[JURIST] Former Hutu intelligence chief Idelphonse Nizeyimana [BBC profile; case materials] on Wednesday pleaded not guilty [press release] in the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) [official website] to charges related to his role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide [HRW backgrounder]. The ICTR indicted [text, PDF] Nizeyimana in 2000 for genocide and crimes against humanity, but the military leader had evaded authorities until his arrest [JURIST report] last week. Prosecutors claim that Nizeyimana ordered troops to kill Tutsi families and to kidnap and kill a ceremonial Tutsi queen, charging him with four counts of genocide, or in the alternative complicity in genocide and crimes against humanity. A trial date has not yet been set.

Nizeyimana was one of four top accused sought by the ICTR in order to complete its mission. In July, the UN Security Council [official website] extended the terms [JURIST report] for ICTR judges until December 31, 2010, or until they complete their cases. In March, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon pledged his ongoing support [JURIST report] for the ICTR and stressed that the international community must continue to combat genocide. The ICTR was established to try genocide suspects for crimes occurring during the 1994 Rwandan conflict between Hutus and Tutsis in which approximately 800,000 people, primarily Tutsis, died.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] heard oral arguments [day call, PDF; merit briefs] Wednesday in two cases. In Alvarez v. Smith [oral arguments transcript, PDF], the Court heard arguments on whether the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment [text] requires state and local governments to allow probable cause challenges to property seizures, and if so, what the requirements for those hearings should be. Six plaintiffs whose property was seized without a warrant brought suit against Cook County, Illinois, arguing that the Illinois statute allowing warrantless property seizure is unconstitutional. The case comes before the court after the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held [opinion, PDF] that some hearing was due, but had remanded the case to the district court in order to determine the applicable test. Counsel for petitioner Cook County argued that no post-seizure adversarial hearing should be required in addition to the civil forfeiture hearing itself. Counsel for respondents argued that due process requires an adversarial hearing.

In Perdue v. Kenny A. [oral arguments transcript, PDF; JURIST report], the Court heard arguments on whether an attorney's fee award under a federal fee-shifting statute can be enhanced based on quality of performance and results obtained when these factors already are included in the lodestar calculation. The lodestar calculation is used by courts in awarding attorney's fees and is the product of reasonable hours worked and a reasonable hourly rate. The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed [opinion, PDF] the lower court's enhancement of attorney's fees in a class action suit, finding that factors such as quality of performance and results obtained may appropriately be considered. Counsel for the petitioners argued:

This Court has previously held that factors, such as novelty and complexity of the issues, contingency, and superior performance cannot be used to increase the lodestar amount because the factors are subsumed within that determination.

But because of this Court's indication that, in rare or exceptional circumstances, upward adjustments may be permissible, district courts, such as the one below, have used quality and results to increase lodestar awards, even though the - the multiplication of the reasonable number of hours expended times the reasonable hourly rate constitutes a fully compensatory fee and serves the purpose of the statute, which is to attract competent counsel without providing a windfall.

[JURIST] An international convention is needed to protect the victims of organ, tissue, and cell (OTC) trafficking, according to a new report [text, PDF; press release] released Tuesday by the Council of Europe (COE) [official website] and the UN. The report calls for a separate OTC convention in addition to the convention against human trafficking, drawing a distinction between OTC trafficking and trafficking in humans for the removal of organs. At a press conference [press release], COE Director of Cooperation Marja Ruotanen said, "[w]e have legislation and definitions covering the trafficking in human beings for the purpose of organ removal, but the study points out that there is a legal vacuum for the traffic in organs, tissues and cells." The report estimates that 10-15 percent of kidney transplants worldwide come from trafficked organs. The authors of the report hope to introduce a bill to the UN General Assembly on the topic.

OTC trafficking has become a widespread problem throughout the world. In August, the Chinese vice-minister of health estimated that 65 percent of organ transplants in China have their origin in executed prisoners [JURIST report]. Last October, Serbian war crimes prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic and Albanian state prosecutor Ina Rama met to discuss allegations of organ trafficking in Kosovo, but Albania refused to initiate an investigation [JURIST reports]. Both Human Rights Watch and the Council of Europe have completed reports into the allegations [JURIST reports], urging further investigation.

