[JURIST] Former Khmer Rouge [JURIST news archive] leader Nuon Chea, who faces genocide charges in connection with the deaths of some 1.7 million people in Cambodia's notorious "killing fields" in the 1970s, denied in an interview published in the Phnom Penh Post Friday that Cambodia's communist regime committed genocide in the 1970s, saying the regime had no reason to kill its own people. Chea, who was the deputy of late Khmer Rouge chief Pol Pot, also said any document that links him to crimes against humanity has been manipulated. He will likely be tried before the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) later this year. AP has more.

In early December, Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] accused the Cambodian government of delaying the genocide tribunals and interfering with the tribunal's judicial independence [JURIST report]. The ECCC was established by a 2001 law [text as amended 2005, PDF] to investigate and try those responsible for the 1975-79 Cambodian genocide. Although prosecutorial investigations are ongoing, no top Khmer Rogue officials have yet faced trial and questions have been raised concerning exactly how many of the Khmer Rouge's top officials will face the tribunal, as several of those responsible for the genocide have died [JURIST report] in recent months and others are in failing health.

[JURIST] US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Detainee Affairs Charles "Cully" Stimson has set off a firestorm of protest by publicly questioning the propriety of some of the country's top law firms representing Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainees. In an interview [recorded audio] on Federal News Radio [media website] Thursday on the fifth anniversary of the US military prison, Stimson predicted that "when corporate CEOs see that those firms are representing the very terrorists who hit their bottom line in 2001 those CEO's are going to make those law firms choose between representing terrorists or representing reputable firms." The former Navy lawyer said "It's shocking...The major law firms in this country...are out there representing detainees."

Stimson cited a string of major US law firms defending clients at Guantanamo pro bono: Pillsbury Winthrop, Jenner & Block, Hunton & Williams, Alston & Bird, Cutler Pickering, Weil Gotshal, Paul Weiss Rifkin, Covington & Burling, Mayer Brown, Pepper Hamilton, Perkins Cole, Fulbright Jaworski, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan, and Venable [firm websites].

Stimson's statements drew harsh criticism Friday from some of the lawyers involved in Guantanamo defense and from professional groups. David J. Cynamon [profile], a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman who is representing Kuwaiti detainees held at Guantanamo, told [statement] JURIST's Hotline:

Apparently, the Bush Administration has no good answers to the legal and moral travesties at Guantanamo, so they have decided to fall back on good old-fashioned lawyer bashing in a desperate effort to change the subject. It is bad enough that they have consistently flouted the Supreme Court's 2004 ruling that the detainees are entitled to habeas corpus. Now they are attempting to prevent the detainees from having legal counsel at all. It is truly incredible that Stimson, an attorney himself, does not appear to understand or care about the fundamental obligation of lawyers to represent unpopular and indigent clients.

We and the other habeas counsel are very proud of the work we are doing on behalf of the Guantanamo detainees, and we are confident that the vast majority of our corporate clients feel the same way. The true "news story" here is not that prominent law firms are trying to get the detainees a fair hearing but that the Bush Administration is trying to deny them one.

Lawyers represent people in criminal cases to fulfill a core American value: the treatment of all people equally before the law. To impugn those who are doing this critical work -- and doing it on a volunteer basis -- is deeply offensive to members of the legal profession, and we hope to all Americans. The American Bar Association supports lawyers who give of their time and expertise defending those involved in legal actions. In fact it is one of the basic tenets of the Association's Second Season of Service, that lawyers should perform pro bono and volunteer work.

NEW ON JURIST  Op-ed: Guantanamo Pro Bono? Atticus Finch Meets Charles Stimson

[JURIST] Three US Justice Department agencies - the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) [official website], the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) [official website] and the FBI [official website] - are freezing or slowing recruitment efforts largely as a result of a lack of increased funding from Congress' failure to approve requested 2007 budget increases [San Francisco Chronicle report] for the Justice Department. The DEA and ATF have said they are freezing the hiring of new employees, even though both agencies anticipate large numbers of unfilled positions this year. The FBI has slowed its hiring but will continue to hire for positions deemed essential. As the agencies await a decision by lawmakers if, and whether, to increase funding, they will continue to operate based on their 2006 budgets. But increased costs across the board, including an imminent increase of the federal minimum wage [AP report], make working with last year's budget unreasonable.

