Friday, May 6, 2011

Interminable...

Click to enlarge
Graphic courtesy of Tosk59


Interminable
:
- adjective
1. (apparently) incapable of being terminated; unending: e.g. an interminable job
2. monotonously or annoyingly protracted or continued; unceasing; incessant: e.g. I can't stand that interminable clatter.
3. (apparently) having no limits: e.g. an interminable desert

If ever there was a process that would seem to fit the definition, it has to be the investigation and subsequent proceedings designed to bring to justice those responsible for the assassination of Rafic Hariri... Lest we forget, the assassination happened on the 14th of February, 2005.

It appeared that progress was being made when the STL-TSL Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare filed an indictment with the pre-trial Judge Daniel Fransen in January of this year. At that time Fransen had to plow through the indictment and all the supporting materials and evidence, and then:
  • request additional material
  • confirm one or more counts
  • dismiss one or more counts (whereupon the Prosecutor could file an amended or new indictment)
The pre-trial judge must confirm an indictment if he believes a prima facie case has been established. If this happens then the case will proceed to trial. The confirmed indictment may be made public, or it may be kept confidential for a while longer in order to issue arrest warrants, notify the accused, etc. Note that if indictments are dismissed they are not ever made public....

OK, so the pre-trial Judge has no time limit on his perusal of the indictment and when he makes his decision. Also, as long as the indictment has not been confirmed the Prosecutor can amend the indictment at any time. Thus Bellemare expanded the indictment March 11th, 2011, and again today - "... The Prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Daniel A. Bellemare, filed today an amended indictment, replacing the indictment of 11 March 2011, to include substantive new elements unavailable until recently. The Prosecutor does not intend to make further amendments to the indictment, unless ordered to do so by the Pre-Trial Judge. Other indictments could, however, be filed in the future if warranted by the evidence. The amendment of an indictment or the filing of new indictments is and will continue to be guided solely by the evidence uncovered by the ongoing investigation”, the Prosecutor stated.."

Given this it looks like Fransen is going to take even longer to make his determination! Let's hope that 'exceedingly slow' will be accompanied by 'exceedingly fine.'

Some previous blog entries referencing Lebanon:
No surprise... - April 4th, 2011
Misc update VI - Feb 14th, 2011
Look at Lebanon - Jan 28th, 2011
Random picture - Jan 25th, 2011
Random chart - Jan 20th, 2011
Great quotes - Dec 11th, 2010
Great quotes - Nov 27th, 2010
Coming to a head - Nov 27th, 2010
Great quotes - Oct 10th, 2010
Random charts - Sep 23rd, 2010
Random picture - Aug 4th, 2010
Great quotes - Jan 10th, 2010
Great quotes - Jul 29th, 2010
Such concern - Jul 24th, 2009
Lebanese elections II - Jun 9th, 2009
Lebanese elections - Jun 8th, 2009
Four years on... - February 16th, 2009
Quotes - Jan 21st, 2009
UNIIIC progress (?!) - December 18th, 2008
Great quotes... - December 10th, 2008
Damned if you do... - November 18th, 2008
Lebanon - good grief - November 11th, 2008
Taking it back - October 28th, 2008
Profile - Oct 20th, 2008
Litmus test quiz - September 2nd, 2008
Everything takes more time... - August 12th, 2008
At Last (Lebanon)! - July 11th, 2008
Self-examination - profound & shallow - July 7th, 2008
Some poll indicators - June 21st, 2008
Make that President Sleiman - May 25th, 2008
Le Sursis - May 21st, 2008
Lebanon - Doha noise - May 20th, 2008
Bad omen... good omen... - May 11th, 2008
Needed in Lebanon III - May 6th, 2008
Headed back down the toilet? - May 6th, 2008
Needed in Lebanon II - May 2nd, 2008
Needed in Lebanon - April 16th, 2008
Misc updates #3 - April 4th, 2008
Rogue's Gallery II - March 26th, 2008
A Rogue's Gallery - March 2nd, 2008
Benazir Bhutto follow-up... - Feb 9th, 2008


As the saying goes, "The wheels of justice grind exceeding slow, but they grind exceedingly fine." Or, apparently more correctly, "Though the mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceeding small; Though with patience He stands waiting, with exactness grinds He all."

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