[JURIST] AP is reporting that the California Assembly has narrowly passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state. AB 849, the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act [Equality California materials] was approved by the state Senate [JURIST report] last Thursday, and now goes to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for his signature, although it's not yet clear whether he will sign it or not. The bill, if signed into law, would be the first state law to legalize same-sex marriage and not just civil unions; same-sex marriage is legal in Massachusetts, but that was the result of a judicial decision. Gay rights group Equality California has issued a press release on the Assembly bill passage. Gay 365.com has more.

[JURIST] New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin issued a new emergency order Tuesday evening authorizing public safety officers in the city - including police, firemen, and members of the US military - to force the removal of anyone not engaged in the Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive] recovery effort. This latest evacuation order supercedes the mandatory evacuation order Nagin issued just before the arrival of the storm [JURIST report] and is directed at the estimated 10,000 holdouts still believed to be within the New Orleans city limits. It reads in part:

Whereas, Hurricane Katrina has caused catastrophic damage to the City of New Orleans, including, without limitation, several breaches in the levee system, loss of power and water service and the collapse and or loss of structural integrity of roadways, building and other structures;

Whereas, the above referenced damage necessitates an immediate and unimpeded recovery effort by the City, the State of Louisiana and the United States Government;

Effective immediately, any public safety officer within the boundaries of the Parish of Orleans, including, without limitation, members of the New Orleans, including, without limitation, members of the New Orleans Police Department, the New Orleans Fire Department, the National Guard and any branch of the U.S. Military, is hereby instructed and authorized to compel the evacuation of all persons from the City of New Orleans, regardless of whether such persons are on private property or do not desire to leave, unless such persons are determined by such public safety officers to be specifically engaged by the City, the State or the U. S. Government in providing assistance in the remediation and recovery effort.

[JURIST] Iraqi president Jalal Talabani said in an interview on al-Iraqiya state TV [media website] broadcast late Tuesday that ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive], now in custody pending trials for crimes again humanity by the Iraqi Special Tribunal [official website], had confessed before an investigating judge to crimes "such as executions." The confession, Talabani said, had come "from Saddam's mouth." The assertion has not yet been publicly confirmed by other government officials or by any official of the Tribunal, and it is unclear what legal effect a preliminary confession would have on the Iraqi trial process. In the same interview Talabani said that there were "100 reasons to sentence Saddam to death", and that he "deserves a death sentence 20 times a day because he tried to assassinate me 20 times", referring back to the days when Talabani was a Jurdish fighter. Talabani is personally opposed to the death penalty, but said "My not signing [a death warrant] does not mean that I will block the decision of the court." Saddam met personally [JURIST report] with Khalil Dulaimi, his Iraqi lawyer, on Monday; his defense has objected to the announced October 19 commencement of his first trial on grounds that it has insufficient time to prepare, and a British lawyer associated with the defense said Tuesday that neither Saddam nor Dulaimi had yet been officially advised of the trial date. AP has more. Reuters provides additional coverage.

[JURIST] Leading Tuesday's corporations and securities law news, executives at DaimlerChrysler [corporate website] have denied that they were involved in insider trading. German media are reporting that DaimlerChrysler's chief spokesman Hartmut Schick and executive board member Ruediger Grube are under investigation for insider trading relating to the surprise resignation of CEO Juergen Schrempp in July [AP report]. German media are also reporting that Grube and Schick's homes and offices were searched last week [MarketWatch report] in relation to the allegations. Both men are considered close confidants of Schrempp. Reuters has more.

In other corporations and securities law news...

• Australian Prime Minister John Howard [Wikipedia profile] has called the behavior of telecom Telstra Corp. [corporate website] disgraceful as it moves towards full privatization [AP report]. Telstra's American CEO Sol Trujillo recently criticized Australia's regulatory actions, claiming that they would cost the company AUS$850 million and that he expects the company's stock to fall 7-10 percent [AP report] in the next year. Telstra, Australia's largest phone service provider, has been accused recently of intentionally deflating stock price in order to discourage regulation enforcement by the government, the company's largest shareholder. Reuters has more.
  
  
• Despite Northwest's continued assertions [official strike response page] that its mechanics union strike is not affecting safety, the FAA [official website] is preparing to investigate allegations of hundreds of missing safety reports from the airline. The Wall Street Journal reports that the investigation comes as a result of an FAA inspector's letter to Democratic Senator Mark Dayton [official biography] of Minnesota. In the letter, the inspector is said to complain that he was transferred away from Northwest and that 470 FAA defect reports had not been entered into the agency's electronic database. Dayton forwarded the letter to the FAA along with his own memo. Reuters has more.
  