The 2006 budget [White House website] shows that last year the FBI received $5.7 billion in federal funding while the DEA received $2.4 billion. The DEA said it would be unable to sustain employment at its current level if Congress does not allot an additional $95 million, and ATF officials say they need $71 million more in order to maintain its 4,900 employees. Observers say that the failure to approve 2007 budgets for the DOJ agencies could impede efforts to counter both violent crime and terrorism. While other agencies are feeling the burden of the lack of budget approval, Congress has already approved budgets for the military and for homeland security. AP has more.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] Friday granted certiorari in four cases [order list, PDF], including one that will determine if tobacco companies are protected from judgments in state courts on the grounds that cigarettes are federally regulated. The appeal, Watson v. Philip Morris, Cos. (05-1284) [docket; cert. petition, PDF], was filed by two Arkansas women who found their state court case against Philip Morris [corporate website] for advertising claims of low tar and nicotine in “light” cigarettes, being removed to federal jurisdiction. Philip Morris argued that the “unprecedented, detailed, and direct control” exerted by the Federal Trade Commission [official website] over cigarette advertising made the company a “person acting under” a federal officer, and convinced [opinion, PDF] the US Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals [official website] that removal on those grounds were justified. AP has more.

In Hinck v. US (06-376) [docket; question presented, PDF], the court will determine the scope of jurisdiction held by the US Tax Court [official website]. In Struhs, et al., v. Wyner (06-531) [docket; question presented, PDF], the justices will examine in what situations attorney fees may be awarded to a victorious party. Finally, the court in Uttecht v. Brown (06-413) [docket; cert. petition, PDF] will examine whether federal courts can overturn a state court decision to remove a juror based on their views on capital punishment. SCOTUSblog has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Germany’s highest court, the Federal Constitutional Court [official website, in German] in Karlsruhe, announced Friday that it will not hear the appeal [JURIST report] of the 15-year sentence [JURIST report] of convicted September 11 [JURIST news archive] conspirator Mounir al-Motassadeq [BBC profile; JURIST news archive]. Moroccan-born Motassadeq has another appeal to German appellate courts filed, but it is unknown when it will be considered. Lawyers for Motassadeq have also said they may take the case to the European Court of Justice [official website].

Motassadeq admitted to attending an al-Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan and being friends with some of the Sept. 11 hijackers, but denies knowledge of the attack. The court found Motassadeq guilty because he knew his accomplices planned to hijack planes, even if he remained ignorant as to the details of the attacks. The court also found that Motassadeq aided the hijackers by funneling money and helping them maintain appearances of being university students. Motassadeq's defense team hoped to force a new trial with witnesses previously prevented from testifying by the United States government. Motassadeq's first conviction was overturned [JURIST report] in 2004, in part due to concerns over access to witnesses, but on retrial American officials refused to allow terror suspects in US custody to testify in court [JURIST report], instead agreeing only to provide summaries of its interrogations of prisoners. AP has more.

[JURIST] Spanish police arrested former Argentine President Isabel Peron [Wikipedia profile] on Friday for her alleged involvement in the disappearance of political opponent Hector Aldo Fagetti Gallego in 1976. Argentine Federal Judge Raul Acosta issued the order for her arrest on Thursday. An anonymous source within the judge's chambers told AP that Peron, who has lived in Spain in exile since 1981, is also wanted for questioning related to decrees she issued ordering police to eliminate "subversive elements."

In November, Argentine officials announced that the investigation into abuses committed during Argentina's "Dirty War" [GlobalSecurity backgrounder; JURIST news archive] from 1976-83 would be expanded to include the tenure of Peron [JURIST report], who succeeded her husband Juan Peron when he died in office in 1974. After the announcement a lawyer for Isabel Peron told a local television station that accusations shouldn't be made against her 30 years after she left office. Peron was ousted from office in a bloodless coup in March 1976 and held under house arrest for five years before being exiled to Spain. AP has more. BBC News has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Bryan Wagner, the private investigator involved in the Hewlett-Packard corporate spying scandal [JURIST news archive] pleaded guilty Friday to federal charges [criminal information, PDF] of conspiracy and aggravated identity theft. Wagner was accused of using used the social security number of a targeted reporter to obtain the reporter's telephone records, which Wagner provided to other co-conspirators. The charges carry a possible five-year sentence for conspiracy and a mandatory minimum of two years imprisonment for the aggravated identity theft charge. Under Wagner's plea agreement, he will cooperate with prosecutors in future investigations in exchange for a lighter sentence.

