Guatemala congress establishes body to investigate organized crime News
Guatemala congress establishes body to investigate organized crime

[JURIST] The Congress of Guatemala [official website, in Spanish] voted to create the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) Wednesday, establishing an independent body [press release, in Spanish] to investigate organized crime and official corruption. The CICIG, which will be funded by voluntary international contributions, will be given independent authority to investigate local Guatemalan institutions. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official website], who will appoint the CICIG's commissioner, praised the move [statement; UN News report] as a "clear message" to both the Guatemalan people and the international community that Guatemala is "committed to fight crime and impunity, and to provide security for its citizens." The United States, Sweden, Norway, and Spain have offered to contribute to the CICIG.

Guatemala [JURIST news archive] is a major transit and staging area for narcotics [CIA backgrounder] originating from Colombia destined for the United States through Mexico. AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

US Supreme Court ruled Indians not US citizens

On November 3, 1884, the US Supreme Court ruled in Elk v. Wilkins that John Elk, an American Indian who had tried to vote in a federal election in Omaha, Nebraska, was not a US citizen entitled to the protection of the 14th and 15th Amendments of the US Constitution. Native Americans became eligible for citizenship in 1887 under the Dawes Act, but only in 1924, under the Indian Citizenship Act, were all Native Americans born in the US made citizens.

Last public execution at Tyburn Gallows in London

On November 3, 1783, the last public execution took place at Tyburn Gallows in London, when John Austin was hanged for highway robbery. From the hanging of William Fitz Osburn in 1196 until Austin's execution, Tyburn served as London's primary location for public executions.

Learn more about the trial of John Austin.