  
• As reported earlier in JURIST's Paper Chase, Morgan Stanley [corporate website] has settled for $700,000 with Delaware's Department of Justice. The Delaware Attorney General's Office [official website] had alleged that brokers with the firm had made over 500 improper transactions through a Delaware couple's personal brokerage account. The settlement comes as Morgan Stanley is expected to announce a $10 million settlement with the SEC [AP report] over improper e-mail disposal. AP has more.
  
  

[JURIST] In Tuesday's environmental law news, an Indonesian court heard arguments Tuesday on whether it should proceed with a criminal trial of US-based Newmont Mining Corp. [corporate website] for alleged pollution in Buyat Bay. The hearing had been postponed in August when the country's Supreme Court ordered two of the judges back to Jakarta for training on environmental law, not, contrary to earlier information, because they were being replaced [JURIST report]. After hearing prosecution arguments, presiding Judge Ridwan Damanik adjourned the case until September 20, when the court will make its ruling. Reuters has more.

In other environmental law news,

• The Bangladesh government [official website] has announced that all government, semi-government and autonomous organizations will have Friday and Saturday off beginning September 9. Currently, Bangladeshi workers work six day weeks. The move to a five day work week is done in part to cut back on fuel consumption. Critics of the new ruling are hoping to change the weekend to Saturday and Sunday, inline with the practice of most other countries. Reuters has more.
  
  
• The US Minerals Management Service (MMS) [official website] seeks comments on a proposed rule [text] that would require companies with federal oil and gas leases in the outer continental shelf to provide information on how they will meet the requirements of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) [text] and the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) [text]. This additional informtion would be submitted along with the plans for exploration, development and production of the area. Comments can be made here until November 7, 2005.

[JURIST] Leading Tuesday's states brief, a North Carolina court of appeals has ruled [text] that promotional game pieces packaged with telephone long-distance cards are not part of an illegal lottery. State officials claimed that Treasured Arts, Inc.'s long-distance telephone cards were an illegal form of gambling because the cards offered scratch-off game pieces with prizes up to $50,000, but the court found "the price for and the value received from the prepaid phone cards is sufficiently commensurate to support the determination that the sale of the product is not a mere subterfuge to engage in an illegal lottery game scheme, whereby consideration is paid merely to engage in a game of chance." Since the case began, state lawmakers have approved a state lottery [JURIST report]. AP has more.

In other state legal news ...

• The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court [official website] will hear arguments [case docket] Wednesday challenging the accuracy of fingerprint analysis and asking for a prohibition on fingerprint evidence in criminal trials until its reliability can be proven through scientific testing. Lawyers for Terry Patterson, who is facing his second trial in the killing of a Boston police officer, are arguing that the method used to produce a fingerprint match is unreliable. The prosecutor disagrees stating, "several reviewing courts have taken the opportunity to endorse fingerprint identification evidence as one of the most reliable and effective investigation tools in legal history." Fingerprint identification [Wikipedia bnckgrounder] evidence has been used in US courts since 1911. AP has more.
  
  
• Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm [official website] has said she will sign legislation [text] which will allow prosecutors to introduce testimony that a defendant had committed another sex crime against a minor, including offenses for which the defendant was not charged or convicted, in cases where the defendant is accused of a sex crime against a youth under 18. Bill Sponsor Sen. Alan Cropsey said, "history is a big prediction of the future" when it comes to sex offenders, but F. Martin Tieber, past president of the Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan [profession website], said the rule change would add "more people to our prison system who probably didn't commit the particular crime they've been charged with even though they may have done bad things in the past." California and the federal court system have similar rules. AP has more.

[JURIST] The Egyptian Supreme Administrative Court has overturned a lower court decision [JURIST report] allowing rights groups to monitor polling stations during the country's first multi-candidate presidential elections on Wednesday. The holding, in which the court ruled that the Presidential Election Commission's decisions are not subject to judicial review, appears to avoid conflict after the commission said it would disregard [BBC News report] the lower court ruling and bar election monitors anyway. The election, in which President Hosni Mubarak [Wikipedia profile] is widely expected to win a fifth six-year term, is the first general election that will replace a referendum system on a single presidential candidate proposed by parliament. Rights groups said the court's decision to ban monitors indicated the election would not be fair and free, although the government insists that supervision of the vote by judges as already provided for under Egyptian electoral law will avoid abuses. Brisbane's News 1 has more.

