India upholds death sentence for man convicted of 2001 parliament attack News
India upholds death sentence for man convicted of 2001 parliament attack

[JURIST] India's Supreme Court [official website] on Thursday let stand the death sentence of Mohammad Afzal for his role in a 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament [BBC report] that left nine people dead. The court commuted the death sentence given to Shaukat Hussain for his role in the same attack, instead sentencing him to 10 years in prison. The two death sentences for Afzal and Hussain [BBC report] were the first in India under the post-9/11 Prevention of Terrorism Act [JURIST report], which has since been repealed. Reuters has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

38 Santee Sioux hanged by US for rebellion

On December 26, 1862, 38 Santee Sioux men were hanged in a mass execution for their roles in a rebellion against US authorities in Minnesota which left hundreds dead and made refugees of some 40,000 white settlers. Government annuities promised under a treaty with the Sioux had failed to arrive on schedule and credit for purchases was not advanced in the meantime, threatening the tribe with starvation. The Santee Sioux Tribe's members were deported first to South Dakota and ultimately to Nebraska, where they remain today. Learn more about the 1862 Minnesota Sioux Rebellion.

Louis XVI put on trial during French Revolution

On December 26, 1792, Romain de Sèze, a defense attorney for deposed King Louis XVI, presented a defense of his client. The former King was on trial before a French Revolutionary court on thirty-three charges, including treason and other crimes against the state. He was convicted on January 15, 1793 executed by guillotine on the following January 21.