National Jurist - January 2009 - (Page 46)

Katherine Ball 2L, Seton Hall University School of Law, Newark, N.J. Egypt “We killed your brother in Iraq, and n now we will kill you, unbeliever.” The threat came quietly, unobtrusively, w with the gentle beep of a text message as I sat on a foam mattress upon the dusty f floor. Samir, ashen, read the SMS aloud t to my Yemeni translator, and then turned to me: “Now you yourself can attest to the horror that is our lives.” I looked over my laptop to the front door of Samir’s cinder block flat, and its simple push-button lock, the only measure of protection that he, as an Iraqi Institute on World Legal Problems July 6–August 7, 2009 refugee, had. My preparation of Samir’s legal testimony regarding his life in Iraq and his flight two years before had come to have critical importance: His approval by the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) for resettlement, based upon this testimony, was the only effective escape from the Shi’ia death list that had forced him to flee Iraq. Just three weeks before, a phoned death threat similar to the text message had been traced to a public pay phone six miles away, in the heart of Cairo. They say you never forget your first, but I had never imagined that taking the first deposition of my legal career would be quite like this. Cairo, Egypt, as one can probably surmise by now, is not the typical summer abroad study program. Instead of European ivy, we settled in amongst the bustle and grime of 16 million people living on less than $2 per day in cinderblock tenements cropping around a dingy European early 1900s era infrastructure and city walls dating to the Crusades. Foreigners don’t drink the tap water, and per-capita average drop in IQ among children from exposure to lead in fuel peaked in the 1990s at four points per child. Nonetheless, our program filled to capacity, with a waiting list. The capacity, I later inferred, is the number of students who can fit in a single bus, and with good reason. AFRICA Travel Europe and Study Law at the University of Innsbruck July 6 to August 7, 2009 in the heart of the Austrian Alps Classes scheduled to allow long weekends for travel In the center of Europe! Travel to Prague, Vienna, Rome, Paris, Budapest, Berlin, Florence, Switzerland, Venice and the French Riviera Gala receptions and field trips to legal institutions ABA accredited Six justices of the U.S. Supreme Court and students from more than 130 American law schools have participated in the St. Mary’s Innsbruck program For programs in Africa, see page 44 Distinguished Visiting Jurist: Justice Samuel Alito Supreme Court of the United States APPLY ONLINE In addition to The Supreme Court, the Constitution, and Problems of Crime and Terrorism, taught by Justice Alito, choose from six other 1 and 2 credit courses emphasizing current issues in private and public international law. “The highlight of my law school career…” “Do whatever it takes, but go…” —Comments from prior students For detailed information, photos, and to apply, go to www.stmarytx.edu/law E-mail: Innsbruck@stmarytx.edu 1-800-INTL-LAW (1-800-468-5529) or (210) 436-3544 There are over 100 pyramids in Egypt, with the best known found at Giza, which are located on the outskirts of Cairo. Several of the Giza pyramids are counted among the largest structures ever built. 46 THE NATIONAL JURIST January 2009 http://www.stmarytx.edu/law http://www.stmarytx.edu/law

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of National Jurist - January 2009

National Jurist - January 2009 Contents Hot Button: Affirmative Action Entertainment: A Road Trip Through Law School News: American Justice, Kaplan Survey, Part-time Ranking The Firm Report: Diversity Law School Online No label No label Fordham Student Honored for Public Interest Work Former Law Student's Life Lives on After Her Death Most Influential People in Legal Education Most Innovative Law Schools Your Guide to Studying Abroad Career Hotline Texas Tech Law Grads Explore Dispute Resolution Evaluating First-Year Exams Disturbing the Peace

National Jurist - January 2009

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