Law Commons^™

Lessons Of The Past And The Humanitarian Outreach Of Poland To Ukrainian Refugees, Karin Mika

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

The reaction of Poland and its people is a refreshing departure from the historic blood rivalries of the past. This is similarly true of both Romania and Hungary; however, it is Poland that has absorbed the majority of Ukrainian refugees and Poland that has the most historically contentious relationship with Ukraine. Poland’s current humanitarian efforts with respect to its Ukrainian neighbors is evidence that some lessons have been learned from the past. Perhaps there is hope that some of the centuries old blood feuding can come to an end and countries can better work toward cooperative relationships in the future.

Righting A Wrong: Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, And The Espionage Act Prosecutions, David Forte

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

This is a story of excess and reparation. It is a chronicle of one President from the elite intellectual classes of the East, and another from a county seat in the heartland. Woodrow Wilson was the college president whose contribution to the art of government lay in the principle of expertise and efficiency. When he went to war, he turned the machinery of government into a comprehensive and highly effective instrument for victory. For Wilson, it followed that there could be little tolerance for those who impeded the success of American arms by their anti-war propaganda, draft resistance, or ideological …

The Karadžić Genocide Conviction: Inferences, Intent, And The Necessity To Redefine Genocide, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

This Article first discusses and analyzes the Genocide Convention and its strict definition of genocide and the "intent" requirement. It then focuses on the evolution of this definition in light of the recent Karadžić case. This Article demonstrates that in modern-day conflicts, the finding of genocidal intent may be an impossible task for the prosecution and that the ICTY Trial Chamber’s method of inferring intent based on knowledge and other indirect factors may be the only way that prosecutors will be able to obtain future genocide convictions. This Article then discusses a possible re-drafting and re-conceptualizing of the genocide definition …

Individual Criminal Responsibility For The Destruction Of Religious And Historic Buildings: The Al Mahdi Case, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, also known as Abou Tourab, was a member of the radical Islamic group Ansar Eddine, serving as one of four commanders during its brutal occupation of Timbuktu in 2012. The International Criminal Court (ICC) indicted Al Mahdi on several charges of war crimes for intentional attacks against ten religious and historic buildings and monuments. All the buildings that Al Mahdi was charged with attacking had been under UNESCO protection and most had been listed as world heritage sites.

The case against Al Mahdi at the ICC unfolded relatively quickly and efficiently, from the official Malian …

President Obama's Legacy: The Iran Nuclear Agreement?, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

Iran, the United States, and several world super-powers signed a historic nuclear agreement over the summer of 2015. The Agreement is a comprehensive plan of action, with an unprecedented level of minutia and detail regarding Iran’s commitment to curb its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of United Nations-imposed sanctions against Iran. This Agreement, if it is successfully implemented, may represent President Obama’s most significant foreign policy achievement and may become the most important element of President Obama's legacy.

This article examines the Iran Nuclear Agreement by focusing on the events that led to the imposition of sanctions against …

The Covert Use Of Drones: How Secrecy Undermines Oversight And Accountability, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

Under the Obama Administration, the number of drone strikes has sharply increased, prompting criticism and concern. As one commentator has noted, “[u]nder Obama, drone strikes have become too frequent, too unilateral, and too much associated with the heavy-handed use of American power.” Many scholars have focused on the legal issues arising from the use of drones, analyzing their legality under applicable law of self-defense, as well as under international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

This Article highlights another problematic aspect of the current American use of drones, which is secrecy. As will be argued below, because a large …

Humanitarian Intervention Post-Syria: Legitimate And Legal?, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

This article looks at the state of affairs under international law by focusing on the existing ban on the use of force and the established exceptions thereto as of December 2014. Topics discussed include the concept of humanitarian intervention, the civil crises in Syria, and international law for the legality of military intervention in Syria. It also examines Harold Koh's proposed normative framework for humanitarian intervention.

Juvenile Pirates: "Lost Boys" Or Violent Criminals?, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

Piracy off the coast of Somalia has flourished over the past decade, and has both caused a global crisis in maritime shipping and destabilized regional security in East Africa. In addition, piracy attacks have spread more recently to the coast of West Africa, and in particular, the Gulf of Guinea. Thus, piracy is an ongoing global issue that should continue to occupy many maritime nations in the near future, and one that should command continuous scholarly attention.

This article examines the issue of juvenile piracy, with a specific focus on the treatment of juvenile piracy suspects by both the capturing …

The United States' Use Of Drones In The War On Terror: The (Il)Legality Of Targeted Killings Under International Law, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the United States government began to use drones against al-Qaeda targets. According to several media reports, the United States developed two parallel drone programs: one operated by the military, and one operated in secrecy by the CIA. Under the Obama Administration, the latter program developed and- the number of drone attacks in countries such as Pakistan and Yemen has steadily increased. Because the drone program is operated covertly by the CIA, it has been impossible to determine the precise contours of the program, its legal and normative framework, and whether its operators …

Katyn Forest Massacre: Of Genocide, State Lies, And Secrecy, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

The Soviet secret police murdered thousands of Poles near the Katyn Forest, just outside the Russian city of Smolensk, in the early spring of 1940. The Soviets targeted members of the Polish intelligentsia-military officers, doctors, engineers, police officers, and teachers-which Stalin, the Soviet leader, sought to eradicate preventively. At the start of World War II, the Soviet Union viewed Poland as attractive territory, to be conquered and potentially annexed after the war. The Katyn massacre was not discovered until 1943, by the Germans, who instantly blamed the Soviets. The latter, however, blamed the Germans, and the Western Allies begrudgingly accepted …

The Somali Piracy Problem: A Global Puzzle Necessitating A Global Solution, Milena Sterio

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

Over the past few years, piracy has exploded off the coast of Somalia. Somali pirates congregate on a "mother ship" and then divide into smaller groups that sail out on tiny skiffs. Using potent weapons such as AK-47s and hand-propelled grenades, Somali pirates attack civilian ships carrying cargo through the Gulf of Aden, a body of water between Yemen and Somalia. Once they have overtaken the victim vessel, the pirates typically hijack the vessel's cargo and kidnap the crewmembers. The cargo is often resold to willing buyers or held for ransom. The crew are kept hostage in Somalia until either …

War Tax Refusal: Some Code Problems, William Tabac

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

Throughout our history, many individuals and groups have employed tax refusal to make their points. Frustration with government policies and cynicism about the leaders who create them are driving more and more Americans toward radical forms of dissent. Civil disobedience is on the increase and struggling for status among protestors. So far attacks against the "establishment," its mores and property, have alternated between passive law breaking, such as tax and draft refusal, to the increasingly commonplace destruction of that which the protestors detests. But the mix is not equal, and this is demonstrated dramatically in the case of tax refusal. …