[JURIST] UN diplomats continued feverish negotiations Tuesday in a last-ditch effort to prepare a coherent platform of agreed reforms in time for the World Summit 2005 [official website], but an impasse persists with only days remaining. In the most recent setback, UN General Assembly President Jean Ping [official profile] cancelled a news conference set for last Friday in which he was to announce progress on a summit statement draft. The news conference cancellation, coupled with comments from negotiators still struggling over contentious issues such as nuclear non-proliferation, has left many doubting whether a final statement will be produced in time for the summit. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan returned from vacation early [JURIST report] last week in an effort to push the derailed negotiations forward. Negotiations appeared to break down in mid-August after US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton [official profile] offered up numerous changes and seven position papers [official documents], but Bolton said he was optimistic an agreement could still be reached. The summit, which begins Sept. 14, will mark the UN's 60th anniversary and revisit the Millenium Development Goals [official website] championed by Annan. VOA News has more.

[JURIST] Morgan Stanley [corporate website] has agreed to a $700,000 settlement over claims of improper trading in a couple's brokerage account, the Delaware Department of Justice [official website] said Tuesday. According to a 2003 complaint filed by the Securities Division [official website] of the department, two Morgan Stanley brokers made hundreds of unauthorized transactions on the Delaware couple's account. The settlement amount will largely be used to compensate the couple for losses. AP has more.

[JURIST] US and international human rights groups Tuesday condemned the failure of authorities to protect victims of Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive] who were left for days without relief in increasingly desperate conditions in New Orleans and the surrounding Gulf Coast area. The US Human Rights Network [advocacy website] urged in a statement that the rights of the hundreds of thousands of Hurricane evacuees - in legal terms, not refugees [Wikipedia backgrounder] forced out of their own country by persecution, but rather "internally displaced persons" (IDPs) forced from their homes inside a country - be fully respected according to the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement [text]. Under the principles, rather more focused on the particular needs and conditions of IDPs than the general legal rights the Hurricane victims continue to hold as US citizens,

Humanitarian assistance must be given without discrimination of any kind and internally displaced people must be assured of their right to security and life, family reunification, medical services, essential food and potable water, basic shelter and housing, education, appropriate clothing, and essential medical services and sanitation. Additionally, authorities must, where possible, ensure that internally displaced persons are able to voluntarily, in safety and with dignity, return to their homes or places of habitual residence, or to resettle voluntarily in another part of the country. Finally,...authorities [must] respect the fundamental right to participation of victims in the decision-making processes and design of relief and resettlement efforts.

[JURIST] Several US Supreme Court justices and many other Americans lined the Great Hall of the nation's high court Tuesday to pay final respects to the late Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist [Oyez profile; JURIST news archive]. Rehnquist's flag-draped casket was carried into the Great Hall among marble busts of former chief justices and placed upon the historic Lincoln Catafalque, where it will remain as public viewing continues until 10 PM ET Tuesday and from 10 AM to Noon ET Wednesday. Among the pallbearers was John Roberts [JURIST news archive], a former clerk to Rehnquist and the man nominated Monday [JURIST report] by President Bush to replace him as Chief Justice. Current Supreme Court justices, absent only Justices Anthony Kennedy and David Souter, gathered at today's viewing, with many weeping as they stood by the casket of the long-time Chief Justice. Rehnquist died Saturday [JURIST report] at the age of 80, after battling thyroid cancer since last fall. A funeral service will be held at 2 PM ET Wednesday at St. Matthew's Cathedral in Washington, DC. AP has more.

[JURIST] US Senator Arlen Specter [official website], chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and co-author of a bill to create a $140 billion asbestos compensation fund, said Tuesday that he hoped the Senate would take up the legislation in early October. Specter had called for a vote before the August recess [JURIST report], but the Senate adjourned before considering the Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act of 2005 [PDF text]. The legislation would end asbestos injury lawsuits and would instead pay claims from a privately financed fund. Reuters has more.


Do you agree with the idea of an asbestos compensation fund? E-mail us at JURIST@law.pitt.edu.

