During the trial both access to transcripts and prosecution and defense motions have been virtually inaccessible. Bradley, who faces a life sentence over the leaking of more than 700,000 sensitive military documents published by Wikileaks, is currently being tried by a military tribunal. The trial is expected to begin on June 3, 2013. The judge overseeing Manning’s court-martial announced this week that she will close portions of the trial to the public in order to protect classified material. Prosecutors are expected to call 150 witnesses to testify against Manning, while two dozen witnesses may be able to provide their testimony in closed sessions. Shayana Kadidal, an attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights which is part of the legal challenge, described the effort as a last ditch attempt.”If this lawsuit fails, Manning’s trial will take place under conditions where journalists and the public will be unable as a practical matter to follow what is going on in the courtroom,” says Kadidal.”The federal civilian courts are now our last option,” she added. Assange’s co-plaintiffs in the legal injunction include Guardian columnist Glenn Greenwald, Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman, and The Nation magazine. The coalition seeks to force the release of files currently being kept out of the public’s access. The same group previously filed a similar lawsuit in military courts that was shot down in a 3-2 decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces last month. Now, they are hoping that the same legal request will fare better in a civilian court. The group’s preliminary injunction is expected to be presented in front of a Maryland US District Court shortly after Manning’s trial begins in June. Though the pretrial process has been opaque, prosecutors did say this week that they had agreed not to pursue a charge that Manning had violated the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, which could potentially reduce any prison sentence by eight years. According to the Washington Post, prosecutors did not provide a reason for the recent shift. Regardless, convictions for the more serious charges faced by Manning could still carry a sentence of life in prison. Manning’s defense team attempted to block testimony from witnesses linked to alleged damage caused by the release of the leaked documents. Army Col. Denise Lind, overseeing the trial, disagreed, and ruled that the prosecution will have the option to call witnesses to provide both evidence and context of any collateral damage caused by the document leaks. Lind did say, however, that the testimony would be limited so as to not have the trial “devolve into many trials regarding international politics in many regions of the world.” Both activists and journalists that have been following Manning’s pretrial proceedings have accused the US military of undermining the legal process by preventing access.“The culture of extreme secrecy that has defined both the Bush and Obama presidencies does a disservice to our democratic society. By unnecessarily cloaking these proceedings from public view or scrutiny, the government is undermining the most basic principles of transparency and freedom of the press, both of which are vital components of the democratic and judicial process,” said journalist Jeremy Scahill, national security correspondent for The Nation. … Read More
New York suing megabanks in bid to end ‘Kafkaesque’ mortgage experience
In a statement Monday Eric Schneiderman accused the two banking giants of failing to stick to the agreed settlement between some 49 attorney generals and five major housing lenders. He said his office has recorded hundreds of examples in the past year showing Wells Fargo – the country’s fourth-largest bank by assets – and Bank of America – the country’s second by the same measure – ignoring refinancing requests from mortgageholders, making it more likely those people would lose their homes.“The five mortgage servicers that signed the National Mortgage Settlement are legally required to take specific, rigorous, and enforceable steps to protect homeowners,” Schneiderman said in a statement. “Wells Fargo and Bank of America have flagrantly violated those obligations, putting hundreds of homeowners across New York at greater risk of foreclosure.”“I intend to use every tool available to my office to hold these companies accountable under the terms of the National Mortgage Settlement,” he said.The attorney general did not accuse All Financial/GMAC, JP Morgan Chase, or Citibank – who are also named in the settlement – of any violations, but told reporters the suit would have “implications” for them.Schneiderman’s announcement, which suggested the lawsuits could be filed within two months, came ahead of the report from the settlement’s monitor, which is expected to be critical of the bank’s practices, according to Reuters. The potential suit is the first critique of the big banks since the agreement was put in place in February 2012, although the statement did not describe whether the state will seek damages or penalties. In the biggest similar cases in American courts, banks are asked to pay a nominal fine, usually the equivalent of a few days’ profits, and are not required to admit that they broke any laws.