The late Tuesday announcement of Attorney General John Ashcroft's resignation (previously reported in JURIST's Paper Chase) prompted differing responses Tuesday and Wednesday from interest groups and lawmakers around the country, reflecting a sometimes divisive reign as the country's top law enforcement official. The conservative American Center for Law and Justice praised Ashcroft for providing "exceptional [...]

Sudanese police raided the El-Geer refugee camp near Nyala Wednesday morning, just one day after the signing of a peace accord between the government and rebel forces. The assault took place in front of African Union officials present to monitor the humanitarian conditions of the camp and only hours before official UN inspectors arrived to [...]

The UN and France Wednesday began evacuations of personnel on peacekeeping missions in the Ivory Coast after a week of violence left at least 27 dead and more than 900 injured. The UN and France have at least 10,000 peacekeepers in the West African nation to maintain a year-old cease-fire agreement between government and rebel [...]

The speaker of the Palestinian parliament, Rauhi Fattouh, will temporarily fill the post of president of the Palestinian Authority should Yasser Arafat die, Palestinian leaders confirmed Wednesday. Current Palestinian law (Article 54(2) of the Palestinian Basic Law) calls for the speaker to hold the position until elections can be held, but some officials were reportedly [...]

John D. Ashcroft to President George W. Bush, November 2, 2004 . Excerpt: The demands of justice are both rewarding and depleting. I take great personal satisfaction in the record which has been developed. The objective of securing the safety of Americans from crime and terror has been achieved. The rule of law has been [...]

Here's a run-down of law-related events, expected developments and live webcasts on JURIST's docket for Wednesday, November 10. The US Supreme Court hears 10 AM ET arguments in two cases today. In the first, Illinois v. Caballes (case summary from Duke Law School), the Court will determine whether the Fourth Amendment requires a reasonable, articulabe [...]

Ashcroft v. State of Oregon, Petition for a Writ of Certiorai, Supreme Court of the United States, November 9, 2004 . Read the full text of the petition here . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

Josue Leocal, Petitioner v. John D. Ashcroft, Attorney General, et. al., United States Supreme Court, Chief Justice Rehnquist, November 9, 2004 . Excerpt: This case does not present us with the question whether a state or federal offense that requires proof of the reckless use of force against a person or property of another qualifies [...]

The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals refused on Tuesday to reconsider a decision it made last year that the music group Beastie Boys could use short samples of others' music in its own songs. The practice of "sampling" has become widespread in the music industry. The 9th Circuit ruled in 2003 that the group [...]

In Tuesday's environmental law news, San Francisco CA officials announced a plan that would close the Hunters Point power plant (owned by Pacific Gas and Electric) by 2006 and the Potrero power plant (owned by Mirant Co.) by 2007. The plan, developed by the city and the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), would scuttle the [...]