Rights group files lawsuit seeking release of Gitmo detainees News
Rights group files lawsuit seeking release of Gitmo detainees

[JURIST] A lawsuit seeking the release of over 500 unnamed terror suspects detained by the US government at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST Hot Topic] has been launched by the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights [advocacy website]. The lawsuit, which joins over 70 separate cases already pending in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, was filed Thursday following a one-page order [PDF] written by US District Judge Ricardo Urbina [official profile] permitting the legal action. The order, without explanation, allowed the suit to proceed with unnamed detainees assuming ficticious "John Doe" designations. Urbina's order, however, does not address the vexing issue of lawyers' access to their clients. CCR provides a case synopsis and the petition for a write of habeas corpus [PDF], AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Montgomery started racially-integrated bus service after boycott

On December 21, 1956, buses in Montgomery, Alabama, started racially integrated service following federal court rulings ending on-board segregation. Bus boycott leaders Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King and Rev. Ralph Abernathy were among the first riders under the new scheme. Learn about the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Stalin born

On December 21, 1879, Joseph Stalin was born in Gori, Georgia. In 1922, he became leader of the USSR until his death in 1953. During his time as Soviet dictator, Stalin industrialized his country, which he then led to become one of the world's two superpowers after WWII. Through his infamous purges, show trials and nationwide famines, Stalin also became responsible for millions of deaths.