the US Constitution. The court, although sympathetic, held that because of the people's indefeasible right to alter their government by amending the Constitution, the mandatory retirement provision was subject to deferential, rational basis review under both equal protection and due process. The... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/pennsylvania-top-court-upholds-mandatory-retirement-age-for-judges.php 2013-06-18T07:33:05-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/pennsylvania-top-court-upholds-mandatory-retirement-age-for-judges.php Julie Deisher ... [JURIST] The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) [advocacy websites] on Monday released summary findings [press release] concluding that the use of the death penalty in California and Louisiana violates human rights. The report [text, PDF] concludes that the way the death penalty is used in California and Louisiana is arbitrary and discriminatory and that conditions on death row constitute torture. Although the CCR and FIDH found that the use of the death penalty in and of itself constitutes an inherent violation of humans' fundamental right to life, general recommendations were suggested to... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/rights-groups-find-death-penalty-in-us-states-violates-human-rights.php 2013-06-18T06:37:18-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/rights-groups-find-death-penalty-in-us-states-violates-human-rights.php Julie Deisher ... [JURIST] An anonymous source inside the US State Department said Monday that President Barack Obama [official websites] is appointing attorney Clifford Sloan [professional profile] to be the new envoy in charge of closing the detention center at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST backgrounder]. Clifford, who has served in all three federal branches, is now a privately practicing attorney and an informal adviser to Secretary of State John Kerry [official website] and has served under both Democrat and Republican leadership. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) [advocacy website], a supporter of the closure of Guantanamo Bay, welcomed the appointment [press release] and urged... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/obama-appoints-guantanamo-closure-envoy.php 2013-06-17T16:03:02-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/obama-appoints-guantanamo-closure-envoy.php G. Redd ... [JURIST] Outgoing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [official website; BBC profile] was summoned to a criminal court on Monday. Although the charges were not specified, this may be the continuation of a longstanding political battle [JURIST news archive] between Ahmadinejad and Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani [official website, in Persian], who recently filed a complaint against him. While Larijani, a conservative leader, has repeatedly criticized the president, Ahmadinejad has returned in kind by attempting to publicize incriminating evidence against Larijani's son in recent months. When Ahmadinejad played an audio recording of alleged evidence [AP report] against Larijani's son in parliament, it was... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/iran-president-summoned-to-criminal-court.php 2013-06-17T15:04:31-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/iran-president-summoned-to-criminal-court.php G. Redd ... [JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] 7-2 Monday in Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council [SCOTUSblog backgrounder] that Arizona's law requiring that proof of citizenship be provided in order to register to vote is preempted by federal law. The court found that Proposition 200 [text] is preempted by the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) [official website], which requires states to use the federal voter registration form. The NVRA was passed in 1993 with the purpose of increasing voter registration by removing state imposed barriers. Justice Antonin Scalia delivered the opinion of the court: "We hold that 42... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-strikes-down-arizona-voter-proof-of-citizenship-requirement.php 2013-06-17T14:44:40-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-strikes-down-arizona-voter-proof-of-citizenship-requirement.php Laura Klein Mullen ... [JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] 5-4 Monday in Maracich v. Spears [SCOTUSblog backgrounder] that an attorney's solicitation of clients is not a permissible purpose covered by the litigation exception to the Driver's Privacy Protection Act (DPPA) [text]. Under the DPPA, disclosure of personal information contained in the records of state motor vehicle departments (DMVs) is prohibited except for a purpose permitted by an exception listed in 1 of 14 statutory subsections. Subsection (b)(4) permits obtaining personal information from a state DMV for use "in connection with" judicial and administrative proceedings, including "investigation in anticipation of... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-rules-lawyers-cannot-solicit-clients-through-dmv-records.php 2013-06-17T13:55:39-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-rules-lawyers-cannot-solicit-clients-through-dmv-records.php Jaclyn Belczyk ... [JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] 5-4 Monday in Alleyne v. United States [SCOTUSblog backgrounder] that any fact that increases the mandatory minimum sentence is an "element" that must be submitted to the jury, overruling its 2002 decision in Harris v. United States [opinion]. Harris was a 5-4 splintered opinion that allowed a judge to be the fact-finder when increasing mandatory minimum sentences, as opposed to requiring the question to go to the jury. Monday's decision was also splintered with Justice Clarence Thomas delivering the opinion of the court:Here, the sentencing range supported by the jury's... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-rules-increase-in-mandatory-minimum-is-question-for-jury.php 2013-06-17T12:18:53-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-rules-increase-in-mandatory-minimum-is-question-for-jury.php Jaclyn Belczyk ... [JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] 5-3 Monday in Federal Trade Commission v. Actavis [SCOTUSblog backgrounder] that reverse payment settlements can sometimes violate antitrust laws. A reverse payment settlement, better known as a "pay to delay" settlement, is an agreement in which a patent holder pays a competitor to delay them from entering the market. