[JURIST] A federal judge issued a memorandum of intended decision [PDF text] Friday, concluding that California's lethal injection procedure creates "an undue and unnecessary risk" of cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment [text] of the US Constitution. The memorandum came in the case of condemned killer Michael Morales [NCADP profile], who argued that it was not certain that the chemical cocktail to be used in his lethal injection [JURIST news archive] would not prevent him from experiencing extreme pain during the process. Morales' execution was postponed indefinitely [JURIST report] in February after a court ruling that medical professionals must monitor executions by lethal injection to be sure that the inmate feels no pain. The ruling imposed a virtual moratorium on executions in California [JURIST report] as anesthesiologists refused to take part [JURIST report] in the execution.

In his memorandum Friday, US District Judge Jeremy Fogel wrote that:

At the present time, ... Defendants' implementation of California's lethal-injection protocol lacks both reliability and transparency. In light of the substantial questions raised by the records of previous executions, Defendants' actions and failures to act have resulted in an undue and unnecessary risk of an Eighth Amendment violation. This is intolerable under the Constitution.

[JURIST] The war crimes Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina [official website] convicted its third defendant in one week on Friday when it sentenced [press release] Dragan Damjanovic to twenty years in prison. Damjanovic was found guilty on six of the seven counts of crimes against humanity listed in his indictment [PDF; case backgrounder], including murder, torture and rape committed during Bosnia's 1992-95 war.

The ruling marks the War Crimes Court's ninth conviction since its establishment [JURIST report] last year. Earlier this week, the court sentenced [press release] a Bosnian Croat to thirteen years in prison and another Bosnian Serb to twenty-four years in prison [press release] for war crimes. Last month, the court sentenced the first defendant to be transferred [JURIST report] from the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website]. Bosnian lower courts have already tried approximately 1000 war crimes cases to relieve the backlog of the ICTY, and some two dozen other suspects are awaiting trial at the war crimes court. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Florida Governor Jeb Bush [official website] suspended all executions in the state Friday after a medical examiner said that the execution of Angel Diaz [Amnesty profile] earlier this week was botched. Diaz endured a 34-minute-long execution and medical examiner Dr. William Hamilton said Friday that preliminary autopsy results showed that a second injection was required in the execution because needles were improperly inserted into the flesh of Diaz's arm during the first injection. Hamilton did not specify whether he believed Diaz suffered a painful death. Bush appointed a commission to study Florida's lethal injections procedures [PDF text] and the governor halted the signing of death warrants until the commission submits its report.

After the botched execution Wednesday, death penalty [JURIST news archive] critics filed an emergency petition [PDF text] with the Florida Supreme Court seeking to once again halt the death penalty in the state. Petitioners, including numerous people currently on Florida's death row roster [text], asked the court to exercise its All Writs jurisdiction and declare that the state's lethal injections procedures violate the Eighth Amendment [text] of the US Constitution. AP has more.

[JURIST] European leaders are pushing to revive the European Constitution [JURIST news archive] after its ratification by the Finnish parliament [JURIST report] last week. Leaders of Spain and Luxembourg have called a conference in January for the sixteen EU member states that ratified the Constitution, as well as Bulgaria and Romania. German Chancellor Angela Merkel [official website, in German; BBC profile] has also declared her intent to push for a renewed debate about the Constitution in January, when her six-month term as President of the European Council begins. Although Merkel announced her intent to set a timetable for constitutional ratification in October, responses have been lukewarm [JURIST reports] from aspirants in the upcoming French presidential elections. Consideration of the charter has been on hold since it was rejected by voters in France and the Netherlands [JURIST reports] last year.

Although a majority of EU member states support the Constitution, unanimous ratification is required before it can take effect. While French and Dutch leaders have refused to hold second referendums, many within the EU agree that reforms are needed to accommodate institutional enlargements. Although France and the Netherlands would be permitted to join a second summit on the Constitution in February, the Dutch government has expressed displeasure [Expatica report] at the exclusion of the two countries. It is also unclear whether the constitution would succeed in the United Kingdom and Denmark, typically regarded as Euroskeptics. AP has more. EUObserver.com has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Federal prosecutors have charged [press release] sixteen Bosnian Serb immigrants with immigration fraud for allegedly lying about their military experiences during the dissolution of the former Yugoslavia, the US Department of Justice [official website] announced Friday. One of those charged is accused of leading a Bosnian Serb unit that participated in the Srebrenica massacre [JURIST news archive] of Muslims in 1995. The immigrants were arrested last week in six states [UPI report] for denying involvement in the Bosnian Serb military on their applications for US residence. One was naturalized as a US citizen. The DOJ said that three of those charged are still at large.

Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Julie Myers [official profile] said that the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement [official website] "will not allow the United States to be a safe haven for those who failed to disclose their service in military forces that were known to commit atrocities." AP has more.

[JURIST] Luis Moreno-Ocampo [official profile], chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court [official website], told the UN Security Council Thursday that his investigation [ICC materials] into crimes committed in Darfur [JURIST news archive] is almost complete, noting that he is "preparing to submit evidence to the ICC judges no later than February 2007." Moreno-Ocampo submitted a report [PDF text] to the Security Council pursuant to Resolution 1593 [PDF text] and briefed the council on his progress [press release]:

ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo informed the United Nations Security Council that he has nearly completed an investigation into some of the worst crimes committed in Darfur. He is preparing to submit evidence to the ICC judges no later than February 2007 and is putting measures in place to protect victims and witnesses.

The evidence in this emerging first case points to specific individuals who appear to bear the greatest responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity including persecution, torture, murder, and rape. ...

The Prosecutor's first case focuses on a series of incidents in 2003 and 2004, when the most serious crimes occurred in large numbers. Perhaps most significant, the evidence reveals the underlying operational system that enabled the commission of these massive crimes.

The evidence comes from a wide range of sources and reflects a thorough, independent, and impartial review of incriminating and exonerating circumstances. Sources include statements from victims as well as Sudanese officials, documents provided by the Government of the Sudan and the National Commission of Inquiry, thousands of documents collected by the International Commission of Inquiry, and materials generated by the Security Council, states, and international organisations.

[JURIST] An Alabama jury returned a verdict in favor of pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. [corporate website] on Friday, concluding that the drug Vioxx [JURIST news archive] did not cause the plaintiff in the case to suffer a heart attack. The jury also found that Merck did not withhold information prior to removing the drug from the market in 2004. The plaintiff, Gary Albright, 57, had asked for over $5 million in damages for the heart attack that he suffered in 2001. Evidence was introduced that other pre-existing conditions may have led to Albright's heart attack. Albright has not announced whether he will appeal the verdict.

The Alabama verdict marks Merck's fourth state victory; it has lost three other state suits, and a New Jersey verdict in its favor was vacated [JURIST report] in August. On Wednesday, Merck won its fourth federal victory when a jury in New Orleans found it not liable [JURIST report] for damages related to Vioxx. While Merck lost a federal trial in August, the judge rejected the $50 million verdict [JURIST report] as excessive and ordered a new trial for damages. Merck continues to face thousands of individual lawsuits and hundreds of class actions over the drug, which was pulled from the market after a study showed that it could double the risk of heart attack or stroke if taken for more than 18 months. Last month, a federal judge rejected a bid to combine all federal lawsuits [JURIST report] against Merck into a single class action. AP has more.

[JURIST] A federal judge on Friday denied bail for the son of former Liberian President Charles Taylor. Charles McArthur Emmanuel, also known as Roy Belfast Jr. and Charles Taylor Jr., was charged [indictment, PDF; JURIST report] last week with committing torture in the first prosecution brought under a federal anti-torture statute [18 USC 2340A text]. Emmanuel commanded a paramilitary unit in Liberia during his father's regime and is said to have committed the torture in 2002 when he allegedly took a man from his home and abused him with a hot iron, scalding water, and electric shocks. Emmanual has pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to the charges. US Magistrate Judge William Turnoff denied bail, ruling that Emmanuel is a flight risk and is a danger to the community.

Charles Taylor [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] is currently awaiting trial [JURIST report] at The Hague before judges of the Special Court for Sierra Leone [official website] on crimes against humanity charges. AP has more.

[JURIST] Joseph Nzabirinda [ICTY case file], a Rwandan businessman charged in connection with the 1994 Rwandan genocide, pleaded guilty to murder as a crime against humanity [press release] Thursday at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda [official website]. Nzabirinda was initially charged [indictment, PDF] with genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, extermination as a crime against humanity and rape as a crime against humanity. Prosecutors amended the indictment to the single murder as a crime against humanity charge before Nzabirinda entered his plea.

Nzabirinda was accused of participating in meetings with the Interahamwe militia where militia members discussed their plan to execute Tutsis. The ICTR will hold a sentencing hearing for Nzabirinda next month. The UN News Service has more.

[JURIST] US Legal Adviser to the Secretary of State John Bellinger [official profile] told the Daily Telegraph on Friday that Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainees considered an ongoing threat to security will remain in custody indefinitely, regardless of whether there is sufficient evidence to try them before a military commission [JURIST news archive]. In an interview with the Telegraph, Bellinger said that "the remaining people - other than the ones who have been approved for release - really do pose a threat." Bellinger also indicated that there are no plans to transfer detainees out of Guantanamo for trial, saying that "at this point trials will be held on Guantanamo." The Daily Telegraph has more.

