Prosecutor v. Taylor: The Implications for Bashar Al-Assad

Abstract

Charles Taylor was the first sitting head of state to be indicted, tried, and convicted by an international criminal tribunal, the Special Court for Sierra Leone. This comment explores the procedural and structural similarities between the Special Court for Sierra Leone and the International Criminal Court. This comment then compares the evidence used to convict Charles Taylor and the evidence currently available about possible war crimes and crimes against humanity ongoing in Syria. Finally, this comment argues that Bashar al-Assad should be tried before the International Criminal Court, and that the Taylor case can be used as a template, due to the similarities between the courts and the evidence in each situation.