Home Secretary reconsiders criminal terrorism proposals

News

Home Secretary reconsiders criminal terrorism proposals

October 6, 2005 07:09:00 pm

In a letter [PDF text] sent Thursday to opposition colleagues, UK Home Secretary Charles Clarke [official profile] amended a three-week old proposal [PDF text] to criminalize a broad range of activities that could be interpreted as “glorifying” terrorism. The proposal was intended as an addition to an official draft of a new Terrorism Bill [PDF text; Home Office overview] that was agreed upon by opposition parties in late July 2005 in response to the London subway bombings [JURIST archive]. Clarke changed the language of the proposal so that the state must prove that an accused person intended to incite future terrorist acts. Clarke will continue to support another proposal which would allow police to detain terrorism suspects without bringing formal charges for up to three months. The new Terrorism Bill, which will strengthen the current legislation [PDF text] enacted last Feburary, will be debated by Parliament when the summer recess ends next Monday. From London, the Telegraph has local coverage.

South Africa becomes first country on continent to legalize same-sex marriage

Same-sex marriages became legal in South Africa on November 30, 2006 as the country's Civil Union Act, 2006 went into effect, making South Africa the only country on the African continent to legalize same-sex marriage. Read the Civil Union Act, 2006.

Justice Samuel Chase impeached

On November 30, 1804, US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase went on trial in the Senate for "arbitrary and oppressive conduct of trials." He was acquitted in March 1805. Read a C-SPAN interview with Chief Justice William Rehnquist on his 1992 book Grand Inquests: The Historic Impeachments of Justice Samuel Chase and President Andrew Johnson. Review a chronological list of impeachments of federal judges.