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Complaining to the International Criminal Court

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Written by R. A. Stewart The international Criminal Court has a set of rules and standards which is binding between sovereign states. International Law is unlike Domestic law in that it does not have a police force or supreme court. It relies on diplomacy, reciprocity, and international consensus. It basically relies on the good will of the leaders of the world to do the right thing.  Core Foundations Treaties and Agreements Formal written contracts between nations such as the Geneva Convention, The Paris Agreement, or Nato creating binding contracts between member states. International Common Law Unwritten rules derived from long standing practices out of a sense of obligation; diplomatic immunity, for example. There are different branches of international law, they are: 1. Public International Law Regulates relations between governments and international organizations in trade, conflicts, human rights, and territory. 2. International Humanitarian Law Has expectant behaviour towar...
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The Eighth Amendment Frontier: When a Legal Adult Has the Mind of a Child

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The Eighth Amendment Frontier: When a Legal Adult Has the Mind of a Child The sentencing of a juvenile to life without parole (LWOP) is widely regarded as one of the most profound moral and legal challenges in the American justice system. Grounded in a series of landmark Supreme Court rulings, the principle is now clear: for individuals under the age of 18, such a sentence is unconstitutional, reserved only for the "rare juvenile offender whose crime reflects irreparable corruption." But what happens when a defendant is a legal adult in the eyes of the law, yet possesses the neurological and psychological profile of a child? This is the complex Eighth Amendment frontier at the heart of a case like Mee’s, where the rigid line of adulthood is challenged by the nuanced science of brain development. The Supreme Court’s jurisprudence on juvenile sentencing is built on a foundation of scientific and social understanding. In Roper v. Simmons (2005), the Court abolished the juvenile...
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Identifying Your Claim: Common Eighth Amendment Violations for LWOP Inmates

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Identifying Your Claim: Common Eighth Amendment Violations for LWOP Inmates For those serving Life Without Parole (LWOP), the sentence is the punishment, not the conditions of confinement. The Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on “cruel and unusual punishments” protects your fundamental right to humane treatment, regardless of your sentence. Understanding how to identify a valid legal claim is the first step toward challenging inhumane conditions. Below are the most common types of Eighth Amendment violations faced by LWOP inmates. Failure to Protect Prison officials have a constitutional duty to protect you from violence from other inmates or staff. A valid claim requires proving you faced a “substantial risk of serious harm” and that officials knew of this risk but acted with “deliberate indifference.” Known Threats:  A threat is “known” if you have personally and specifically informed an officer of a credible threat, if there is a history of violence between you and another person,...
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Eighth Amendment Complaint: Before You File - The Critical First Steps

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Before You File - The Critical First Steps You’ve decided to fight back against an unconstitutional condition. That takes courage. But before you can present your case to a judge, you must win a battle within the prison system itself. This chapter is about that battle. It is the most tedious, frustrating, yet absolutely critical part of the entire process. If you skip this, a federal judge will almost certainly throw your case out without even looking at its merits. Exhaust, Exhaust, Exhaust! The Non-Negotiable Rule The number one reason federal courts dismiss lawsuits from incarcerated people is  failure to exhaust administrative remedies.  This is not a suggestion; it is a mandatory requirement under the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA). What It Means:  You must completely finish the entire grievance process offered by the Florida Department of Corrections (FDC)  before  you file your lawsuit in federal court. The Logic (from the Court's Perspective): ...
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Florida’s life-without-parole law reform

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Florida’s life-without-parole law reform Here’s a deeper dive into specific aspects of Florida’s life-without-parole (LWOP) laws and reform efforts:   1. Juvenile LWOP Reforms After Miller and Graham Florida initially resisted retroactively applying the Supreme Court’s rulings ( Miller v. Alabama , 2012; Graham v. Florida , 2010), leading to litigation: Atwell v. State (2016) – Florida Supreme Court ruled Miller must apply retroactively. SB 7062 (2017) – Created resentencing hearings for juvenile LWOP cases, allowing judges to impose 25-to-life sentences instead of automatic LWOP. Jones v. Florida (2020) – Florida Supreme Court reversed course, ruling that Miller did not require jury unanimity for resentencing, angering reform advocates. Current Status: ~200+ juvenile lifers have been resentenced since 2017, but many remain imprisoned. Prosecutors can still seek LWOP for juveniles if they argue the defendant is "irreparably corrupt." 2. Attempts to Expand Parole or Resente...
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