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May 21, 2013

Guatemalan Court Overturns Genocide Verdict for Ex-Dictator Ríos Montt 
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Guatemala's top court has overturned the genocide conviction of former
U.S.-backed military dictator Efraín Ríos Montt. In a historic verdict
earlier this month, Ríos Montt was sentenced to 80 years for genocide
and crimes against humanity in the killings of more than 1,700 Ixil
Mayan people in the early 1980s. But in a 3-to-2 ruling Monday, the
Guatemalan constitutional court dismissed all the case's proceedings
dating back to a month ago. It was then that the court first annulled
the case amidst a dispute between judges over jurisdiction. In the
run-up to its latest decision to overturn, the court had come under
heavy lobbying from Ríos Montt supporters, including Guatemala's
powerful business association, CACIF. Ríos Montt remains in a military
hospital where he was admitted last week. His legal status is now up in
the air. He will likely be released into house arrest, and it is unclear
when or if he will return to court.

 

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