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) [official website] challenged one such agreement as a violation of antitrust laws, but the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit dismissed the complaint [opinion], stating that a reverse payment settlement agreement generally is "immune... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-1.php 2013-06-17T11:31:01-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-1.php Jaclyn Belczyk ... [JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] 5-4 Monday in Salinas v. Texas [SCOTUSblog backgrounder] that the petitioner's Fifth Amendment [text] claim fails because he did not expressly revoke the privilege against self-incrimination. Genovevo Salinas was suspected of being involved in a murder. He consented to a search of his home, where police found a shotgun, and consented to questioning at the police station, but he was not arrested or given Miranda warnings [backgrounder]. An officer asked, "if the shotgun [his father had given them] would match the shells recovered at the scene of the murder." Salinas... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-rules-accused-must-invoke-fifth-amendment-privilege.php 2013-06-17T10:36:36-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-rules-accused-must-invoke-fifth-amendment-privilege.php Jaclyn Belczyk ... [JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] granted certiorari [order list, PDF] in four cases Monday. In Mount Holly v. Mt. Holly Gardens Citizens in Action, Inc. [docket; cert. petition, PDF] the court limited the grant to Question 1: "Are disparate impact claims cognizable under the Fair Housing Act?" The Fair Housing Act [text] makes it unlawful "[t]o refuse to sell or rent after the making of a bona fide offer ... or otherwise make unavailable or deny, a dwelling to any person because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, or national origin." Petitioners sought to redevelop a blighted... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-to-rule-in-housing-discrimination-case.php 2013-06-17T09:49:25-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-to-rule-in-housing-discrimination-case.php Jaclyn Belczyk ... [JURIST] Texas Governor Rick Perry [official website] on Friday vetoed [press release] a bill [HB 950 text] intended to prevent payment discrimination and make it easier for women to obtain equal pay. The bill was passed by the Texas House on April 25 in a 79-50 vote, and by the Senate [official websites] on May 22 with a vote of 16-15. In a press release, Perry explained that he vetoed the proposed bill because it "duplicates federal law, which already allows employees who feel they have been discriminated against through compensation to file a claim with the US Equal Employment... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/texas-governor-vetoes-bill-intended-to-prevent-pay-discrimination.php 2013-06-16T15:33:24-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/texas-governor-vetoes-bill-intended-to-prevent-pay-discrimination.php Addison Morris ... [JURIST] Kuwait's Constitutional Court [JURIST news archive] on Sunday dissolved the nation's 50-member parliament due to flaws in election procedures. In doing so, the court invalidated the results of the December election, deeming them unconstitutional. The court also upheld [BBC news report] a controversial electoral law imposing a "one person, one vote" regulation on Kuwaitis, which overrode a previous regulation that allowed each individual to vote for multiple candidates. While the government states that this new system will prevent political blocs and put the country in line with many other nations around the world, opposition groups claim that the rule... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/kuwait-dissolves-parliament-calls-for-new-elections.php 2013-06-16T14:32:21-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/kuwait-dissolves-parliament-calls-for-new-elections.php Addison Morris ... [JURIST] The Venice Commission [official website], a European rights commission, published a report [text; PDF] on Friday criticizing Hungary's recent amendments to its constitution. While the commission praised Hungary's efforts to strengthen it's rule of law, the report cited several concerns with the new constitution. The report criticized provisions of the constitution requiring a two-thirds super majority to pass many laws where a simple majority was the traditional standard, suggesting the increased standard will act as an impediment to the legislative process. The report also criticized the drafting process of the document, saying it was plagued by "lack of transparency,... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/european-commission-criticizes-hungary-constitution-amendments.php 2013-06-15T13:37:29-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/european-commission-criticizes-hungary-constitution-amendments.php Samuel Franklin ... [JURIST] The UN Human Rights Council [official website] on Friday passed a resolution the use of foreign fighters in the Syrian Civil War [JURIST backgrounder], responding to an influx of foreign militants on both sides of the conflict, including Lebanese Hezbollah militants supporting the Syrian government. The resolution did not call [Reuters report] for a stoppage of arms flow into Syria, merely a cessation on foreign troops involvement in the conflict. The rights council's decision to discourage such activity comes one day after the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights announced that the death toll in the Syrian conflict [JURIST... