JURIST Guest Columnist Eileen Gauna of Southwestern University School of Law. now visiting at the University of New Mexico, says that the Hurricane Katrina disaster is a classic instance of environmental injustice, the longstanding pattern whereby people of color and the poor are exposed to greater environmental risk while receiving fewer environmental amenities… Katrina was [...]

Assembly Bill No. 450, California Legislature, February 15, 2005, signed into law by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, October 7, 2005 . Read the full text of the bill here . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

UK House Leader Geoff Hoon said Sunday that the government is open to compromise on a proposed addition to the draft Terrorism Bill that would allow police to detain terrorism suspects for up to three months without bringing formal charges. The proposed measure is expected to draw criticism from opposition parties during parliamentary debate Monday, [...]

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a bill that bans the sale or rental of violent video games to minors under the age of 17, and requires retailers to label violent games as such. The bill cites several factors to be used to determine whether a video game is violent, including "infliction of gratuitous violence [...]

A source close to the Iraqi Special Tribunal said Sunday that the trial of Saddam Hussein , scheduled for October 19th , might be adjourned after several days of procedural arguments. Hussein's lawyer Khalil Dulaimi filed petitions last month seeking to delay the trial, in addition to a petition challenging the jurisdiction of the Iraqi [...]

The Iraqi government Sunday urged Iraqis to vote in the upcoming October 15 constitutional referendum and condemned insurgent groups for trying to reduce voter turnout. Iraqi government spokesman Laith Kuba said Sunday that a boycott would weaken Iraq and delay its rebuilding. Sunni-led fighters loyal to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi , leader of al Qaeda in [...]

The UN Refugee Agency has criticized Australia for its strict policy of detaining illegal immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers, in comments before an Australian parliamentary inquiry. David Wright, a representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said that detention of asylum seekers and refugees is inherently undesirable and should only be used while authorities [...]

The Indonesian government cannot ban Islamic militant group Jemaah Islamiah (JI) because the government never formally acknowledged the group's existence, Vice President Yusuf Kalla said Sunday. Australia has called on Indonesia to outlaw the group , and Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer will travel to Indonesia next week to discuss the issue. JI, al Qaeda [...]

The US District Court for the Western District of Kentucky has ruled that the Holy See is a foreign state subject to immunity protections of the 1976 Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act , placing limitations on a lawsuit by three men who allege a cover-up by the Vatican to protect priests who sexually abused children. The [...]

Environmental Integrity Project v. Environmental Protection Agency, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, October 7, 2005 . Excerpt: In this case, EPA proposed to codify its interpretation of the Part 70 rules through an amendment of the regulatory text. Whatever a "logical outgrowth" of this proposal may include, it certainly does [...]