Eideard

A South Korean court Thursday overturned a 1953 law punishing men for making false promises of marriage to have sex with women.

The Constitutional Court ruled 6-3 the law discriminated against men and infringed on women’s competence. The law treated women like “infants” and violated the government’s “constitutional obligation” to treat men and women equally under the law, the court ruled.

The law had punished men convicted of coercing women to have sex after promising marriage with prison sentences up to two years or fines up to $4,300.

The ruling followed a petition by a South Korean man, identified only as “Lim,” who was indicted for having sex with a female coworker on four occasions under the fraudulent promise of marriage.

Lim argued the criminal law was outdated and violated his female partner’s sexual rights as well as his own right to pursue happiness…

The Ministry of Gender Equality submitted a written opinion to the court saying it considered the law discriminatory against men and infringed on women’s sexual rights.

The Ministry of Gender Equality?

It will never happen, of course. It’s against God’s will. Another opportunist lie.

Anthony Caravella’s first day of freedom was a mix of catching up with family members he hasn’t seen in more than a quarter-century, cautiously venturing out into a changed world and taking care of necessities like getting a Social Security card.

His brother, Larry Dunlap, had to tell him that he no longer needs to ask for permission to move from room to room…

“I’m trying not to get too used to this [freedom],” said the convicted rapist and murderer, who was set free Thursday on a judge’s orders. Prosecutors requested his temporary release after a DNA test cast grave doubt on the convictions…

He walked out of the Broward County Jail on Thursday afternoon with no money and no possessions other than the shirt, pants and sneakers that his public defender, Diane Cuddihy, bought for him. He felt self-conscious that he has to rely on his youngest brother for everything and said he wanted to get a job as soon as possible…

There was kindness from strangers — a lawyer donated two prime tickets to a Miami Dolphins game in October and a local man offered Caravella and his brother and sister a day trip to Disney World.

To help him adapt after nearly 26 years behind bars — he was 15 when he was arrested — the Innocence Project of Florida offered a social worker.

The judge released him because DNA evidence made it clear he wasn’t the guilty party. Any bets on whether nor not the courts consider his testimony that the mentally-challenged 15-year-old [then] was beaten to get a confession?

UPDATE: Mr. Caravella is finally free of prison, free of the ankle bracelet ordered by the state – until his final hearing.

Daylife/AFP/Getty Images – passed by military censors

A French appeals court has overturned terrorist conspiracy convictions of five former inmates of the Guantánamo prison camp who were tried and convicted in 2007, after they had been returned to France.

The court ruled that testimony gathered by French intelligence officials in interrogations at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, violated rules for permissible evidence and that there was no other proof of wrongdoing.

None of the men, captured in Afghanistan in 2001 and 2002, is currently in jail, having been given time off for time already served.

But the case is likely to be seen as a precedent as more inmates are released from Guantánamo Bay, which President Barack Obama has vowed to shut down. Various European countries have expressed willingness in principle to take some of the inmates, depending on their potential for dangerous behavior and whether the United States also accepts some of them. Some European countries prefer that the European Union come up with a unified position, so Washington cannot play one country against another while trying to negotiate placements.

Governments, politicians and coppers can’t serve as both judge and jury. Not in civilized times.

The excuse always offered is “these aren’t civilized times – our enemies aren’t civilized”. That didn’t cut it for Goebbels. It doesn’t work for Cheney and the few remaining apologists for Bush League lawlessness. If we are to be civil and just, then, first of all, we must live up to our own standards.

Martin Gill (L) gets a hug from his attorney after the verdict

A Florida circuit judge has struck down a 31-year-old state law that prevents gays and lesbians from adopting children, allowing a North Miami man to adopt two half-brothers he and his partner have raised as foster children since 2004.

“There is no question, the blanket exclusion of gay applicants defeats Florida’s goal of providing dependent children a permanent family through adoption,” Judge Cindy S. Lederman wrote in her 53-page ruling.

“The best interests of children are not preserved by prohibiting homosexual adoption.”

The state attorney general’s office has appealed the decision.

Of course.

Lederman said there is no moral or scientific reason for banning gays and lesbians from adopting, despite the state’s arguments otherwise. The state argued otherwise.

Perish the thought that the state of Florida would pay attention to science for political policy.