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Hong Kong banker's trial jury sees chilling video of torture
Legal Business |
2016/10/25 15:52
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A Hong Kong jury watched chilling video Tuesday of a British banker torturing an Indonesian woman and then talking for hours about how he repeatedly raped her and then killed her without feeling guilt or emotion.
The video was shown on the second day of Rurik Jutting's trial for the murders of Sumarti Ningsih, 23, and Seneng Mujiasih, 26, whose bodies were found in his upscale apartment near the city's red-light district in 2014. The case shocked people in the Asian financial hub, which has a reputation for being safe but also significant inequality. It also highlighted the decadent lifestyles of some members of the former British colony's expatriate elite.
Jurors were played about 20 minutes of video in which Jutting apparently tortures Sumarti. The media and public could not view it but heard the audio.
At one point he can be heard saying: "If you scream I will punish you. Understand?" That is followed by the sound of smacking and slapping, and later the sound of a woman whimpering. Jutting then tells her not to cry.
Later, both jurors and the public gallery were shown hours of iPhone video in which Jutting, wearing no clothes, delivers an extended rambling monologue to the camera.
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Bosnian Serbs vote in referendum banned by top court
Legal Business |
2016/09/22 22:20
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Bosnian Serbs on Sunday voted in a referendum banned by the country's constitutional court, risking Western sanctions against their autonomous region and criminal charges against their leaders.
The vote was whether to keep Jan. 9 as a holiday in Republika Srpska, commemorating the day in 1992 that Bosnian Serbs declared the creation of their own state, igniting the ruinous 1992-95 war. It comes despite the top court's ruling that the date, which falls on a Serb Christian Orthodox religious holiday, discriminates against Muslim Bosniaks and Catholic Croats in Bosnia.
Authorities said turnout was between 56 and 60 percent. Preliminary results after 30.76 percent of the ballots were counted say 99.8 percent of the voters were in favor of the holiday.
The vote has raised tensions and fears of renewed fighting as Bosniaks and Croats see the referendum as an attempt to elevate the Serb region above the country's constitutional court. It is also a test for a more serious referendum that Bosnian Serb leaders have announced for 2018 — one on independence from Bosnia. |
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Appeals court orders judge to expunge woman's convictions
Legal Business |
2016/09/13 15:23
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A state appeals court has overruled a western Indiana judge and ordered him to expunge a woman's convictions despite his disgust for her crimes.
The Indiana Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 last week that Jay Circuit Judge Brian Hutchison must expunge the convictions of 35-year-old Mindy M. McCowan of Dunkirk for forgery in 2003 and for dealing methamphetamine in 2004.
The ruling said McCowan was released from prison in 2007 and completed probation in 2010. She has since maintained employment and earned an associate's degree and professional certifications.
The Star Press reports Hutchison declined to expunge the convictions last November, saying he has drug cases before him every day and he wasn't "doing favors for people who are causing these problems in Jay County."
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Clinton: Americans should put Court nomination at forefront
Legal Business |
2016/03/28 12:09
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Hillary Clinton wants voters to consider what Republican front-runner Donald Trump might do to shape the Supreme Court.
Clinton planned to use in a speech in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday to argue that Trump could roll back the rights of individuals, further empower corporations and undo some of the nation's progress.
Clinton was campaigning in Wisconsin ahead of the state's April 5 primary and speaking Monday at the University of Wisconsin about President Barack Obama's nomination of Judge Merrick Garland.
Clinton holds a large lead among delegates against Democratic rival Bernie Sanders but is trying to stamp out the Vermont senator's momentum following his victories in five of the last six states holding contests.
Clinton's campaign said ahead of the speech that the Democratic presidential candidate would call on Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley of Iowa to commit to giving Garland a hearing. Grassley and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have said that the late Justice Antonin Scalia should not be replaced until the next president picks a nominee. |
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EU court dismisses Barcelona football trademark case
Legal Business |
2015/12/09 08:17
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A European Union court has rejected an attempt by Spanish soccer giant Barcelona to have part of its club crest registered as a European trademark.
Known best for its passing game, Barcelona tried last year to have the outline of its badge registered for use on things like stationery, clothing and sports activities.
The attempt failed so the club went to court.
But the Luxembourg-based EU court dismissed the case on Thursday, saying that "none of the characteristics of the sign at issue contains any striking feature which is liable to attract the attention of consumers."
The court added: "In fact, the mark sought will rather tend to be perceived by consumers merely as a shape and will not enable them to distinguish the proprietor's goods or services."
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US court rejects Virginia death row inmate's appeal
Legal Business |
2015/11/28 22:19
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A federal appeals court has rejected a Virginia death row inmate's appeal of his murder-for-hire conviction.
Ivan Teleguz was sentenced to death in 2006 for hiring a man to kill his former girlfriend, Stephanie Sipe, in Harrisonburg. After two key prosecution witnesses recanted, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2012 ordered a judge to conduct a hearing on Teleguz's innocence claim.
After one of those witnesses refused to testify and the other did not attend the hearing, U.S. District Judge James P. Jones determined that affidavits recanting their previous testimony were unreliable. A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Monday that it found no reason to overrule Jones on that issue.
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Lufthansa cancels 930 flights Wednesday due to strike
Legal Business |
2015/11/12 15:15
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Lufthansa has canceled 930 flights scheduled for Wednesday at three hubs in Germany after efforts failed to halt an ongoing strike by flight attendants.
The cancellations affect 100,000 travelers going to or from Frankfurt, Munich and Duesseldorf.
They were announced even as the airline and the union said late Tuesday they were open to mediation.
Officials for the UFO flight attendants union did not call a halt to the ongoing stoppages at Frankfurt, Munich and Duesseldorf, but indicated they would be open to mediation under certain conditions, the dpa news agency reported. A mediation proposal had been sent by the company.
As things stood, the union was to strike long-haul and local flights Wednesday through Friday at the three airports. The strike action started Friday and took a break Sunday.
Lufthansa has been able to carry out most flights despite extensive cancellations.
A court decision in the German city of Duesseldorf added to uncertainty. The labor court there ordered a temporary halt to the strike in that town, saying the strike's goals were not clearly formulated.
Court spokeswoman Anke Salchow said the decision only applied Tuesday. The court was to hear another request from Lufthansa on Wednesday.
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