ICTY knew Milosevic had access to drugs, alcohol: officials News
ICTY knew Milosevic had access to drugs, alcohol: officials

[JURIST] Two anonymous officials at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website] said Tuesday that the Tribunal had been informed several times by the ICTY prison warden that former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic [JURIST news archive], found dead in his cell [JURIST report] early Saturday, had unfettered access to any materials brought to him by witnesses and legal advisors as he prepared for trial. The tribunal did not, however, tighten security around the indicted war criminal after the warden raised the possibility of Milosevic using drugs or alcohol in his cell. While full autopsy reports are not yet complete, preliminary autopsy reports [ICTY press release] suggest that a heart attack caused Milosevic's death.

Meanwhile ICTY chief prosecutor Carla De Ponte [BBC profile] suggested in a Tuesday interview [transcript, in French] with French newspaper Le Monde that Milosevic's death may even have been a suicide [VOA report] and that he may have secretly taken medicines to worsen his known heart problems. A Dutch toxicologist suggested Monday that he may have taken unauthorized drugs in an attempt to induce the Hague court [JURIST report] to send him to Moscow for medical treatment. AP has more.

9:44 PM ET – After earlier statements by Milosevic's son that his father would be temporarily buried in Russia, Milosevic lawyer Zdenko Tomanovic has said that burial will take place in Belgrade. BBC News 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.