In November, Wagner pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to state charges of using false or fraudulent pretenses to obtain confidential information from a public utility, unauthorized access to computer data, identity theft, and conspiracy to commit those crimes stemming from his role in the corporate spying scandal. The scandal prompted Congress to pass anti-pretexting legislation in 2006, criminalizing obtaining phone records through fraud or lying. The San Francisco Chronicle has more.

[JURIST] The federal district court that will hold the trial of alleged terrorist Jose Padilla [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] and two other alleged al-Qaeda operatives announced Friday that it will delay the trial for 3 months, partly in response to the defense’s request to determine Padilla’s mental competency [JURIST report]. Evaluations of Padilla by a psychiatrist and clinical psychologist suggest that he is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of his years in detention in a US naval brig as an "enemy combatant" [JURIST news archive], affecting his ability to assist his lawyers in preparing his defense. US District Judge Marcia Cooke [official profile] of the Southern District of Florida [official website] has delayed the trial before [JURIST report].

Padilla, a US citizen initially suspected of planning to set off a radioactive "dirty bomb" [NRC factsheet] in the United States and classified in 2002 as an enemy combatant subject to indefinite detention, was indicted [JURIST report] in late 2005 on unrelated terrorism charges. He was transferred to civilian custody [JURIST report] in January of last year and has pleaded not guilty [JURIST report]. Before this most recent delay, his trial was scheduled to begin January 22. AP has more.

[JURIST] Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] has urged the European Union to "fill the leadership void on human rights" [press release] left after allegations of torture and US detention practices have undermined American credibility in the human rights arena. In the introduction [text] to HRW's World Report 2007 [HRW index], released Thursday, HRW Executive Director Kenneth Roth wrote:

In the past, many would have looked to the United States to take the lead in addressing these challenges. Though never a consistent promoter of human rights, Washington has been a prominent and influential one. Yet its voice now rings hollow—an enormous loss for the human rights cause. Quite apart from the fallout of its ill-fated Iraq invasion, its credibility as a proponent of human rights has been tarnished by the abuses it practices in the name of fighting terrorism. Few US ambassadors dare to protest another government’s harsh interrogations, detention without trial, or even "disappearances," knowing how easily an interlocutor could turn the tables and cite US misconduct as an excuse for his government's own abuses. The cheapness of that excuse does not diminish its embarrassing effectiveness. Nor can consolation be taken in the fact that the United States is far from the world’s worst rights violator. The abuses it has committed have done damage enough.

The last year dispelled any doubt that the Bush administration's use of torture and other mistreatment was a matter of policy dictated at the top rather than the aberrant misconduct of a few low-level interrogators. ...

With the United States having largely disqualified itself from human rights promotion, China and Russia effectively undermining the effort, and the global South not yet bearing its share of the burden, it is imperative that the European Union rise to the occasion and assume a leadership role. After all, the EU is the world's leading collection of democracies, founded on a commitment to human rights and the rule of law. Yet the sad truth is that the EU is nowhere near picking up the leadership mantle. All too often, when the EU musters a statement about a human rights problem, it is delivered by a Brussels bureaucrat or takes the form of a written EU Presidency press release rather than a forceful public pronouncement by a head of state or foreign minister. Such statements are rarely followed by firm action or pressure to protect human rights. Due in part to structural problems and in part to a lack of political will, the EU's underperformance on human rights has left a gaping leadership hole.

[JURIST] The Bush Administration said Thursday it will propose legislation easing some anti-terrorism restrictions in order to allow foreigners who have helped armed groups not considered terrorists to seek asylum or resettle in the United States. As a result of antiterrorism laws such as the Patriot Act [PDF; JURIST news archive] and the Real ID Act [PDF text] put in place after the Sept. 11 attacks [JURIST news archive], asylum and refugee status was denied to anyone who belongs to or has provided material support [Refugee Council backgrounder] to armed rebel groups, even if that support was coerced or the armed rebel groups were backed by the US. Human rights groups have slammed existing material support policy as being, in the words [statement] of Human Rights First, "so broad that it ends up affecting refugees who do not support terrorism, and even refugees who are actually the victims of violent groups – like Colombian refugees who have been forced to pay money to armed militants." Soon after Thanksgiving last year, HRF appealed [PDF letter; HRF report, PDF] to President Bush to reconsider the policy. Paul Rosenzweig, acting assistant secretary for international affairs at the Department of Homeland Security [official website], expects the administration to present new legislation to Congress by the end of the month.

