Residents of a counterculture oasis in the Danish capital challenged government moves to regain control of their community Monday, petitioning a court to guarantee their right to use the former navy base they took over three decades ago.

The case is expected to determine the future of Christiania, a partially self-governing neighborhood of more than 900 residents that was created in 1971 when hippies began squatting at a derelict 18th-century navy fort on state-owned land.

Christiania became an enclave with psychedelic-colored buildings, open trade of hashish and limited interference from the government. But when authorities started cracking down on the drug trade in 2004 and later announced plans to tear down buildings to build new apartment blocks, the squatters fought back.

They sued the government in 2006, claiming they have the right to use the land, even if they don't own it. The center-right government rejects that claim.

The dispute has sparked numerous clashes between police and residents, including street battles last week which left two officers injured and 15 people arrested. Police fired tear gas to dispel demonstrators protesting the eviction of squatters; the protesters set fires to barricades and pelted police with rocks and firebombs.

"The plan by the government would destroy Christiania as we know it," said Thomas Ertman, a spokesman for Christiania residents.

The government's lawyer, Stig Groenbaek Jensen, did not return calls seeking comment Monday.

The last day of hearings at the Eastern High Court is set for Nov. 21, and a ruling is expected in January.

The US Department of Justice on Tuesday announced that it would not post criminal prosecutors at the polls for the November 4 presidential election, responding to concerns raised by civil rights groups. The decision represents a departure from the DOJ's longstanding practice. Grace Chung Becker, assistant attorney general for the DOJ's Civil Rights Division, issued the following statement:

On Election Day, the primary responsibility of the Civil Rights Division is to ensure all eligible voters are able to cast their ballot in an environment free of discrimination, suppression or intimidation. The Division has and will use every statute within its purview to provide all voters with a free and fair electoral process.

  On November 4, 2008, hundreds of federal government employees will be deployed in counties, cities and towns across the country to monitor polling places and to ensure compliance with federal voting statutes. In light of questions we have been asked regarding who will serve as election monitors, I want to inform the public that no criminal prosecutors will be utilized as election monitors on Election Day this year. This decision was made as a precaution and is not the result of any instance of intimidation or complaint regarding any specific incident.

Civil rights advocates have criticized what they perceive as the DOJ's emphasis on preventing voter fraud rather than ensuring minority access to the polls, questioning whether the presence of prosecutors intimidates minorities in some communities.

During a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing earlier this month, Becker testified that elections monitors are "among the most effective means of ensuring that federal voting rights are respected on election day." She reported that this year, 364 federal observers and 148 other DOJ personnel have monitored 47 elections in 43 jurisdictions. In July, Attorney General Michael Mukasey told the House Judiciary Committee during a hearing that enforcing voting rights would be a priority for the remainder of his tenure. The Voting Rights Act authorizes federal courts and the attorney general to appoint federal observers to monitor elections for voting-rights violations.

A US district court judge ruled Wednesday that US Senator Ted Stevens cannot transfer his corruption trial to Alaska from Washington, DC. Rejecting Stevens' argument that he needed to be in Alaska to campaign for re-election, US District Judge Emmet Sullivan said that the offense alleged in the indictment occurred in Washington and any change in venue would cause unnecessary delay and additional expense. Stevens released a statement on the decision, stating:

I urged my attorneys to request a venue change because I wanted Alaskans to have a first-hand opportunity to learn the facts of this matter. I understand the court’s decision today, and continue to have every faith in the fairness of the American judicial system and the court’s commitment to conduct a speedy trial. I welcome the opportunity to demonstrate that I am innocent of these charges.

Stevens was indicted last month on seven counts of making false statements relating to an alleged corruption scheme and for falsifying his Financial Disclosure forms. Stevens allegedly accepted about $250,000 in gifts over an eight-year period from the founder of oil services and engineering company VECO Corp and in exchange reportedly used his influence in Washington to improperly benefit the company and its empl