Conducting Research for the Iraqi Special Tribunal
In his last semester of law school, Ian Ralby, modern languages and linguistics/M.A. intercultural communication ’02, is taking an unexpected course and, in fact, helping to shape the course of history. Along with 20 other William & Mary law students, he is working for the Department of Justice (DOJ), providing legal support for the judges who will try Sadaam Hussein and his top lieutenants.
The students are working in small groups; each is researching one of ten legal questions submitted by the DOJ that will be presented at the Iraqi Special Tribunal. Ralby and his partner recently filed a 60-page answer to their assigned question. That answer will be reviewed by the DOJ, translated into Arabic, and given to the Iraqi judges to help them decide the cases against the individuals who bear the greatest responsibility in the crimes committed by the Baath regime.
“This is the most significant and important thing I’ve done,” Ralby told the Virginian Pilot during one of many press interviews about the project. “I’m not sure where it will lead, but it’s definitely an honor and a privilege to be part of something so historic.”
Ralby, UMBC’s Class of 2002 valedictorian, graduated at 19 with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees. A Humanities Scholar and Rhodes Scholar semi-finalist, he was also one of the first recipients of the Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship, considered one of the most generous awards of its kind in the U.S.
After his first year of law school, Ralby worked as a summer intern for the U.S. Army JAG Corps at Fort Meade, Maryland, where he was given a significant amount of responsibility in the prosecution of a rape and child molestation case. The defendant is now serving a 12-year sentence in military prison. In addition, Ralby has worked for two years on the William & Mary Law Review, first as a staff member, and this year as a note editor.
Ralby says UMBC prepared him for the challenges of law school and his work for the tribunal. “UMBC gave me a fantastic liberal arts foundation that has allowed me to easily branch off into many different areas. Studying modern languages and linguistics and intercultural communication instilled in me not only a deep interest in international affairs, but a sensitivity to and understanding of the people and politics foreign to how many of us in the U.S. function. Some of the theoretical models I studied have helped me to clearly articulate and recognize the social, cultural, economic and political dynamics at play in many regions of the world, including Iraq.
“Most importantly, however, UMBC nourished my intellectual curiosity, making me open to academic adventures which have provided me with unbelievable opportunities such as working in criminal prosecution for the U.S. Army JAG Corps, or as a clerk for the Iraqi Special Tribunal,” said Ralby.
Ian’s younger brother, Aaron (English, modern languages and linguistics) also led a distinguished undergraduate career at UMBC. He will graduate in May and head to Cambridge University this fall.
(4/11/05)
