"This was a more righteous case than a lot of people gave it credit for. And it has played an important role in a broader effort by multiple jurisdictions to use the criminal law as a democracy-protective instrument against Trump."
-Benjamin Wittes https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/thoughts-on-donald-trump-s-conviction
#BenjaminWittes, editor in chief of #Lawfare and a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the #BrookingsInstitution, writes an excellent assessment of the NYC criminal trial and its political repercussions.
"...We were told by a great many pundits that the case was weak. This was false. The evidence was voluminous. It was powerfully corroborative. It was diverse. The case was quite strong..."
Barrons
AFP NEWS
ICJ Urges 'Immediate And Unconditional Release' Of Gaza Hostages
The top United Nations court on Friday called for the immediate release of hostages taken by Hamas in its October 7 assault on Israel.
'"The court finds it deeply troubling that many of these hostages remain in captivity and reiterates its call for their immediate and unconditional release," the International Court of Justice said.'
#Spain#PSOE#Lawfare: "Indeed, it is no accident that off the record, one leading figure in PSOE has been heard calling Supreme Court judge Manuel Marchena “the real leader of the opposition.” “In Spain there is a problem with the separation of powers,” wrote El Diario editor-in-chief Ignacio Escolar in 2021. “But it is not the government that is overstepping the powers assigned to it but the judiciary. The latter is seeking to exercise functions that are not its own and engaging in politics. . . . For quite a while the political right has been acting in coordination with the right-wing of the judiciary.”
During the previous PSOE–Unidas Podemos coalition government from 2020–2023, such coordination was most evident in a whole series of bogus criminal investigations involving senior ministers. Public prosecutors, judges, and police repeatedly colluded to undermine the authority of the elected government. The 2020 investigation into PSOE interior minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska ended with senior policing figures within the Guardia Civil (including the commanding officer in the Madrid region) being removed from their posts for faking a key report. Former deputy prime minister Pablo Iglesias was also subjected to months of judicial investigations and a media frenzy over baseless claims that he faked the theft of his assistant’s mobile (which had in fact been snatched by a corrupt police officer who was spying on him and Podemos)."
Joshua Russell had pleaded guilty to a fed charge of making an interstate #threat against #Hobbs, a Dem who was AZ’s chief #elections officer in 2022 & is now the state’s gov.
"However, the court did not take the action most desired by South Africa..."
Were #hamas serious about addressing #genocide they'd demonstrate that they possess the courage of their convictions by showing their face at the #icj in #thehague .
Purportedly an article about the IDF targeting humanitarian aid convoys in Gaza, the author and the US mouthpiece being quoted nevertheless tie themselves into absurd knots trying to blame the lack of basic necessities in Gaza on "desperate Palestinians," "criminal elements," and, of course, Hamas.
'Satterfield said the U.S. was working with the Israeli government and military to determine "what solutions can be found because everyone wants the assistance to continue."
'In addition to the threat posed by criminals, aid distribution is hampered by "the rising value of humanitarian assistance" leaking into the black market, Satterfield said.
'He denied allegations that Hamas has stolen aid and commercial shipments into Gaza, saying that no Israeli official has presented him or the Biden administration with “specific evidence of diversion or theft of assistance."
'But, he continued, Hamas has been using other aid delivery channels to "shape where and to whom assistance goes."'
The only positive is that, maybe, this #lawfare could prove preferable to real warfare.
Generally, the point of having courts is to present an alternate to settling road rage with murder. Maybe we're seeing an evolution in a better direction. But probably not.
"South Africa also unduly limited the scope of its litigation by confining it only to the question of violation of the Convention against Genocide adopted in 1948 immediately after World War II."
We all know WHO the Emergency Act was going to be used on if this stood. Let's look at how Canada's various hate legislations are actually implemented to see where this shit was headed.
⚖️ ⚖️ ⚖️ ⚖️
Background
⚖️ ⚖️ ⚖️ ⚖️
Canadian hate laws are:
• advocating genocide (s. 318(1)),
• public incitement of hatred (s. 319(1)), • wilful promotion of hatred (s. 319(2)),
• wilful promotion of antisemitism (s. 319(2.1)), and
• mischief relating to religious property, education institutions, etc. (s. 430(4.1))
Additionally, other crimes can be deemed "hate motivated," which means that during sentencing heavier penalties will be assessed.
The fact that none of the ACTUAL hate laws on the books speak to attacking people DIRECTLY, results in charges against the Indigo Eleven being considered "hate motivated" for throwing paint at a building, while throwing paint at me, a living, breathing human being is abso-fucking-lutely fine¹, apparently.
¹ Ironically, I wouldn't even have spoken to the cops about the paint shitshow had he not used his whiteness to cause two other people to be arrested while not mentioning his role in things.
I still don't think jail is going to solve a damned thing, but other than one call from the cops, the point of which seems to have been to subtly threaten me, I have had zero interaction with this process, so 🤷🏾♀️
Whole annoying backstory can be traced by following the #PaintGate hashtag.
#lawfare have an excellent 14th Amendment, Section 3 #litigation tracker for folks who are interested to see the national patchwork of results and want to know where to look for additional developments.
NEW: Documents obtained by #lawfare raise questions about the previously unknown involvement of Robert Cheeley—a lawyer who is of Trump’s co-#defendants in the #Fulton County racketeering case—in the Coffee County #Georgia#voting system breach. The GBI failed to seek interviews w/ key witnesses & omitted relevant details in its report.
We have to wonder how many law enforcement agencies throughout the country are compromised by #maga pro-coup wanting to install a dictatorship.
Just another right-wing Twitter kook with empty threats about putting people on lists?
No. This guy is a former #SCOTUS clerk for Neil #Gorsuch and is currently Chief Counsel for Nominations to Senator Chuck Grassley.
Is it a joke? Is it for real? As NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen says, 'it's the stakes, not the odds.' Or, as the WA Post's Dan Baltz wrote today, 'Take [them] seriously and literally.'
Stephen Miller suggests.fraud proceedings for Media Matters having written a report about Elon's antisemetic tweets and **the actual AG of Missouri **replies he'll assign his team of prosecutors on the matter right away!
"These lawsuits were never really intended as malpractice suits at all. They articulate no legal justification for treating gender-affirming care differently, or even any acknowledgement that this is what they’re proposing to do."
State asks Judge McAfee to inquire into conflicts of 6 defense lawyers who it says previously rep'd people who will be witnesses for state..says 1 def lawyer will be state's witness + Lin Wood
Incl are lawyers for defs Chesebro, Clark, Cheeley, & Stallings Smith. State says it plans to call Cheeley's lawyer, Chris Anulewicz--former atty for Raffensperger--to testify Jan 2 Trump call to Raffensperger was not a settlement negotiation. #Georgia#TrumpIndictment#legal
I've heard Roger Parloff on #Lawfare podcasts covering #Jan6 trials, and he's really good. He doesn't "both sides" things, but he's knowledgeable and honest about the legal process.
(This is me recommending him to all the other news junkies who follow you. I've picked up good people to follow from your community - figured I should contribute back.)