Topics in Brief

• Author: International Law Group

French court approves Einhorn extradition to U S

In 1980, eighteen months after her disappearance, the bludgeoned corpse of Holly Maddux turned up in a steamer trunk in the Philadelphia apartment she had been sharing with Ira Einhorn. Charged with her murder, Einhorn, a well-known counter-culture guru, jumped bail the following year and fled the country. A Pennsylvania state court convicted him in absentia of murdering Ms. Maddux and sentenced him to life imprisonment. In 1997, authorities finally traced Einhorn to a remote farm house in the Bordeaux region of France. The U.S. then requested his extradition. The lower French Courts ruled, however, that they could not allow the extradition of Einhorn unless Pennsylvania gave him a new trial and guaranteed that he would not suffer the death penalty. The case eventually got up to the Conseil d'Etat, the highest French court on the public law side. In 1998, the Pennsylvania legislature enacted a statute granting persons convicted in absentia the right to a new trial if they came back to the state and requested one. Under the law in effect at the time of the crime, moreover, Einhorn could only receive a life sentence if again convicted. As a result, the Conseil d'Etat upheld the decision of Lionel Jospin, the French Prime Minister, to extradite. At the last minute, Einhorn attempted to cut his own throat but changed his mind. Questions about the state of Einhorn's health apparently led his attorneys to petition the European Court of Human Rights. After a preliminary inquiry, that Court decided to allow the extradition to proceed. He is now back in the United States. Einhorn has denied his guilt, attributing the charges to a conspiracy by the F.B.I. and the C.I.A.

Citation: The New York Times, July 20, 2001, Late Edition, Section A, page 12, Col. 5, byline of Francis X. Clines.

Kazakhstan issues quotas and other rules for foreign workers

The Government of Kazakhstan has enacted new rules concerning Foreign Labor. The new rules apply to legal entities or individuals with whom an employee has a contract. The Government of Kazakhstan may now establish annual quotas according to the number of foreigner workers. Local executive bodies must show a need for foreign labor to the central executive body four months ahead of the upcoming year. All employers choosing to utilize foreign labor must obtain permits which must strictly conform to the annual quota. The Government may also control the number of employed aliens depending on the national and local labor markets, as well as on the alien's expertise. Additionally, the rules devise three categories: (1) managerial staff with intent to organize, (2) specialist individuals with "higher or specialized secondary education, with certificates of individual entrepreneurs confirmed in a prescribed manner," and (3) skilled workers. Employers must notify the immigration agency no later than 3 work days after job vacancies open...