The Illiniois Supreme Court reversed two murder convictions today, excoriating prosecutors for misconduct it says happens way too often:

In a sharp rebuke of prosecutorial misconduct, the Illinois Supreme Court on Friday ordered new trials for two men convicted in the 1995 slaying of a Chicago police officer. The high court threatened to overturn more cases to stem what it called the "alarming frequency" of misconduct by Illinois prosecutors.

"We mean it as no hollow warning when we say that prosecutors risk reversal of otherwise proper convictions when they engage in conduct of this kind," Justice Philip Rarick wrote in the court's opinion.

....Rarick wrote that prosecutorial misconduct cannot be allowed to continue unchecked because it threatens "the trustworthiness and reputation of the judicial process, and this court will take corrective action to preserve the integrity of the process."

There was no dissenting opinion.

Four U.S. soldiers have been killed in Iraq in the past day.

"The deaths bring to 101 the number of U.S. soldiers killed in combat since President Bush declared an end to major combat operations May 1."

We've all heard about suicide attempts at Guantanamo. But now, we learn, the Army is Concerned About Suicides of U.S. Troops in Iraq:

At least 13 U.S. troops have committed suicide in Iraq, representing more than 10 percent of American noncombat deaths there, and the Army dispatched a suicide-prevention expert to assess the problem, officials said on Thursday.

At least 11 U.S. Army soldiers have committed suicide during Iraq operations, most with self-inflicted gunshot wounds, and two Marines have committed suicide using firearms, officials said.

Our view: What are we waitng for? Bring our troops home now.

Update: Check out Scrivner's Error who relates his first hand experience with the issue.

Update: Reuters is reporting our troops may stay in Iraq until 2006.

This strikes us as somewhat odd. The younger of the two sniper suspects, John Lee Malvo, has refused to testify at the trial of his alleged cohort, John Muhammed. So Malvo is being flown to Virginia Beach to be an "exhibit".

Malvo will not be called to testify but will be in the courtroom so that witnesses who say they saw the pair together at a shooting scene may identify them, sources said. Malvo's appearance would allow jurors in Muhammad's trial to see the teenager who authorities allege was under Muhammad's control during the 13 Washington area sniper shootings last year.

Malvo has said in court that he will not testify about anything incriminating, but prosecutors can use him as an "exhibit" against Muhammad by simply subpoenaing him to the courtroom. Prince William Commonwealth's Attorney Paul B. Ebert obtained the subpoena Wednesday, said Michael S. Arif, one of Malvo's attorneys.

In other "sniper" case news, the Judge in the Malvo case has prohibited the use of video testimony, which means defense witnesses from Jamaica and elsewhere will have to travel to Virginia to testify. Malvo's lawyers said this is a setback for the defense. One of the witnesses they wanted to call was Malvo's mother.

It's not just a question of money. On that, we say the state of Virginia better pony up the money to fly these witnesses in. The real problem is that some of the witnesses have been barred from entering the United States.

We also think this throw-away comment by the prosecutor was unnecessary:

"Some of our best witnesses are no longer with us. You don't hear us complain."

Jury selection for Muhammed should be completed tomorrow, with opening statements and testimony beginning Monday.

Bump and Update: The Judge has taken himself off the case.

Since the hearing, nine people in Omaha asked to meet with Reagan to discuss possible cultural bias in his courtroom. State Sen. Ernie Chambers filed a complaint with the state Commission on Judicial Qualifications, calling the ruling discriminatory.

A great example of Protest in action.

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Original Post 10/14 10:22 pm

In what strikes us as an incredible violation of free speech and parental rights, a court has ordered a father to speak to his daughter in English rather than his native Spanish when he exercises his visitation rights.

Since when does a court have the right to dictate how people converse in the privacy of the home? We hope there is a groundswell of protest lodged against this ruling.

Our hosting company didn't actually have a melt-down this evening but we were down the past five hours. We're back up now, as are Instapundit, Calpundit, Ruminate This and Matt Yglesias. The short explanation: "There was a denial of service attack on our network that caused the sites we host to be unreachable."

Here's the long story--it sounds like it was an intentional attack and security and authorities have been called in.

We knew Hosting Matters would be on top of it. They've been great to us.

Attorney General John Ashcroft spoke out today on what he called "valuable progress" in the CIA Leak Probe. It sounds like Ashcroft is at least paying lip service to the criticisms lodged against him for not having turned the investigation over to a special counsel.

Attorney General Ashcroft should recuse himself immediately, and yet we get continued mistakes and continued mishandling of this case," Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat from New York , said on the Senate floor.

"I have not foreclosed any option in this matter," Ashcroft said when asked about a special counsel.

The "SAFE Act" has been introduced in Congress. From today's Washington Times:

A bipartisan group of lawmakers and advocacy groups have formed a "Coalition of Conscience" to roll back sections of the Patriot Act they say encroach on civil liberties. [link via Patriot Watch].

