US District Judge Andrew Hanen of the US Southern District of Texas Monday released a Friday order directing 10 property owners in Cameron County, Texas to provide the federal government access to their land for 180 days so it can begin surveying for a 670-mile fence along the US-Mexico border . The federal government had [...]

A three-judge panel of the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled Monday that Arizona residents should be able to purchase specialty license plates bearing the slogan "Choose Life." The Ninth Circuit held that the Arizona License Plate Commission violated the First Amendment free speech rights of the Arizona Life Coalition when it refused [...]

Judge Royce Lamberth of the US District Court for the District of Columbia sentenced Colombian rebel Ricardo Palmera to 60 years in prison Monday for his role in a hostage-taking conspiracy involving three American citizens in Colombia . Palmera, aka Simon Trinidad, is a senior member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) , [...]

UN Office on Drugs and Crime Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa Monday opened a week-long UN anti-corruption conference in Bali with a plea that nations take serious steps to enforce the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) . Costa warned that efforts to recover stolen national assets are being hindered in many countries by politicians [...]

A French bill aimed at reducing violent crimes committed by repeat offenders violates international fair trial standards , Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Monday. The proposed law, sponsored by the administration of French President Nicolas Sarkozy , would allow three judges to decide whether a convicted violent offender is still dangerous. After a multi-disciplinary panel, [...]

The Bush administration warned Democratic leaders over the weekend that US President George W. Bush will veto any attempt to extend the temporary Protect America Act beyond its February 1 expiration date that does not include liability protection for telecom companies, according to the Washington Post Sunday. The Protect Act, enacted as a stopgap while [...]

A Turkish court on Monday sentenced political science professor Atilla Yayla Monday for "insulting the legacy" of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey. Yayla was charged last March after suggesting in a November 2006 speech that Ataturk's regime from 1925 to 1945 was not as progressive as suggested by official Turkish literature. Yayla's lawyers [...]

French prosecutors asked a judge to file preliminary charges on Monday against alleged "rogue trader" Jerome Kerviel in connection with what is being called the largest bank fraud in history. Prosecutors asked for preliminary charges of forgery, breach of trust, and fraud against Kerviel, who turned himself in on Saturday and denies any wrongdoing. Societe [...]

The Israeli Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal by Omri Sharon to reduce his seven-month prison sentence, saying that it found no reason to lighten Sharon's sentence after a lower court reduced his sentence from nine months for good behavior. Sharon, who will begin serving his sentence on February 27, was convicted in February [...]

Several prominent Indonesian lawyers told AFP on Monday that a civil corruption case against former Indonesian President Haji Mohammed Suharto could continue after Suharto's death on Sunday. Suharto, who ruled Indonesia as President from 1967 to 1998, was sued by the government on charges that he embezzled $440 million from the Yayasan Supersemar , a [...]