“What’s clear to us is that the foreclosure crisis in New York is far from over,” said Meghan Faux, acting director of legal services in Brooklyn, at a press conference. “It takes us six to eight court appearances over two years to get one homeowner a loan modification.”Josh Zinner, the co-director of the Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project, implied a greater conspiracy is at work in his own statement.“These are not just technicalities,” he said, adding that it has been a “Kafkaesque experience for many” to navigate the mortgage corner of the consumer banking universe, despite the settlement ordering banks to pitch in on homeowner relief.As outlined by the settlement, the top banks agreed to provide $25 billion in such relief. But despite that promise, Schneiderman said his office has documented 210 violations of standards by Wells Fargo and 129 by Bank of America delaying mortgage modification applications.“Through March we have provided relief for more than 10,000 New York homeowners through the National Mortgage Settlement, totaling more than $1 billion,” said Bank of America in a statement. “Attorney General Schneiderman has referenced 129 customer servicing problems which we take seriously and will work quickly to address.” The settlement monitor, former North Carolina Banking Commissioner Joe Smith, said he was encouraged by Schneiderman’s announcement but reiterated that he would not release the results of his own findings until June. … Read More
Amanda Knox appeals to Meredith Kercher’s family
In an exclusive interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer, 25-year-old Amanda Knox tells her side of the story that made her an international headline six years ago. Knox was convicted for the murder of her study abroad roommate, Meredith Kercher, and released in 2011 when the charges were dismissed. Italian courts recently overturned Knox’s acquittal, however, and viewers are reminded that “every word she says here and in the pages of her new book…could affect her freedom.”In the interview, Knox recounts the night of Kercher’s death, maintaining that Knox was at her Italian boyfriend’s home that night. When she learned of the death, the Italian media scrutinized her reaction as callous. Knox admits to Sawyer,”I wish I could have been more mature about it.” “I felt very lost, very alone and very vulnerable,” she explained. “My friend had been murdered, and it could just have been easily been me.”Knox also appealed to Kercher’s family, saying “Eventually I can have their permission to pay my respects at her grave and I would also like them to know that she talked about them to me,” she said.Watch Part I of the interview, below:Continue Reading… … Read More
Turkey – Media freedom is essential for peace process
Reporters Without Borders representatives yesterday attended hearings in two trials in Silivri, 60 km northwest of Istanbul, that have major implications for freedom of information in Turkey. One is the trial of Kurdish journalists who are accused of being members of an alleged “media committee” created by the outlawed Union of Communities in Kurdistan (KCK). The other is a trial of alleged members of the Ergenekon ultranationalist conspiracy. “We are here to yet again demonstrate our (…) … Read More
ACLU catches Ohio jailing those too poor to pay fines
Entitled “The Outskirts of Hope,” the report also accuses Ohio judges of consistently denying those locked up in such circumstances court hearings to prove their financial status.“Supreme Court precedent and Ohio law make clear that local courts and jails should not function as debtors’ prisons,” said American Civil Liberties Union staff attorney Carl Takei. “Yet many mayors’ courts and some municipal courts jail people without making any attempt whatsoever to determine whether they can afford to pay their fines.”“Being poor is not a crime in this country,” said ACLU staff attorney Richard Goodman, who was quoted in the group’s announcement. “Incarcerating people who cannot afford to pay fines is both unconstitutional and cruel – it takes a tremendous toll on precisely those families already struggling the most.” Maureen O’Connor, Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, told the ACLU on Wednesday that she would investigate the matter.The ACLU reported that 22% of all bookings in the Huron County jail between May 2012 and October 2012 were in some way related to an inmate’s failure to pay a court debt. The Outskirts of Hope also indicates that between July 15 and August 31, 2012, Parma Municipal Court (in suburban Cleveland) jailed at least 45 defendants for their inability to pay a fine while a Sandusky court locked up 75 people for the same reason.The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that it costs Ohio taxpayers between $50 and $75 to jail person for one night. With an average fine of around $900, in some cases that cost eventually totals more than the unpaid fine itself. Seemingly unaware of the report, Parma Municipal Court judge Deanna O’Donnell told reporters that if there was evidence to prove the ACLU’s claim, then the courts would “fix it.”Still, despite only focusing on seven counties, ACLU Director of Communications and Public Policy Mike Brickner warned that the problem is widespread across Ohio.“Not only are those courts violating the law, they are losing money doing it,” he said. “These practices are legally prohibited, morally questionable, and financially unsound. Nevertheless, they appear to be alive and well in Ohio. It’s like something out of a Charles Dickens novel.” … Read More
Top senator apologizes for ‘Monsanto Protection Act’ after public outrage
US Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) has issued a statement expressing her regret for letting this year’s Agriculture Appropriations bill — an annual continuing resolution spending act — be signed into law.”Senator Mikulski understands the anger over this provision. She didn’t put the language in the bill and doesn’t support it either,” begins a statement from her office dated Friday, March 29.As RT reported earlier, President Barack Obama inked his name last Tuesday to the bill, H.R. 933, and in doing so signed off on a deal that essentially prevented a government-wide shut down. In doing as much, though, the president approved a provision that lets the companies that make genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and genetically engineered (GE) seeds step over legal hurdles in the future regarding lab-made products that may later be proven to be dangerous.Included in the bill is a rider, Section 735, which says federal courts cannot intervene and halt biotech companies from planting and selling GMO goods to the public, even if testing proves them to be potentially hazardous to the greater public. Because the legislation largely shields agriculture giants Monsanto from litigation, it has been dubbed by its critics the “Monsanto Protection Act.” But even after more than 250,000 people signed a petition asking the White House to intervene and ensure the bill was not passed, Pres. Obama nonetheless approved it last week.Sen. Mikulski has served as chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee since last December when she inherited the role after the passing of Sen. Dan Inouye (D-Hawaii). In a statement released by her office last week, a spokesperson suggests that Mikulski likely wouldn’t have let H.R. 933 end up the way it did had she ran the committee earlier.”It was originally part of the Agriculture Appropriations bill that the House Appropriations Committee reported in June 2012, and it became part of the joint House-Senate agreement completed in the fall of 2012 before Senator Mikulski became Appropriations Chairwoman,” it reads.”As Chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Mikulski’s first responsibility was to prevent a government shutdown. That meant she had to compromise on many of her own priorities to get a bill through the Senate that the House would pass.”Speaking to the Baltimore Sun this week, Colin O’Neil of the Center for Food Safety says his group hopes Mikulski won’t let any future provisions in the vein of the Monsanto Protection Act make it into law — and agrees that she likely didn’t support it.”Her hands were tied by the negotiations that had previously happened,” O’Neil said. “We recognize that the tough spot she was in.”Even so, however, O’Neil added that a person in Mikulski’s place would usually be expected to stop such provisions from being put into law. “The American public have relied on Senate Democrats to be a backstop against dangerous policy riders like this,” he said. “We call on [Mikulski] to ensure that this rider is stricken from any future appropriations bills.”The statement from the senator’s spokesperson agrees as much. “Senator Mikulski has a strong food safety record. She has supported a bill requiring labeling of genetically engineered fish, an amendment to the Farm Bill that allows states to require labeling of edible foods and beverages for sale that contain genetically engineered ingredients and called for labeling of cloned animals or their progeny,” it reads. “She will continue to fight for a regular and timely Appropriations process and other valuable priorities, including food safety.”In the interim, though, Congress and the president have indeed signed off on a bill that, despite objections a legion of hundreds of thousands of America, still was signed into law.As RT noted last week, Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) has been credited with crafting the language of H.R. 933 by working directly alongside Monsanto. Blunt has received $64,250 from Monsanto towards his campaign committee between 2008 and 2012. … Read More
Our impotent Supreme Court
This week’s arguments before the Supreme Court on the legality of anti-same sex marriage laws illustrate two inter-related truths.First, contrary to the widespread belief that the Court plays a key role in fighting what has been called the culture wars, the cases now before the court are excellent examples of how, in regard to culture war issues, the Court almost invariably reflects, rather than creates, social change.This claim is heresy to the ears of aging law professors, who grew up in a world in which it was taken for granted, for example, that (relatively) liberal federal courts in general, and the Supreme Court in particular, played a major part in advancing various civil rights agendas from shortly after World War II until the Reagan revolution.But that belief has been largely discredited. As political scientist Gerald Rosenberg demonstrated more than twenty years ago now, even the most famous and controversial Supreme Court decisions, such as Brown v. Board of Education and Roe v. Wade, have had only limited impact on the American political process. For example, on the one hand, legal segregation was as a practical matter ended in the United States by legislation, not court decisions. On the other, in many parts of the country, schools today are as segregated as they were prior to the Brown decision.Continue Reading… … Read More
