Judge rejects arrest of former Mexican leader

The Associated Press

MEXICO CITY -- A Mexican judge refused Saturday to issue an arrest warrant for former President Luis Echeverria, accused of ordering the killing of protesters at a 1971 demonstration, a spokesman for the special prosecutor's office said.

Prosecutors will likely appeal the decision, said Eduardo Maldonado, a spokesman for the office established to investigate crimes related to government repression of student and leftist groups in the 1960s and '70s.

The judge did not immediately make public the basis for his decision.