[JURIST] The US Senate Finance Committee [official website] voted 14-9 to approve [press release, PDF] a health care reform bill [text, PDF] Tuesday. The America's Healthy Future Act, introduced by committee chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) [official website], would require most US citizens to obtain health insurance and would create tax breaks for low-income families purchasing insurance. The bill would also prohibit insurance companies from denying coverage to individuals with preexisting conditions and create tax incentives for small businesses purchasing insurance for employees. While employers would not be required to provide employees with coverage, employers with more than 50 employees would have to pay a fee for employees who get federally subsidized benefits. The bill does not contain a controversial public insurance option, which has been supported by President Barack Obama, but strongly opposed by Republican lawmakers. Obama expressed enthusiasm [press release] that the bill had passed, while acknowledging its imperfection and the amount of work still to be done. Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) [official website] because the first Republican to support Obama's health care reform plan by voting in favor of the bill. Four other health care reform bills have been approved by Senate and House committees, and all five bills must now be debated and reconciled.

Health care reform has been a top priority of the Obama administration over the past several months. Some have complained that the lack of a public option for low-income individuals does not go far enough to fix the nation's health care system. Conservatives have argued that proposed additional taxes on expensive insurance policies already in place would make reform too costly. Approximately 47 million Americans are uninsured, according to the National Coalition on Health Care [advocacy website], though that number is disputed.

[JURIST] The appeals chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website] dismissed [decision, PDF] an appeal claiming immunity by former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic [case materials; JURIST news archive] in a ruling released Tuesday. Karadzic, who stands accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, argued that the ICTY cannot prosecute him because US diplomat Richard Holbrooke promised him immunity if he resigned his leadership. Holbrooke denies the existence of any such agreement. The appeals chamber, in affirming an ICTY trial chamber decision [text, PDF; JURIST report], held that even if the agreement could be proven, it would not limit the ICTY's jurisdiction or its ability to prosecute Karadzic. In April, the appeals chamber affirmed [decision, PDF; JURIST report] the trial chamber's previous rejection [decision, PDF; JURIST report] of a claim by Karadzic on similar grounds. The trial had been scheduled to begin October 21, but the ICTY decided Tuesday to delay the trial to allow Karadzic more time to prepare a defense.

Karadzic faces 11 charges [amended indictment, PDF], including genocide and murder, for war crimes committed during the 1992-1995 Bosnian war. In August, Karadzic sued the Serbian government for allegedly kidnapping him prior to announcing his arrest [JURIST reports] last year. He claimed that Serbian authorities officially reported his arrest three days after he was actually detained, delaying his appearance before a judge. Karadzic's capture came 13 years after being indicted by the ICTY in 1995.

[JURIST] Spanish judge Baltasar Garzon charged two suspected Somali pirates accused of helping take over the Alakrana, a Spanish ship currently under the control of Somali Pirates. The suspects, Abdou Willy and Raagegeesey, were charged [NYT report] with 36 counts of kidnapping as well as armed assault. Neither suspect has admitted to breaking any laws. The two were arrested [Barcelona Reporter report] last week leaving the Alakrana and flown [El Pais report, in Spanish] from East Africa to Madrid. Spanish officials have claimed jurisdiction over the case because Spanish citizens are involved and because the two were arrested outside of the area in which the European Union has agreed [JURIST report] to turn captured pirates over to Kenya. The pirates in control of the Alakrana said Tuesday that they would not relinquish control [El Pais report] of the ship until the two accused pirates are released.

A study released in July found that acts of piracy doubled [JURIST report] in the first six months of this year from the same period in 2008. In May, five suspected Somali pirates went on trial [JURIST report] in Holland, accused of attempting to hijack [NRC Handelsblad report] a Dutch Antilles freighter in the Gulf of Aden. In April, a US Coast Guard chief called for the enforcement of international piracy laws [JURIST report], citing the importance of entering Somali waters to combat the problem. Last October, the UN Security Council unanimously approved Resolution 1838 [text, PDF; press release], condemning all acts of piracy and armed robbery off the coast of Somalia, and calling on states to "deploy naval vessels and military aircraft to actively fight piracy on the high seas off the coast of Somalia." Although maritime piracy is increasingly widespread, Somalia's coast has been ranked as the most dangerous in the world [BBC report] due to a surge in attacks on ships carrying traded goods or humanitarian aid [NPR report].