On Thursday, the Defense Department announced [statement] the return of 16 Guantanamo detainees to Saudi Arabia [JURIST report]. Last month, the State Department announced [statement], in the context of another release, that all detainees determined by Combatant Status Review Tribunals [DOD materials] not to be enemy combatants had been released from Guantanamo [JURIST report].

[JURIST] US Legal Adviser to the Secretary of State John Bellinger [official profile] told the Daily Telegraph on Friday that Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainees considered an ongoing threat to security will remain in custody indefinitely, regardless of whether there is sufficient evidence to try them before a military commission [JURIST news archive]. In an interview with the Telegraph, Bellinger said that "the remaining people - other than the ones who have been approved for release - really do pose a threat." Bellinger also indicated that there are no plans to transfer detainees out of Guantanamo for trial, saying that "at this point trials will be held on Guantanamo." The Daily Telegraph has more.

On Thursday, the Defense Department announced [statement] the return of 16 Guantanamo detainees to Saudi Arabia [JURIST report]. Last month, the State Department announced [statement], in the context of another release, that all detainees determined by Combatant Status Review Tribunals [DOD materials] not to be enemy combatants had been released from Guantanamo [JURIST report].

[JURIST] Defense counsel for alleged terrorist Jose Padilla [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] have filed a motion asking a federal judge in Miami to hold a hearing to decide whether or not Padilla is competent to stand trial. Recent evaluations of Padilla by a psychiatrist and clinical psychologist suggest that Padilla is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder from his years in detention which is affecting his ability to assist his lawyers prepare his defense. According to the affidavit of Dr. Angela Hegarty, Padilla's "reasoning is clearly impaired and paranoid tendencies are evident throughout the interviews." Prosecutors said Wednesday that there was "sufficient cause" for a competency hearing and have urged the judge to grant the defense request to avoid a conviction being overturned on appeal.

Padilla, a US citizen initially suspected of planning to set off a "dirty bomb" in the United States and classified in 2002 as an "enemy combatant" [JURIST news archive] subject to indefinite detention, was finally charged [JURIST report] last year on unrelated terrorism charges. He was transferred to civilian custody [JURIST report] in January of this year and has pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to the charges. His trial is scheduled to begin [JURIST report] January 22. Last week, Padilla's attorneys indicated that they will use a recent video as evidence that charges against Padilla should be dismissed due to "outrageous government conduct" [JURIST report]. AP has more. The New York Times has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Ireland's High Court has refused to recognize the same-sex marriage [JURIST news archive] of a lesbian couple married in Canada in 2003. Ann Louise Gilligan and Katherine Zappone sued to force Ireland to recognize their marriage, performed in British Columbia after same-sex marriage was legalized in the province. High Court Justice Elizabeth Dunne rejected the couple's petition Thursday, ruling that the Irish constitution [text] does not permit recognition of such a union. Dunne said that the constitution directed Ireland "to guard with special care the institution of marriage" and said that the parliament should decide whether to amend the constitution to grant legal rights to same-sex couples and unmarried heterosexual couples in long-term relationships. Gilligan and Zappone are considering appealing the decision to Ireland's Supreme Court.

Earlier this year, the Irish Human Rights Commission [official website], a government-appointed advisory body on which Zappone serves, concluded that Ireland may be in breach of international human rights laws [JURIST report] because the country does not recognize same-sex marriages and gives more rights to married couples than to gay couples or unmarried heterosexual couples. AP has more. BBC News has additional coverage.

[JURIST] US Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton [official profile] on Thursday called for international criminal charges to be brought against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [official profile; BBC profile] for inciting genocide against Christians and Jews. While speaking at a Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations symposium, Bolton, who was joined by former Israeli UN Ambassador Dore Gold [JCPA profile] and former Canadian Justice Minister and Attorney General Irwin Cotler [official profile], said that Ahmadinejad's remarks [JCPA report] last year that Israel should be "wiped of the map" and his systematic denial of the World War II Holocaust [BBC backgrounder] are violations of the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide [text], which prohibits "direct and public incitement to commit genocide." Iran hosted a two-day conference [BBC report] this week examining whether or not the Holocaust occurred.

Earlier this year, the Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs reported that it was preparing a document [JURIST report] recommending a lawsuit against Ahmadinejad for his remarks. In addition, Israeli attorney Eran Shahar, representing civil rights group Civil Coalition, filed a lawsuit [JURIST report] in February against Ahmadinejad in Germany on charges of incitement and denying the existence of the World War II Holocaust. Reuters has more. BBC News has additional coverage.