[JURIST] Rwandan Army Major-General Laurent Munyakazi has been arrested on charges relating to the 1994 Rwandan genocide [BBC backgrounder], a court official said Tuesday. Munyakazi's arrest was ordered by a local gacaca court [Wikipedia backgrounder], a community-based court comprised largely of untrained citizens, and is the first time an officer of such seniority has been detained by a gacaca court in the ongoing efforts to identify victims and perpetrators of the genocide. Munyakazi is considered a "first category" genocide perpetrator, meaning that he is thought to have planned some of the killings, but is also suspected of intimidating witnesses and attempting to tamper with evidence. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] The final report of the Independent Inquiry Committee [official website] investigating the now defunct UN Oil-for-Food program [official website; JURIST news archive] will show that corruption and inefficiencies lead to the program's failure, according to an advanced copy obtained by AP. The report is said to conclude that both the UN Secretariat and the UN Security Council [official website] failed to take clear command of the program, resulting in an "evasion of personal responsibility at all levels." Chief investigator Paul Volcker [Wikipedia profile], former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, says in the report, "As the years passed, reports spread of waste, inefficiency, and corruption even within the UN itself. Some was rumor and exaggeration, but much - too much - of it has turned out to be true." The committee's final report is expected to be released Wednesday. The third interim report [PDF text] was released [JURIST report] last month; other committee documents are also available. AP has more.

4:45 PM ET - The Independent Inquiry Committee has now posted the Preface [PDF] to its final report, due out in full Wednesday.

[JURIST] Members of the Philippines House of Representatives [official website] on Tuesday voted to dismiss [press release] all three impeachment charges against Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo [official website; Wikipedia profile], echoing the decision [JURIST report] last week of the House Committee on Justice. Arroyo has faced accusations [JURIST news archive] that she rigged last year's election, condoned human rights violations and was involved in corruption. The legislature, which is dominated by Arroyo supporters, ignored warnings that the dismissal could lead to a "people power" revolt, like the ones that ousted two Philippine presidents in the last two decades. Manila's police chief said the city's 16,000 member police force was on full alert and ready to safeguard law and order. AP has more. Philippine Star has local coverage.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Opposition scrambles to overturn Arroyo impeachment dismissal
• BREAKING NEWS ~ Arroyo impeachment case quashed
• Arroyo impeachment hearings on verge of collapse
• Arroyo denies witness claim of bribery, threatens lawsuit
• Opposition lawmakers file impeachment complaint against Arroyo
• At least 50 Filipino lawmakers support Arroyo impeachment
• Opposition announces plans for criminal charges ahead of impeachment for Arroyo
• Philippines president "welcomes" impeachment motion to clear vote fraud

[JURIST] AP is reporting that the Senate will begin confirmation hearings next Monday on the nomination [JURIST report] of John Roberts [JURIST news archive] as Chief Justice of the US. The Senate Judiciary Committee was originally scheduled to begin its hearings today on Roberts' nomination to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, but the hearings were postponed [JURIST report] after President Bush tapped Roberts to replace Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

4:05 PM ET - The Senate Judiciary Committee [official website] has confirmed that confirmation hearings for John Roberts will begin next Monday at 12 Noon ET. AP has more. Audio of today's news conference [WMP] by Judiciary Committee chair Senator Arlen Specter on the timing of the Roberts hearings is now online via FedNet.


How do you expect the Roberts hearings to unfold now that he's been nominated as Chief Justice? How, if at all, should Senators change their strategy in questioning him? E-mail us at JURIST@law.pitt.edu.

[JURIST] A spokesman for the Independent Egyptian Committee for Monitoring Elections (IECME) alleged Monday that Egypt's ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) [official website, English version] committed more rule violations in campaigning for the upcoming presidential election than any of the other nine parties. According to a preliminary IECME report, NDP, the party of current Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak [official profile], received unfair access to the Egyptian people during the campaign period. The report alleges that the Interior Ministry did not timely approve other parties' requests to print and post campaign posters and that NDP supporters removed posters of opposing candidates. The IECME report also claims that the NDP violated a law prohibiting the use of government buildings to promote their campaign. Campaign efforts ended Sunday and the country's first multiple candidate presidential election [JURIST report] is scheduled for Wednesday, and will be observed by private monitoring groups [JURIST report]. Aljazeera has more.