"This is an amazing coalition. Very seldom do these groups and these senators come together," said Sen. Richard J. Durbin, Illinois Democrat. Sen. Larry E. Craig, Idaho Republican, and Mr. Durbin — joined by representatives from the American Civil Liberties Union and American Conservative Union, among others — yesterday introduced the Security and Freedom Ensured (SAFE) Act.

This bill needs your support. A sign-on letter urging support for S. 1709, the Security and Freedom Enhanced (SAFE) Act of 2003 can be found here.

On a related note, the ACLU has documented the Administration's efforts to pass the provisions of Patriot Act II piecemeal. Patriot Act II is formally known as the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003. While a draft circulated in Congress, it was never officially introduced.

Sentencing guru Carmen Hernandez has just sent out the following with respect to the recent federal sentencing guideline amendments. Carmen is the director of the Defender Services Division Training Branch and a board member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL):

The United States Sentencing Commission on October 8, 2003 voted to adopt a number of amendments to implement the directive to the Commission in section 401(m) of the Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools to end the Exploitation of Children Today Act of 2003, Pub. L. 108–21 (the "PROTECT Act"). The amendments go into effect, subject to technical and conforming changes, on October 27, 2003. These new amendments apply to all cases; more restrictive rules for downward departures in child-related cases went into effect April 30, 2003.

All changes that make the sentence more onerous for the defendant are subject to the prohibition against retroactive application in the ex post facto clause of the United States Constitution, Art. 1, § 9, cl. 3. For a thorough discussion of this issue, see "The Feeney Amendment: Effective Date and Ex Post Facto Issues," by Peter Goldberger & Felicia Sarner (July 2003 Champion).

Carmen's summary follows:

Eric Alterman's new Nation column, Abrams and Novak and Rove? Oh My!, is out:

In addition to suggesting Elliott Abrams was the leaker, columnist Eric Alterman writes the following about the Joseph Wilson affair: "Part of the reason (it was ignored) is the insider establishment's deep-seated unwillingness to face up to the Nixonian depths of this Administration's moral depravity." "Bob Woodward plays ball...he doesn't bother weighing any competing claims or seeking to determine whether anything he is spoon-fed might actually be true." "The second great fiction of this story is the notion that Robert Novak is a 'journalist.'"

Also in the new Nation:

After purchasing John Ashcroft and George Tenet's social security numbers and home addresses on the Internet, author Jamie Court shows how the Administration is failing to prevent identity theft.

Writer Jamie Pietras explains how states are using financial aid laws to discourage peaceful student protests.

In a web exclusive, Washington editor David Corn learns of a National Security Council staffer who might have played a role in the Joseph Wilson leak scandal. Read why he's decided not to leak this person's identity in his "Capital Games" weblog.

Quote of the day, from Lt. Gen. William G. Boykin, confirmed in June as deputy undersecretary of defense--and known for his "penchant" for casting the Iraq War in religious tones:

Islamic extremists hate the United States "because we're a Christian nation, because our foundation and our roots are Judeo-Christians. ... And the enemy is a guy named Satan."

Here's a prior quote from Boykin on a 1993 battle in Somalia:

Discussing a U.S. Army battle against a Muslim warlord in Somalia in 1993, Boykin told one audience, "I knew my god was bigger than his. I knew that my god was a real god and his was an idol."

Rumsfeld and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff are thus far defending Boykin. But Rhode Island's Republican Senator Lincoln D. Chafee "...said he had not been aware of Boykin's views as described by the Times, then added, "If that's accurate, to me it's deplorable."

So the war on terrorism can be reduced to "a clash between Judeo-Christian values and Satan?" Where did this guy come from and please, send him back now.

Update: The General apologizes. Well, not really.

The New York Times today reports that Ashcroft's own prosecutors are criticizing him for not appointing special counsel in the CIA leak probe relating to the disclosure of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity.

Several senior criminal prosecutors at the Justice Department and top F.B.I. officials have privately criticized Attorney General John Ashcroft for failing to recuse himself or appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the leak of a C.I.A. operative's identity. The criticism reflects the first sign of dissension in the department and the F.B.I. as the inquiry nears a critical phase. The attorney general must decide whether to convene a grand jury, which could compel White House officials to testify.

The criminal justice officials, who spoke on the condition that they not be identified, represent a cross section of experienced criminal prosecutors and include political supporters of Mr. Ashcroft at the department's headquarters here and at United States attorneys' offices around the country. The officials said they feared Mr. Ashcroft could be damaged by continuing accusations that as an attorney general with a long career in Republican partisan politics, he could not credibly lead a criminal investigation that centered on the aides to a Republican president.

[link via Matt Yglesias at Tapped , who also comments about the difference between an independent counsel and a special counsel.]

While we're on this topic, check out the compilation of sources and articles on the Plame-Wilson-CIA leaks story over at Alex Parker's The Parks Department. And Tom McGuire's recommended additions to Alex's list.

Update: CBS News provides this analysis of Ashcroft, the leaks probe and his potential conflicts of interest.