Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Thursday pardoned former army sergeant Sunil Ratnayake, who was sentenced to death for killing eight Tamil civilians during the country’s civil war. After a 13-year trial, the Colombo High Court found Ratnayake guilty of eight civilian murders and sentenced him to death in June 2015. The Supreme Court upheld [...]

The California Commission on Judicial Performance issued a notice of public censure on Wednesday, resolving disciplinary matters concerning offensive remarks made by California Judge Jeffrey Bennett. The commission publicly denounced Bennett’s racially and sexually charged comments in a 22-page decision and reprimand order. “Judge Bennett’s misconduct mostly involves saying things no judge should say—comments and [...]

US Attorney General William Barr directed the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to use home confinement for inmates currently held in jail or prison when appropriate in response to an increase of COVID-19 cases among prison populations on Thursday. Any inmates released on home confinement will be under 14-day quarantine. The move is intended to slow [...]

In a rare move, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) issued an indictment against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Thursday. Maduro and 14 current and former Venezuelan officials have been charged with narco-terrorism, corruption, drug trafficking and other crimes. The DOJ alleges that Maduro conspired with the FARC, Colombia’s guerrilla army, prior to becoming the [...]

The Supreme Court of Israel ruled that Israel’s Parliament must elect a new speaker Thursday after Yuli Edelstein, speaker and ally to the Prime Minister, resigned on Wednesday over a disagreement with the legislative decisions of Parliament during the COVID-19 pandemic. Edelstein raised concerns with the operation of the Supreme Court, stating that democracy could [...]

Everybody knows that the Coronavirus pandemic is an economic catastrophe. Small businesses are already failing and people are losing their jobs. The government can and should do everything possible to mitigate their suffering. But in at least one economic sector, there is another option. The arts sector is struggling for the same reason many other [...]

The man who opened fire and killed dozens of New Zealand worshipers last March, pleaded guilty to all 51 charges of murder Thursday. New Zealand’s worst mass shooting took place on March 15 of last year, when Australian man Brendon Tarrant opened fire on two Christchurch mosques with an automatic weapon, killing 51 people. Tarrant [...]

In a bill signing ceremony on Wednesday, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed into law a new bill that will allow sports betting to occur in tribal casinos in the state. The bill, which was introduced earlier this year and quickly passed by both chambers of the state legislature, will add Washington to a growing list [...]

Prosecutors in Istanbul announced Wednesday that they have prepared an indictment of a close aide to Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and a former deputy head of general intelligence over the killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The two men, former deputy head of Saudi Arabia’s general intelligence Ahmed al-Asiri and former [...]

A unanimous Senate vote Wednesday approved a historic $2 trillion stimulus package to try to keep the US economy afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill would provide direct payments of $1,200 to Americans earning up to $75,000, phasing out for higher earners and ending for those earning more than $99,000. It includes for families [...]