[JURIST] A former aide to Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko [official website, English version; Wikipedia profile] said Monday that his resignation over the weekend was prompted by corruption within the country's leadership. Former state secretary Oleksandr Zinchenko accused several top presidential aides of corruption, including Petro Poroshenko, who heads the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine [official website], and Mykola Martynenko, leader of the pro-presidential faction in parliament. Zinchenko said his resignation was meant to "sharply convey this danger to the president and his team." Poroshenko spoke after Zinchenko made his remarks and challenged the former state secretary to come forward with evidence of the alleged corruption, while Martynenko later threatened to sue for libel. Zinchenko's resignation marks the first since Yushchenko assumed the presidency [JURIST report] in January. AP has more.

[JURIST] Russian Foreign Ministry officials have said that they oppose referring Iran to the UN Security Council [official website] over Iran's continued uranium conversion activities [IAEA issue backgrounder]. Moscow released a statement [press release] Monday announcing that officials "see no grounds for the referral to the UN Security Council of the question which the IAEA is actively and productively concerned with at present." Britain, Germany and France have previously threatened to refer Iran [JURIST report] to the Security Council if Tehran does not stop the uranium conversion. Iran maintains that they are not concerned with possible referral to the Security Council [JURIST report] and they will continue their nuclear activities. China also opposes sanctioning Iran and could block efforts to bring the nation before the Security Council. AP has more.

[JURIST] Saddam Hussein met with his Iraqi lawyer Khalil Dulaimi Monday, after Iraqi authorities announced that his first trial before the Iraqi Special Tribunal [official website] will begin on October 19 [JURIST report]. Hussein faces charges [JURIST report] for the 1982 massacre of over 140 Shiites following an assassination attempt on the former dictator's life. Members of Hussein's Jordan-based defense team have said the chosen date for his trial was "politically motivated" and will not give Dulaimi time to adequately prepare [JURIST report]. If found guilty, Hussein could face the death penalty, but Iraq's president has said that he will not sign any death warrant [JURIST report] issued for Hussein. AFP has more.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Iran protests "petty" nature of scheduled Saddam trial
• Saddam trial confirmed for October 19
• Saddam lawyer says October trial too early as defense reorganized
• Saddam trial to begin in October, Iraqi official says

[JURIST] Democrats preparing for the upcoming confirmation hearings [JURIST report] for US Supreme Court nominee John Roberts [JURIST news archive; Wikipedia profile] say his nomination as Chief Justice [JURIST report] means Roberts should face tougher scrutiny, while Republicans say the elevation should not change the confirmation process. In a statement [text] Monday, Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy said, "Before the Senate acts on John Roberts' new nomination, we should know even more about his record, and we should know whom the president intends to propose to nominate as a replacement for Sandra Day O'Connor." The president is not expected to announce a replacement this week for O'Connor, who announced her retirement [JURIST report] in July, but many, including O'Connor herself [JURIST report], hope the nominee is a woman or a minority. AP has more.

[JURIST] A member of the Iraqi constitution drafting committee [official website] said Tuesday that the extended negotiations [JURIST report] over the final wording of the draft constitution [English translation; JURIST news archive] have ended without an agreement on changes to the draft. Iraqi lawmakers had resumed negotiations over the weekend in an attempt to achieve consensus on several issues, including Sunni demands that the constitution contain language declaring Iraq part of the Arab world. Negotiator Bahaa al Araji said Tuesday that the talks ended without agreement and that printing will begin Thursday of the version read to the National Assembly last week. The end to negotiations comes as UN officials warned against delays [AFP report] in finalizing the draft. The UN is responsible for printing and distributing almost five million copies of the document, and a UN official said Tuesday that it will take at least two weeks to print the necessary copies and that distribution itself could take up to a month. The copies must be printed and distributed before an October 15 referendum, which is less than six weeks away. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] A closed session of the Iraqi National Assembly [Wikipedia backgrounder] debated a broad new anti-terrorism bill Monday, which would authorize the execution of perpetrators and accomplices of offenses classified as terrorist acts. The bill reportedly includes the following as punishable offenses: attacking Iraqi soldiers, police and diplomatic missions, kidnapping for political, sectarian, ethnic or racial purposes, acts of sowing sectarian sedition or civil war through arming citizens or mobilizing them to carry arms against each other, vandalism against public buildings, forming armed gangs, and using explosives to kill people. Proponents justified the measure saying "the damage caused by terrorist acts has reached such a point that it threatens national unity and stability." The death penalty in Iraq was abolished during the US occupation, but was reinstated last August [JURIST report] amid protests from European nations and human rights groups [JURIST report]. The death penalty has been a controversial issue in the upcoming trial of Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archives] and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani [Wikipedia profile] has vowed not to sign any death warrants [JURIST report]. AFP has more.