Lawyers representing former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega Monday filed motions seeking to avert extradition from the US to France on money laundering charges when he is released from federal prison on September 9 . Noriega's lawyers argue that Noriega should remain classified as a prisoner of war under the Geneva Conventions and therefore should be [...]

An Orleans Parish grand jury Tuesday refused to indict Dr. Anna Pou on charges of killing four patients at the Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina . Pou and two nurses were arrested last year, with prosecutors arguing that they had committed second-degree murder. The charges against the nurses [...]

The United Nations Office of Legal Affairs rejected Taiwan's fifteenth bid for member state status Monday, reiterating the One-China Policy and recognizing the People's Republic of China (PRC) as the legitimate government of China. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Liu Jianchao characterized Taiwan's latest effort to join the UN as a "separatist act of the 'Taiwan [...]

US Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) told Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Tuesday that he should consider appointing a special prosecutor to investigate the US Attorneys firing scandal . In a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing , Specter said that Gonzales may have to appoint the investigator because the Bush administration has made statements that would [...]

Former Bangladeshi Prime Minster Sheikh Hasina was formally charged Tuesday with extortion for alleged kickbacks she received during her tenure in office. According to the charges, the former PM and two relatives received thousands of dollars from deals, including one awarding a contract to an electric company. Hasina was arrested last week, and has at [...]

The Chinese government compensated Zhang Zhijian, who exposed the corruption of former drug safety commissioner Zheng Xiaoyu, in the amount of 24,000 yuan ($3,175 USD) after he spent 10 months in jail for posting an Internet story on the corruption, AP reported Tuesday. Zhang was originally sentenced to six years imprisonment in March for defaming [...]

Two federal district judges separately ordered Monday the formation of special three-judge panel to supervise and reduce California's prison population after finding that California's prison overcrowding is preventing the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) from adequately providing mental health care. Judge Thelton E. Henderson of the Northern District of California ordered the suspension [...]

The Law Council of Australia, the country's national organization for lawyers, on Tuesday issued harsh criticism of the trial of former Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks , saying the trial was "a charade." The council's report , prepared by lawyer Lex Lasry, criticized the American and Australian governments on the trial, concluding that: The "trial" [...]

Veterans for Common Sense and Veterans United for Truth filed a class action lawsuit Monday against the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) on behalf of approximately 320,000 to 800,000 veterans of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) , alleging that the VA is denying adequate procedural safeguards in [...]

A controversial law offering ID cards to illegal immigrants went into effect Tuesday in New Haven, Connecticut. The municipal identification cards, which will be available at a cost of $10 for adults and $5 for children and will not distinguish citizens from undocumented immigrants, will allow cardholders to access public libraries, parks and recreational sites, [...]