[JURIST] The Spanish parliament began debating the proposed Law for the Recovery of the Historical Memory [JURIST report] Thursday, legislation aimed at healing the wounds of Gen. Francisco Franco's authoritarian regime [BBC backgrounder; LOC backgrounder] that ruled Spain from 1939 to 1975 following a bitter three-year civil war. The bill would set aside $25 million to compensate victims of the Franco era for land seizure and personal harm. Victims or the relatives of those killed, exiled, or imprisoned by Franco would have a year to make claims. The bill would also ban public recognition of the Franco era, call on localities to assist relatives of victims to exhume corpses from mass graves to family plots, and order Spanish archives to be consolidated and reorganized so that families can access information from the Franco era.

The government first unveiled the proposal last July, but several amendments to the bill have already been proposed, including a provision that would throw out all trial verdicts from the Franco era. Other critics, including the opposition Popular Party, have called for the bill to be thrown out completely. Final approval of the bill is not expected for several months. AP has more. El Pais has local coverage, in Spanish.

[JURIST] German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier [BBC profile] on Thursday denied any knowledge of the alleged CIA kidnapping of German national Khaled el-Masri [JURIST news archive; ACLU case materials] until after the man was released. Steinmeier, who has previously denied that Germany aided the CIA [JURIST report] in kidnapping el-Masri, reiterated that sentiment Thursday, saying that "Germany provided no assistance to the kidnapping of a German citizen." Steinmeier's comments came as he entered a closed hearing in the ongoing parliamentary probe of the el-Masri case.

El Masri has alleged that CIA agents kidnapped him in 2003 in Macedonia and transferred him to Afghanistan, where he was held in a secret prison for five months and subjected to inhumane conditions and coercive interrogation before eventually being released in Albania in 2004 without charge. Last month, lawyers for el-Masri argued [JURIST report] before the US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals that his civil case against the CIA for his alleged extraordinary rendition [JURIST news archive] should be reinstated. In October, el-Masri testified before a Spanish judge [JURIST report] as part of an investigation [JURIST report] into whether the CIA used Spanish airports to transport el-Masri to countries where they could legally torture him. In June, a German investigator concluded that no evidence had surfaced to disprove el-Masri's story [JURIST report]. AP has more.

[JURIST] The Dutch Parliament [official website] voted Thursday to strip Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk [official website] of responsibility for setting immigration policy and to temporarily halt the deportation of failed asylum seekers. Verdonk, known domestically as the "Iron Lady" for her tough anti-immigration initiatives, will now be responsible for integration and child protection. Verdonk was stripped of her immigration portfolio after parliament passed an amnesty for illegal immigrants who have lived in the Netherlands for more than five years. Verdonk refused to implement the amnesty [BBC report], saying that she would "uphold the immigration law." The Dutch Parliament then passed a motion censuring Verdonk [BBC report], which ordinarily would have prompted her resignation, but several members of the caretaker government threatened to resign from the governing coalition if Verdonk were forced to resign.

Last month, Verdonk announced plans to introduce legislation [press statement, in Dutch] to ban the Muslim full-length burqa [Wikipedia backgrounder] veil as well as other face coverings like ski masks in public places. Dutch law already prohibits wearing burqas and other religious dress [JURIST news archive] that covers the entire body in public schools and on public transportation, but Verdonk said that a total ban was a necessary anti-terror security measure. The Netherlands has traditionally been distinguished by its openness, but in recent years it has become much wary of immigrants, setting up detention centers for asylum-seekers, requiring newcomers to learn Dutch, and adopting a more vigorous deportation policy. AP has more.

[JURIST] US Justice Department lawyers have asked a federal appeals court to overturn an October district court ruling [PDF text] ordering the Secret Service [official website] to release visitor logs [JURIST report] for the personal residence and office of Vice-President Dick Cheney [official website; JURIST news archive]. US District Judge Ricardo Urbina issued the order [PDF text] in a lawsuit brought by the Washington Post. The paper requested the logs in June while researching White House ties to political lobbyists. The request also included visitor logs for Cheney's legal counsel, chief spokesman, and other top aides.

In an appeal filed Wednesday with the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, government lawyers argued that requiring the public release of the visitor logs would be an "unprecedented intrusion into the daily operations of the vice presidency." The DOJ brief asserted that the Secret Service is not authorized to release the logs because they are controlled by Cheney's office and that presidential and vice presidential records are not subject to disclosure and are protected by executive privilege. AP has more.