24 Sep Universal Jurisdiction Trial Begins in US; No Signs of the Apocalypse Thus Far
The trial of Charles Taylor’s son, “Chuckie,” for acts of torture committed in Liberia began today in Miami:
Chuckie Taylor is the son of former Liberian President Charles Taylor, who is on trial for war crimes by the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone. The son is accused of responsibility for torture committed between 1997 and 2003 while he headed Liberia’s notorious Anti-Terrorist Unit (ATU) during his father’s presidency.
The Taylor case is the first brought under a 14-year-old federal law that allows the United States to bring charges against a person accused of torture abroad if the accused is in the United States or is an American citizen (18 USC § 2340A).
“As the first prosecution for torture committed abroad, Chuckie Taylor’s trial is a vital, long-awaited step by the US government to ensure human rights abusers do not escape justice,” said Elise Keppler, senior counsel with Human Rights Watch’s International Justice Program. “The Department of Justice’s efforts should be applauded and replicated in more cases like this one.”
Taylor, Jr. is charged with criminal responsibility for acts of torture, which include burning victims, shocking them with an electrical device, imprisoning them in holes in the ground, and ordering that that their genitals be mutilated. He is also accused of ordering executions.
Jury selection in the trial, which will be held before Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida, is expected to last three days and will be followed by opening statements.
This is a major development, part of a remarkable trend of Congress giving US courts universal jurisdiction over serious international crimes. Such jurisdiction now exists for genocide, as well, and should be extended to the use of child soldiers and human trafficking soon.
Who knows — at this rate, the US might even eventually comply with the Geneva Conventions and adopt universal jurisdiction for grave breaches!
Indeed, a great development, yet rather based on passive personality than universal jurisdiction, as Chuckie, who grew up in Orlando, is an American citizen.
Of course I meant to write active personality…
‘Chuckie’ should hire Prof. Organ-Failure-or-Death as his defense counsel. The Boalt Hall scholar has lots of theories justifying/excusing vigorous anti-terror measures and even approving, at least in theory, some of the particular methods allegedly used in this case. And the Liberian Constitution could arguably support his plenary executive power theory: ‘Article 50. The Executive Power of the Republic shall be vested in the President who shall be Head of State, Head of Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Liberia.’ (Dad delegated some of his executive power to the ATU.) But could Prof. Organ-Failure-or-Death bring himself to argue for any limits on U.S. jurisdiction? That’s a tough one. He may well have a personal reason to argue against universal jurisdiction. I acknowledge that this comment is a shallow, surface jab rather than serious analysis (the intersections of dual citizenship, national sovereingty, governmental office, and criminal liability raise plenty of serious issues). It is noteworthy to see the government prosecute people who went too far in the name of anti-terror, when it previously issued memos with at least a partial purpose of insulating its own officials from liability for going too far in the name of anti-terror. I am not… Read more »