The White House's proposed 2008 budget of $2.9 trillion released Monday allocates $21.8 billion for the Department of Justice, including a $227 million increase in anti-terrorism funding, a $214 million increase for Preventing Violent Crime, and an $89 million increase for Drugs and Border Security. "For those of us at the Department of Justice, every [...]

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is planning to follow up on a 2006 amendment to the 1994 Violence Against Women Act with measures that would allow DNA samples to be taken from the majority of people arrested by federal agents, including illegal immigrants, the New York Times reported Monday. Supporters of the new rules, [...]

US District Judge Reggie B. Walton Monday authorized public release of audio recordings of the secret grand jury testimony of former vice-presidential aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby after they are played at his trial. While Walton expressed concerns about releasing the tapes during the trial, but federal court rules encourage disclosure. One of Libby's defense [...]

The German Federal Court of Justice ruled Monday that police in Germany are not permitted to secretly access computer and Internet data stored on suspects' computers without proper authorization. The German high court held that police hacking is illegal because no legal framework currently exists to legitimize the activity. Officials may now press for changes [...]

Journalists increasingly face the potential of government prosecution and imprisonment when they choose to report on the activities of ruling governments in the Middle East, according to a new worldwide survey released Monday by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) . CPJ, an international press freedom group, claims there has been a decrease in press [...]

Apple Inc. and Apple Corps Ltd. , the record label owned by the Beatles and their families, announced Monday they have reached a new compromise that replaces their 1991 trademark agreement and resolves the prolonged trademark dispute over Apple Inc.'s use of the name "Apple" and its corresponding logos. The new agreement reportedly ends the [...]

Eight former Bangladeshi ministers face allegations of corruption Monday after Bangladeshi security forces arrested 13 former ministers and senior politicians in raids in Dhaka Sunday. The government cited recently promulgated emergency powers as the basis for the detentions. Human rights groups and the country's two main political parties, the Awami League (AL) and the Bangladesh [...]

French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy Monday cautioned countries against the illegal and unacceptable use of child soldiers in armed conflicts at the opening of Free Children from War , a two-day global conference in Paris drawing together representatives from about 60 nations. Hosted by the French Foreign Ministry and UNICEF , the conference is directed [...]

French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy warned Monday against apologizing for crimes committed during France's colonization of Algeria. His comments came in response to remarks made Sunday by prominent a French Socialist Party (PS) leader who called on France to recognize its crimes in colonial Algeria , including the alleged massacres of 45,000 Algerians demanding independence [...]

Two human rights lawyers in Vietnam were ordered to return to a police station for additional questioning Monday after they were detained over the weekend for hosting a discussion on human rights law. Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thi Cong Nhan were arrested at Dai's office on Saturday where the training was taking place and [...]