Lawyers in Abu Ghraib trial request new judge News
Lawyers in Abu Ghraib trial request new judge

[JURIST] Lawyers for US Army Pfc. Lynndie England [JURIST news archive; Wikipedia profile] will request at a pretrial hearing Thursday that Judge Col. James Pohl be removed from the case. Pohl had presided over England's first trial, in which he threw out her guilty plea [JURIST report] after her statements were contradicted by those made by former boyfriend Pvt. Charles Graner Jr. [JURIST news archive, Wikipedia profile], who had previously been convicted and sentenced to ten years for abuses at the Iraqi prison [JURIST report]. England's attorneys contend that the rejection of the guilty plea was improvident and unfair; they also state that their plans to call Judge Pohl as a witness disqualifies him from serving as judge. AP has more. KLTV in Jacksonville, Texas has local coverage.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Laws of Burgos put into effect

The Spanish Crown put the Laws of Burgos into effect on December 27, 1512. These laws governed the relationship of Spanish settlers with the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean. The laws established the encomienda system of labor, promoted conversion to Catholicism, and safeguarded the indigenous peoples from physical abuse.  However, historians argue that the laws were ineffective at protecting the rights of the indigenous population. Learn more from the Library of Congress.

Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public bar smashing

On December 27, 1900, militant Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public smashing of a bar, at the Carey Hotel in Wichita, Kansas. Nation argued that destroying bars was an acceptable means of battling the liquor trade since the Kansas Constitution prohibited alcohol. Learn more about Carrie Nation.

World Bank created

On December 27, 1944, the World Bank was created during the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, USA. Learn more about the history of the World Bank.