[JURIST] The US Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] announced Wednesday that Nigerian national Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab has been indicted [text, PDF] on six counts for allegedly attempting to set off an explosive device on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 bound from Amsterdam to Detroit last month. Abdulmutallab has been charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, attempted murder within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the US, willful attempt to destroy or wreck an aircraft, willfully placing a destructive device on an aircraft, use of a firearm/destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence, and possession of a firearm/destructive device in furtherance of a crime of violence. US Attorney General Eric Holder [official website] said [press release]:

The charges that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab faces could imprison him for life. This investigation is fast-paced, global and ongoing, and it has already yielded valuable intelligence that we will follow wherever it leads. Anyone we find responsible for this alleged attack will be brought to justice using every tool - military or judicial - available to our government.

[JURIST] An Iranian parliamentary inquiry has found that Tehran prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi was responsible for the deaths [Alef report, in Persian] of at least three detainees involved in protests that followed the June 12 presidential election [JURIST news archive], the conservative Alef website reported Wednesday. The report alleges that Mortazavi, the prosecutor responsible for overseeing the Kahrizak prison, ordered that the prisoners be transferred to Kahrizak, where they were tortured and beaten to death. The Iranian government announced last month that murder charges [JURIST report] have been brought against 12 Kahrizak prison officials in connection with the deaths. The Iranian government acknowledged [JURIST report] in August that the detainees had been tortured, yet initially claimed that the three men had died from meningitis. The prison coroner later found that the physical abuse was the sole cause of death for all three prisoners. Critics believe [CNN report] that the charges are merely a political move by the Iranian government.

The Iranian government has faced significant international scrutiny for its handling of the protests, which included thousands of arrests. Last month, Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] labeled [JURIST report] the human rights violations committed by the Iranian government following the election among the worst of the past 20 years. In September, human rights groups called for [JURIST report] the UN General Assembly [official website] to appoint a special envoy to investigate allegations of the violations. Alleged human rights abuses of detainees include sexual assault, beatings, and forced confessions [JURIST reports].

[JURIST] French Justice Minister Michele Alliot-Marie [official profile] and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner [official profile] on Wednesday announced plans to create a special judicial service to investigate and charge individuals accused of crimes against humanity and genocide in France or in other countries. The new judicial unit [Le Monde report, in French] would streamline the prosecution of Rwandans living in France who are accused of war crimes committed during the 1994 Rwandan conflict [BBC backgrounder, JURIST news archive]. Alliot-Marie and Kouchner said in their joint statement [press release]:

Today, the judicial treatment of genocide and crimes against humanity encounters a number of specific difficulties. The offenses in question take place beyond our borders. The lack of coordination of the data, evidence and witness statements complicates the task of investigators and judges. The technical nature of the matters involved necessitates special high-level skills. The complexity of the litigation inevitably slows down the proceedings. The increase in the number of unresolved cases, particularly those of more than 15 Rwandans awaiting trial, is spurring us to act fast.

[JURIST] The Malaysian High Court on Wednesday temporarily suspended enforcement of last week's ruling [JURIST report] that non-Muslims can use the word "Allah" as a translation for the word "God." The decision came after the Malaysian Home Ministry [official website, in Malay] sought a stay Tuesday. The case [JURIST report] was brought by the Herald, a weekly Catholic publication, challenging the Malaysian government's three-year ban on the practice. The lawyer for the Herald said his clients has consented to the stay [Sun Daily report]. The government also filed a notice of appeal [JURIST report] on Monday. The appeals court has not set a date for the hearing.

Malaysia [JURIST news archive], a Muslim-majority country, has struggled in recent years to find a balance between modernization and the policies of a more traditional Islamic government that has encouraged the spread of Sharia courts. Approximately 60 percent of Malaysians are Muslim, while Buddhists, Christians, and Hindus comprise about 35 percent of the population, falling under the jurisdiction of civil courts. Both civil and Sharia courts have the authority to address cases involving religious issues.