The new legislation would allow for the resettlement of refugees fleeing from Myanmar [FCNL backgrounder], formerly known as Burma, refugees from Vietnam, Laos, and Tibet, and dozens of Cubans who supported armed groups opposed to Fidel Castro in the 1960s. The 5,600 people whose asylum claims have been on hold or who have been admitted as refugees but denied permanent resident status will also receive resolutions in their cases. The New York Times has more.

[JURIST] A political confrontation between the Verkhovna Rada [official website], the Ukraine parliament, and Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko [official website; BBC profile] appears to be heading to the country's Constitutional Court after the parliament Friday passed legislation to define and expand the powers of the cabinet in defiance of an earlier presidential veto. Yushchenko promised to challenge the new legislation, supported by 366 of 370 lawmakers present, which he insists will fundamentally restrict his role, effectively enabling ministers led by Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych [BBC profile], who received Russia's backing in the presidential race against Yushchenko in 2004, to usurp power. The bill was first passed on December 21 but sent to Yushchenko who made several amendments; the parliament vote rejected all of the President's 42 proposed amendments.

Yushchenko has said he will not sign [ForUm report] any of the laws adopted by the parliament today. RIA Novosti has more. UNIAN has additional coverage.

[JURIST] A Chinese court rejected the final appeal Friday of Chen Guangcheng [HRW case timeline], a blind Chinese human rights legal activist, who was sentenced [JURIST report] to four years and three months in prison for damaging property and "organizing a mob to disturb traffic." The Intermediate Court in Linyi city upheld the verdict and sentence after a Chinese intermediate appellate court ordered a retrial [JURIST report] of Chen's case in November.

Chen claims the charges are retribution for his documentation of forced sterilizations and abortions [TIME feature] performed by Chinese officials to enforce China's one-child policy. Chen was tried without the assistance of his team of prominent Chinese lawyers, who were arrested during the trial [JURIST report] on charges of stealing a wallet. Human rights activists in China [JURIST news archive] characterize Chen's prosecution as indicative of China's uncompromising stance against public dissent. RTT News has more.

[JURIST] Peruvian president Alan Garcia [official profile, Spanish; BBC profile] Thursday proposed a national referendum [press release, in Spanish] on introducing capital punishment for convicted terrorists after a legislative proposal [JURIST report] to that effect was defeated 49-26 in the Peruvian Congress [official website] on Wednesday. Garcia described the defeat as one contrary to the will of the Peruvian people, and "[it was his] duty to fulfill what [he has] promised... in [his election] campaign." Political observers believe that Congress is unlikely to support the referendum proposal, which itself requires the approval of Congress. Congressional opposition to the proposal cite the American Convention on Human Rights [text], which Peru has signed and ratified, prohibiting signatories from introducing or expanding the application of the death penalty. Capital punishment is currently only authorized in cases of wartime treason in Peru.

The capital punishment proposal was part of Garcia's election platform. Since the 1980s, Peru has faced an insurgency from the Shining Path [Global Security backgrounder; BBC backgrounder] a Maoist organization designated in the US as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) [US Department of State list]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The French Court of Cassation [official website], the country's highest court on civil and criminal affairs, has ruled that a war crimes investigation [Trial Watch backgrounder] against Republic of Congo (ROC) [CIA backgrounder] President Denis Sassou Ngusseo [Wikipedia profile] and other officials for crimes against humanity can proceed. The decision overturned a 2004 judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal that halted the investigation on the grounds that French magistrates did not have jurisdiction to investigate former police chief Jean-Francois Ndengue and General Norbert Dabira, both of whom own homes in France. Ngusseo called the ruling a "provocation" on Congo state television and characterized the ruling as an intrusion on Congo's domestic affairs.

The officials are accused of being responsible for the "Brazzaville Breach Disappearances" in 1999, where over 350 Congolese refugees returning from neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) disappeared. French investigations were initiated in early-2002 following the filing of a complaint by relatives of victims. In December 2002 the Republic of Congo filed a complaint [ICJ backgrounder] in the International Court of Justice [official website] (ICJ) against France asserting that the French investigation should be halted as it violated the international law "principle of sovereign equality" amongst states and sovereign immunity afforded to Heads of State. VOA has more.

