A Tokyo court dismissed a lawsuit against Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi Thursday that claimed his visits to a Shinto war shrine violated Japan's constitutional separation of religion and state. The court denied the plaintiffs' requests for 3.9 million yen ($34,433) in compensation and ruled that Koizumi's visits to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine were private acts. [...]

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Wednesday strongly criticized a ruling from a US immigration judge earlier this week that Cuban exile Luis Posada Carriles would not be handed over to Venezuela or Cuba for prosecution on alleged terrorist acts because he could potentially face torture. The former anti-Castro CIA operative is wanted in Venezuela regarding allegations [...]

President Bush granted pardons to 14 people Wednesday, according to a list released by the US Justice Department . Among those pardoned was a mineworker union member who was convicted for bombing a West Virginia coal mine in 1990 following an extended strike. Bush, who has granted 58 pardons during his tenure, has pardoned far [...]

FBI Director Robert Mueller has said the US is still seeking to improve the extradition of terror suspects from European governments. Mueller on Wednesday said more efficient measures were needed to increase the intelligence value of suspects and to bring justice to the victims of terror attacks. Mueller did not signal specific countries in his [...]

International representatives and Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki have called for a halt to violence that continued to escalate among rival groups over constitutional reforms to be voted on in November . A statement signed by 26 countries, including the US, Japan, Canada and the EU, called for a free and transparent reform process that maintained [...]

More than 1,100 political prisoners continue to be held by the military government in Myanmar , despite pledges by the government to release dissidents as part of democratic reforms, the UN Special Rapporteur to Myanmar Paulo Sergio Pinheiro reported Wednesday to the UN General Assembly . Pinheiro, who has been barred from the country since [...]

US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton said Wednesday he opposed legislation that would withhold US dues of more than $130 million until the UN adopted US-backed reforms. Bolton appeared before the US House International Relations Committee , his first congressional appearance since his recess appointment to the post after failing to win Senate confirmation. [...]

State of Texas v. John Dominick Colyandro, James Walter Ellis, and Thomas Dale DeLay, District Court of Travis County, Texas, filed September 28, 2005 . Read the full text of the indictment . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

Letter from the Secretary of the Judicial Conference of the United States to US Senate Judiciary Chairman Senator Arlen Specter, September 26, 2005 . Read the full text of the letter here . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

With Democratic Senators divided on Chief Justice nominee Judge John Roberts , it appeared all but certain Wednesday that he would be confirmed as early as Thursday by a solidly bipartisan Senate vote. At least 76 senators – including 21 Democrats – have thusfar indicated they will support the 50-year-old Roberts, set to be the [...]