[JURIST] Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) [official website] Gabi Ashkenazi on Wednesday ordered the military to seek advice from legal advisers during battle, rather than just in the planning stages. Ashkenazi reportedly implemented the new regulations in spite of opposition [Haaretz report] from several commanders. The decision follows widespread criticism of last year's Operation Cast Lead [Global Security Backgrounder] in the Gaza Strip, during which legal advisers were rarely consulted after combat began. The Israeli government has been accused of committing war crimes [JURIST report] and is seeking to avoid such accusations in the future. Under international law, a state is not subject to war crimes prosecution if it can demonstrate "good faith" in reviewing its own behavior.

Wednesday's announcement comes one day after Israeli officials said that a military delegation recently canceled a trip to the UK over fears that they would be arrested on war crimes charges for their involvement in the Gaza offensive on the theory of universal jurisdiction [AI backgrounder], which allows a country to prosecute serious crimes against humanity no matter where the activity takes place. Last month, Former Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni [official website, in Hebrew] canceled a UK trip [JURIST report] after a British magistrate court issued, and later revoked, an arrest warrant for her on war crimes charges relating to Israel's Gaza offensive. In October, Vice Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon [official profile] called off [JURIST report] a scheduled trip to the UK after legal advisers from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs [official website] said that he may be arrested over his involvement in a 2002 airstrike that killed a Hamas leader and 14 civilians. Just one week earlier, Palestinian officials attempted [Jerusalem Post report] to have Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak [official profile, in Hebrew] arrested on charges of war crimes while he was in Britain for a meeting with UK government leaders, but the British court rejected the petition citing Barak's diplomatic immunity.

[JURIST] A federal judge on Tuesday ordered that $21.2 million in gold coins and bullion seized last year from the offices of Allen Stanford [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] be returned to investors. Stanford is accused of defrauding investors [indictment, PDF; JURIST report] out of $7 billion. Judge David Godbey of the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas [official website] ruled that the gold must be returned to the more than 200 investors whose assets were stored in the Stanford vaults. Also Tuesday, Stanford's lawyers asked the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit [official website] to review a lower court order denying him bail.

Last week, it was reported that the US Department of Justice [official website] has begun investigating [JURIST report] political donations and other connections between Stanford and US lawmakers. Stanford donated more than $2.3 million to lawmakers' campaigns and spent more than $5 million in lobbying efforts while allegedly carrying out the fraud. Stanford has denied the charges [JURIST report] against him and was originally set to be released on $500,000 bail until prosecutors successfully appealed the decision. Through three of his investment companies, Stanford allegedly violated the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940 [texts]. He was originally charged [complaint, PDF; JURIST report] in February with running a fraudulent investment scheme by selling certificates of deposit on the promise of improbably high interest rates.

[JURIST] Rhode Island lawmakers on Tuesday voted to allow domestic partners [press release], including those in same-sex relationships, to claim the body of their partner and to make funeral arrangements, overriding a veto [JURIST report] by Governor Don Carcieri [official profile]. The legislation [text, PDF] passed by a vote of 67-3 in the House and 31-3 in the Senate [official websites], receiving support from both Democrats and Republicans. Neither domestic partnerships or civil unions are recognized in Rhode Island, and the bill will require that a same-sex partner produce documentation establishing the nature of the relationship, such as proof of a joint bank account, mortgage, or car registration, and that the relationship had lasted for a year or longer. The legislation will also apply to unmarried heterosexual couples. Carcieri, a Republican, had argued that the "bill represents a disturbing trend over the past few years of the incremental erosion of the principles surrounding traditional marriage."

The veto of the burial rights bill comes amid a larger battle in Rhode Island over same-sex marriage, which, according to a Brown University poll [press release], has the approval of 60 percent of registered voters in the state. Rhode Island and Maine remain the only two states in New England that do not recognize same-sex marriage after legislation to legalize same-sex marriage was vetoed by voters in Maine [JURIST report] in November. Same-sex marriage is currently legal in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, and New Hampshire, and is set to become legal in Washington DC [JURIST reports], pending Congressional inaction.

