TIPSHEET: Saddam Hussein Execution: Vanderbilt Expert Back from Iraq

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt University Law Professor Mike Newton is an expert on the Saddam Hussein trial and has just returned from his fourth trip to Iraq. Newton played a pivotal role in the creation of the Iraqi Special Tribunal and led the training for its judges, focusing on international criminal law. He currently advises the Iraqi tribunal and just returned from his latest trip to Baghdad. Newton is also a major contributor to the 2006 book, “Saddam on Trial: Understanding and Debating the Iraqi High Tribunal.” Newton can speak extensively about the Saddam trial and the controversy surrounding his execution. Newton can also speak to the judges training in the elements of crimes and the rules embodied in the Special Tribunal‘s Statute and Rules of Procedure.

Prior to his recent retirement from active duty, Newton taught international law at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Formerly on faculty at the Judge Advocate General‘s School, he was also senior adviser to the U.S. ambassador-at-large for war crimes issues, where he implemented policies relating to international criminal law and the law of armed conflict. He was one of two U.S. delegates negotiating the Elements of Crimes document for the International Criminal Court.

To set up an interview with Mike Newton, call (615) 322-NEWS.