Diplomat’s Killers Back in Court

Quote: This copy is for your personal, noncommercial use only. You can order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers here or use the "Reprints" tool that appears next to any article. Visit www.nytreprints.com for samples and additional information. Order a reprint of this article now. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- August 14, 2009 World Briefing | Africa Sudan: Diplomat’s Killers Back in Court By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS An appeals court commuted the death sentences of four men convicted of killing an American diplomat and his Sudanese driver after the driver’s family decided to pardon them, according to a report Thursday by the Sudan Media Center, a news agency with close ties to Sudan’s government. The slain diplomat, John Granville, and his driver were killed when Mr. Granville was returning from a New Year’s party in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, in the early hours of Jan. 1, 2008. Mr. Granville, 33, worked for the United States Agency for International Development. The prosecutor in the case has said that the assailants had been looking for a Western target and acted out of ”religious zeal.” Sudanese law stipulates that if a victim’s family chooses to pardon the murderer, the person cannot be sentenced to death and the prison term cannot exceed 10 years. The case will be referred back to the initial court for a new sentence, the Sudan Media Center said.

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