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/un-rights-council-condemns-foreign-military-involvement-in-syria.php 2013-06-15T12:30:16-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/un-rights-council-condemns-foreign-military-involvement-in-syria.php Samuel Franklin ... [JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] on Friday that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) [official website] overstepped its authority by issuing a rule that would have required employers to post notices informing workers of their rights under federal labor law. The decision accords with the unanimous decision [opinion, PDF; JURIST report] by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit [official website] in National Association of Manufacturers v. National Labor Relations Board. The Fourth Circuit agreed with the DC court that "the rulemaking function provided for in... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/fourth-circuit-strikes-nlrb-mandate-to-post-union-rights.php 2013-06-15T10:24:17-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/fourth-circuit-strikes-nlrb-mandate-to-post-union-rights.php Kimberly Bennett ... [JURIST] The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories Richard Falk on Friday called on Israel [statement] to end its blockade of the Gaza Strip [BBC backgrounder]. The blockade, which restricts the flow of goods and people into the region through heavily-guarded border-crossings, has been devastating for the 1.75 million Palestinians living in the region. Falk stated [press release] that Israel should lift the blockade "entirely and immediately," calling it "a deliberate policy of collective punishment which is legally indefensible and morally reprehensible." The announcement followed Israel's approval of the delivery of... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/un-expert-calls-on-israel-to-end-gaza-blockade.php 2013-06-15T09:42:37-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/un-expert-calls-on-israel-to-end-gaza-blockade.php Kimberly Bennett ... [JURIST] The Wisconsin State Assembly [official website] approved a bill [SB 206] Friday that will require those women seeking abortions to review an ultrasound of the fetus before having the procedure. The technician would have to display an image of the fetus, as well as report its health status. Similar to other recent state abortion laws [JURIST news archive], it would require the practitioner to be admitted to practice at a hospital within 30 miles. According to Planned Parenthood [advocacy website], an abortion clinic in Appleton, Wisconsin, will have to close due to this requirement. The bill will have to... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/wisconsin-state-house-passes-law-requiring-pre-abortion-ultrasound.php 2013-06-15T08:45:00-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/wisconsin-state-house-passes-law-requiring-pre-abortion-ultrasound.php G. Redd ... [JURIST] The Court of Cassation of Argentina, the highest criminal court, sentenced former Argentine President Carlos Menem [official websites] of selling illegal weapons to Croatia and Ecuador during his presidency. The now-Senator Menem pleaded innocence, claiming that the weapons were intended for Panama and Venezuela but were stolen and sold to parties that violated the country's peace agreements [text, PDF] and UN embargoes [summary]. The lower court initially acquitted Menem and 17 other defendants last year on a series of charges [JURIST report]. On appeal, however, the Court of Cassation sentenced 12 of those defendants to jail time and remanded... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/argentina-court-sentences-former-president-to-7-years-in-prison.php 2013-06-15T07:23:28-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/argentina-court-sentences-former-president-to-7-years-in-prison.php G. Redd ... [JURIST] Egypt's Court of Cassation [SIS backgrounder], its highest court, on Thursday overturned the jail sentence of former prime minister Ahmed Nazif [JURIST news archive] and ordered a retrial on charges of illicit gains. The court overturned [Daily News Egypt report] his sentence pursuant to Article 166 of Egypt's 2012 Constitution [text, PDF, JURIST report], which states that charges can only be brought against a prime minister in connection with his or her official conduct by the president, the prosecutor general or one-third of the members of the Council of Representatives. The court made this ruling despite the fact that... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/egypt-high-court-revokes-sentence-against-former-pm-ahmed-nazif.php 2013-06-14T10:14:11-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/egypt-high-court-revokes-sentence-against-former-pm-ahmed-nazif.php Jaimie Cremeans ... [JURIST] Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] on Thursday used a presidential decree to bypass parliament in order to make changes to electoral laws in compliance with the Constitutional Court's order to hold elections by July 31. The amended electoral laws [Reuters report] ensure that all political parties have access to the state broadcaster and that the results of elections will be posted outside polling centers, and the long-awaited poll date was officially set for July 31. However, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] promptly declared [Guardian report] Mugabe's action to be a "unilateral... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/zimbabwe-president-bypasses-parliament-to-change-election-laws.php 2013-06-14T09:30:12-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/zimbabwe-president-bypasses-parliament-to-change-election-laws.php Julie Deisher ... [JURIST] The US House Judiciary Committee [official website] on Wednesday voted 20-12 [press release] in favor of legislation which would ban most abortions in the US after 20 weeks gestation. The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act [HR 1797, PDF] is based on the controversial premise that a fetus can feel pain by 20 weeks of gestation. As stated [text] by the subcommittee's Chairman Bob Goodlatte, "Congress has the power to acknowledge these developments by enacting HR 1797 and prohibiting abortions after the point at which scientific evidence shows the unborn can feel pain, with limited exceptions." A vote by the... http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/us-house-subcommittee-approves-fetal-pain-bill.php 2013-06-14T08:20:39-05:00 http://jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/us-house-subcommittee-approves-fetal-pain-bill.php Julie Deisher ...