David Raynes : "Observing from the US, what is happening in relation to drugs policy in Europe must seem truly confusing. Lurid headlines "Swiss legalise Heroin" or similar are half-truths. The reality is different. Prescribing heroin for the most chaotic addicts is nothing new, nor was it invented in Switzerland or the Netherlands, though both [...]

The Montana First Judicial District ruled Friday that terminally ill patients in the state have the right to commit physician-assisted suicide. The case, Baxter v. Montana was brought by a number of terminally-ill Montanans, their doctors, and Compassion & Choices , an organization supporting the legalization of physician assisted suicide. In their complaint, the plaintiffs [...]

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sought to prohibit government censorship of prisoners' testimony about alleged torture and abuse at Guantanamo Bay in a motion filed Friday in military commission proceedings against five "high value detainees" accused of involvement in the 9/11 attacks . The motion says observers at the proceedings watch on a closed-circuit [...]

The Kenyan government on Friday published a bill calling for a constitutional amendment allowing the replacement of the controversial Electoral Commission of Kenya which oversaw the re-election of President Mwai Kibaki in December 2007, leading to massive demonstrations and more than 1,000 deaths. Justice Minister Martha Karua said the country's parliament could pass the bill [...]

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev Friday signed into law legislation authorizing the creation of a DNA database for convicted criminals, according to reports. Under the law, passed by the State Duma on November 19 and approved by the Council of Federation on November 26, authorities are allowed to collect and retain DNA from prisoners convicted of [...]

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has indicted five Blackwater USA guards involved in the September 2007 killings of 17 Iraqi civilians , according to reports. The Associated Press reported that sealed indictments were issued Thursday, and will remain sealed until at least Monday. While the indictments had been expected to contain charges under the [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on Friday ruled that an Egyptian Christian who could face torture in Egypt may challenge his deportation from the United States. Sameh Khouzam fled to the US in 1998 allegedly to escape religious persecution. American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) lawyers representing Khouzam argued before the US [...]

The Russian State Duma on Friday gave first reading to a bill that would ban jury trials for terrorism, espionage, and treason, among other crimes. In a vote of 351 to 34 with no abstentions, the lower house of parliament approved the bill that proponents call necessary as a result of lenient jurors . Opponents [...]

The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) said Friday that it would add charges of murder and torture to the case against Khmer Rouge leader Kaing Guek-Eav , also known as "Duch." Duch already faces charges of crimes against humanity and violations of the Geneva Conventions, but commentators say the inclusion of the [...]

The US Supreme Court granted certiorari Friday in two cases. In al-Marri v. Pucciarelli , the Court will decide whether the Authorization for Use of Military Force , passed after the 9/11 attacks , authorizes the indefinite military detention of of a person lawfully residing in the US, without criminal charge or trial, based on [...]