[JURIST] A judge in the US District Court for the Western District of Kentucky [official website] on Tuesday upheld [opinion, PDF] the majority of restrictions on cigarette advertising imposed by the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act [text, PDF]. The upheld limitations include a ban on distributing clothing and goods with logos or brand names affixed, as well as sponsorship of cultural, athletic, and social events. In finding that these restrictions did not violate the First Amendment, Judge Joseph McKinley wrote, "the Act's ban on free samples clearly regulates the distribution of a product, not speech—and, even if thought of as a speech restriction, it would seem fully permissible as a restriction on price, i.e., tobacco products cannot be free." McKinley did permit the continued use of color and graphics in tobacco advertisements and labels, striking down those portions of the law by quoting the Supreme Court's language from Central Hudson Gas & Electric v. Public Service Commission [opinion text], "The State cannot regulate speech that poses no danger to the asserted state interest ... nor can it completely suppress information when narrower restrictions on expression would serve its interest as well." The ruling was seen as a victory for anti-smoking groups such as the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids [advocacy website], which called the decision [press release], "a significant victory for public health." The tobacco companies involved in the suit, including RJ Reynolds [corporate website], have not released statements on the decision.

Judge McKinley's decision comes only four months after the suit was filed [JURIST report] claiming the new tobacco law violated the First Amendment. Obama signed the bill into law [JURIST report] in June 2009, the culmination of many years of debate on the merits and authority of the Food and Drug Administration to oversee the tobacco industry. The bill was first voted out of committee [JURIST report] in the House in April 2008, while a Senate committee approved a version of the bill [JURIST report] in August 2007.

[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] Tuesday that a Washington law that prohibits felons from voting violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act [text]. The Washington law, Article VI, Section 3 of the state constitution [text], states that, "All persons convicted of infamous crime unless restored to their civil rights and all persons while they are judicially declared mentally incompetent are excluded from the elective franchise." Washington defines [text] an infamous crime as one, "punishable by death in the state penitentiary or imprisonment in a state correctional facility." In issuing its opinion, the Ninth Circuit noted that despite the state's efforts to amend the law to reduce the discriminatory effect, "it does not protect minorities from being denied the right to vote upon conviction by a criminal justice system that Plaintiffs have demonstrated is materially tainted by discrimination and bias." Washington Secretary of State Sam Reed expressed surprise [press release] at the decision, and the state is expected to appeal.

Felon voting rights are varied throughout the US [ProCon backgrounder], with 12 states completely restricting the right to vote depending on the crime committed, while Maine and Vermont allow all felons to vote, including those still serving their prison sentences. In October 2008, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) [advocacy website] released a report showing widespread disenfranchisement [JURIST report] among ex-convicts, including most prominently a lack of knowledge of state laws regarding voting rights. Earlier that year, the ACLU filed suit [JURIST report] challenging additions to Alabama's felon voting disenfranchisement law made by the state's attorney general. In February 2008, the ACLU filed suit [JURIST report] alleging that a Tennessee law that requires ex-convicts to pay all outstanding legal obligations before being granted the right to vote violates the Fourteenth Amendment.

[JURIST] US President Barack Obama on Tuesday pledged to improve [transcript] airline passenger security, calling last month's attempted bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253 "a failure to integrate and understand the intelligence." Obama said that the US government had sufficient information to uncover the plot, but that "our intelligence community failed to connect those dots." According to a review of the terrorist watch list system being conducted by Obama's counterterrorism and homeland security adviser John Brennan, the suspect, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, should have been placed on the no-fly list [JURIST news archive]. Obama said that the terrorist watch list has already been reviewed and that more individuals have been added to the no-fly list. Obama called for initial reviews to be completed this week, with specific recommendations for corrective action. He concluded:

In short, we need our intelligence, homeland security and law enforcement systems - and the people in them - to be accountable and to work as intended: collecting, sharing, integrating, analyzing, and acting on intelligence as quickly and effectively as possible to save innocent lives - not just most of the time, but all the time. That's what the American people deserve. As President, that's exactly what I will demand.