[JURIST] Texas District Judge Bruce Priddy granted a 14-day temporary restraining order on Thursday preventing anti-illegal immigrant measures from going into effect as scheduled on Friday in Farmers Branch, Texas. The ordinances, passed last month in the Dallas suburb [JURIST report; Dallas Morning News report], were challenged by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union. Priddy will hold a hearing on Jan. 22 on whether to issue a temporary injunction in the case.

Last month, three Texas landlords filed a lawsuit [JURIST report] challenging the constitutionality of measures. The local anti-illegal immigration laws, the strongest yet passed in Texas, include making English the city's official language [Res. No. 2006-130 text], requiring apartment renters to show proof of residency [Ordinance No. 2892 text], and giving police the power to screen the residency status of suspects in custody. Landlords who rent to illegal immigrants would be subject to a $500 fine for each day they violate the law by renting to individuals without proper documentation. Activists have petitioned against the ordinance [AP report] in an effort to put it to a referendum. An estimated 37 percent of Farmers Branch's population of 28,000 is Hispanic. AP has more.

[JURIST] The trial [press release] of Dragomir Milosevic [ICTY case backgrounder] began Thursday at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia [official website]. Milosevic, a former Bosnian Serb general not related to former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, has been indicted [PDF text] on crimes against humanity and war crimes charges for his role in the shelling of civilians in Sarajevo during the Bosnian war. Milosevic surrendered [JURIST report] to the ICTY in 2004.

Milosevic was initially indicted in 1998 with Stanislav Galic [ICTY case backgrounder], commander of the Sarajevo Romanija Corps before Milosevic. Galic was convicted [judgment] and sentenced to life in prison [JURIST report] in November 2006. AP has more.

[JURIST] German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble [official profile] said Thursday that Germany would place a high emphasis on containing illegal immigration originating from North Africa and Eastern Europe during the six-month German presidency [official website] of the EU. Schaeuble is expected to urge member state internal and justice ministers, scheduled to meet informally in Dresden next week, to increase member state cooperation, and allocate more resources and funds for Frontex [official website], the European Union's border security agency. Schaeuble also stated a desire to expand the Schengen III Agreement [PDF text; Liberty and Security backgrounder], intended to boost counter-terrorism operations by the exchanging of biometric data and facilitating joint operations, beyond the current seven EU-member signatories and into EU law.

Germany's presidency began in January and will conclude at the end of June. The European Presidency is responsible for the organization and chairing of all meetings in the Council of the European Union [official website], the EU's main decision making body. AFP has more.

[JURIST] US Army Specialist William Hunsaker has received an 18-year prison sentence after pleading guilty Thursday to murder, attempted murder and obstruction of justice charges [JURIST report] relating to the killing of several Iraqi detainees [JURIST report] after a May 9 2006 raid in Thar Thar, a town near Samarra, in Iraq's Salahuddin province. A group of four soldiers released several detainees only to shoot them as they fled. Specialist Juston Graber received a nine-month sentence after pleading guilty [JURIST report] to aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon. The Army demoted Hunsaker and Graber to the rank of private and gave Hunsaker a dishonorable discharge. AFP has more.

Hunsaker and Garber are two of four soldiers from the Third Brigade Combat Team of the 101st Airborne Division [GlobalSecurity backgrounder] accused of deliberately murdering three Iraqi detainees and then covering up the murders [JURIST report]. Sergeant Raymond Girouard and Pfc. Corey Clagett will appear before a military tribunal in a few weeks. A US Army investigator had recommended that all four US soldiers face the death penalty [JURIST report]. The military must approve Hunsaker's sentence.

[JURIST] A Cuban exile militant wanted in Venezuela for the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner [Wikipedia backgrounder; additional materials] that killed 73 people was indicted [PDF] Thursday by a US federal grand jury in Texas on one count of naturalization fraud and six counts of making false statements. Luis Posada Carriles [Wikipedia profile; additional materials], 78, a former CIA operative trained by the US for the failed anti-Castro Bay of Pigs invasion, was initially detained by US immigration agents [JURIST report] in the Miami area in 2005. Under a federal magistrates recommendation in another legal proceeding he might have been released as early as February 1. The indictment marked the first US charges against him.

The US Justice Department said in a statement [text] that during a naturalization interview Posada made false statements concerning how he entered the US, claiming he crossed the Mexican border when he actually entered on a shrimp boat. Two of Carriles' associates were also indicted. No trial date has been set. In September a US immigration judge ruled that Posada could not be handed over [JURIST report] to Venezuela or to Cuba for prosecution on alleged terrorist acts because he could potentially face torture. AP has more.