Patra Caesar
21-03-2005, 03:54
Hamza al-Muzain is to be lashed 200 times for allegedly mocking long beards and questioning the knowledge of a radical Sunni academic. Hamza al-Muzain will be sent to prision for four months and be banned from publishing any work again unless his appeal is successful. A bit harsh for an academic disagreement, don't you think? Well what about the other two articles? What do you think are appropiate punishments for them?
Source (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12610248-13762,00.html)
200 lashes for 'mocking long beards'
From correspondents in Riyadh
March 21, 2005
A SAUDI academic has been sentenced to 200 lashes and time in jail for insulting an Islamist colleague, a Saudi-owned newspaper reported today.
Hamza al-Muzaini, a lecturer in linguistics at King Saud University, was accused by Abdullah al-Barak, a lecturer of Islamic culture at the same university, of defamation and insult, the London-based Al-Hayat reported.
Barak, who is described as a radical salafist - a strict form of Sunni Islam - reportedly accused Muzaini of "mocking long beards" and questioning his knowledge in an article published a few months ago, other reports said.
Muzaini was sentenced to 200 lashes, four months in prison and banned from publishing, a verdict he immediately appealed, the newspaper said.
Muzaini maintains that his case should be examined by the ministry of information as it involves alleged libel, while Barak insists it is a personal matter that should be dealt with by a normal court.
The court has now appointed a committee to "implement the publications law, which dictates that cases involving publication (offences) should not be referred to (normal Islamic) courts," said the newspaper.
Saudi Arabia applies strict sharia, or Islamic law, under which beheadings, as well as mutilating hands and floggings, are accepted punishments.
Source (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12610273-13762,00.html)
Boy hires hitman on father
March 21, 2005
A 12-year-old boy put out a contract on his father - and was only nabbed when the 16-year-old hitman complained he hadn't been paid.
Police say the boy raided his 65-year-old father's pension payment to rent the pistol used by the alleged assassin, but it appears he couldn't come up with the $US500 he'd agreed to pay for the job.
The shooter says the boy's mother was present when they negotiated terms.
Source (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12610242-13762,00.html)
Alleged murderer just sleepwalking
From correspondents in London
March 21, 2005
A BRITISH man has been cleared of murdering his father after a court accepted his excuse he was sleepwalking at the time, a highly unusual defence seen just a handful of times in the country's legal history.
Jules Lowe, 32, was facing life imprisonment for killing his 83-year-old father Edward in a savage beating at their house in Manchester, northwest England, an attack he did not deny but claimed to have no memory of.
At the start of the case, prosecutors labelled Lowe's defence of sleepwalking "far fetched in the extreme".
However, after hearing expert testimony on the phenomenon, the jury at Manchester Crown Court opted for a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. Lowe will be sent to a secure hospital for tests.
Described in court as a "quagmire of law", the defence of sleepwalking, officially known as automatism, has only been used in a tiny number of cases in British legal history.
Lowe attacked his father at the family home after a heavy drinking session in October 2003 before going to bed, the court was told.
The next day, the body of his father, which had been punched, kicked and stamped on, was spotted in the house's driveway and police were called.
Nine months after the attack, Lowe first mentioned a history of sleepwalking to defence lawyers and he was subjected to "the most detailed scientific tests in British legal history", the jury was told.
Prosecutors suggested Lowe had simply got into a drunken brawl with his father and had blanked the killing from his mind, but the jury accepted he was not acting voluntarily due to sleepwalking.
Judge Richard Henriques said the verdict did not mean that Lowe was insane in the usual sense, just that he was subject to "automatism" because of sleepwalking.
Lowe will undergo tests in hospital, after which he will be released under certain conditions, possibly within months.
Police warned later that the publicity surrounding the case might tempt genuine criminals into attempting the same defence.
"It may well be other people accused of serious crime will try to avail themselves of this defence, and each case will have to be judged on its merits," said Detective Chief Inspector Andy Durkin, who investigated Lowe.
Source (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12610248-13762,00.html)
200 lashes for 'mocking long beards'
From correspondents in Riyadh
March 21, 2005
A SAUDI academic has been sentenced to 200 lashes and time in jail for insulting an Islamist colleague, a Saudi-owned newspaper reported today.
Hamza al-Muzaini, a lecturer in linguistics at King Saud University, was accused by Abdullah al-Barak, a lecturer of Islamic culture at the same university, of defamation and insult, the London-based Al-Hayat reported.
Barak, who is described as a radical salafist - a strict form of Sunni Islam - reportedly accused Muzaini of "mocking long beards" and questioning his knowledge in an article published a few months ago, other reports said.
Muzaini was sentenced to 200 lashes, four months in prison and banned from publishing, a verdict he immediately appealed, the newspaper said.
Muzaini maintains that his case should be examined by the ministry of information as it involves alleged libel, while Barak insists it is a personal matter that should be dealt with by a normal court.
The court has now appointed a committee to "implement the publications law, which dictates that cases involving publication (offences) should not be referred to (normal Islamic) courts," said the newspaper.
Saudi Arabia applies strict sharia, or Islamic law, under which beheadings, as well as mutilating hands and floggings, are accepted punishments.
Source (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12610273-13762,00.html)
Boy hires hitman on father
March 21, 2005
A 12-year-old boy put out a contract on his father - and was only nabbed when the 16-year-old hitman complained he hadn't been paid.
Police say the boy raided his 65-year-old father's pension payment to rent the pistol used by the alleged assassin, but it appears he couldn't come up with the $US500 he'd agreed to pay for the job.
The shooter says the boy's mother was present when they negotiated terms.
Source (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12610242-13762,00.html)
Alleged murderer just sleepwalking
From correspondents in London
March 21, 2005
A BRITISH man has been cleared of murdering his father after a court accepted his excuse he was sleepwalking at the time, a highly unusual defence seen just a handful of times in the country's legal history.
Jules Lowe, 32, was facing life imprisonment for killing his 83-year-old father Edward in a savage beating at their house in Manchester, northwest England, an attack he did not deny but claimed to have no memory of.
At the start of the case, prosecutors labelled Lowe's defence of sleepwalking "far fetched in the extreme".
However, after hearing expert testimony on the phenomenon, the jury at Manchester Crown Court opted for a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. Lowe will be sent to a secure hospital for tests.
Described in court as a "quagmire of law", the defence of sleepwalking, officially known as automatism, has only been used in a tiny number of cases in British legal history.
Lowe attacked his father at the family home after a heavy drinking session in October 2003 before going to bed, the court was told.
The next day, the body of his father, which had been punched, kicked and stamped on, was spotted in the house's driveway and police were called.
Nine months after the attack, Lowe first mentioned a history of sleepwalking to defence lawyers and he was subjected to "the most detailed scientific tests in British legal history", the jury was told.
Prosecutors suggested Lowe had simply got into a drunken brawl with his father and had blanked the killing from his mind, but the jury accepted he was not acting voluntarily due to sleepwalking.
Judge Richard Henriques said the verdict did not mean that Lowe was insane in the usual sense, just that he was subject to "automatism" because of sleepwalking.
Lowe will undergo tests in hospital, after which he will be released under certain conditions, possibly within months.
Police warned later that the publicity surrounding the case might tempt genuine criminals into attempting the same defence.
"It may well be other people accused of serious crime will try to avail themselves of this defence, and each case will have to be judged on its merits," said Detective Chief Inspector Andy Durkin, who investigated Lowe.