Richard May, 65; Presided Over Milosevic Trial

British Judge Richard May, who wryly cut off Slobodan Milosevic’s courtroom speechmaking and presided over hundreds of hearings at the Yugoslav war crimes tribunal in The Hague, died Thursday in Britain after a short illness. He was 65.

May resigned four months ago because of ill health, two years into the trial of the former Serbian leader. The case is the highest-profile prosecution of its kind since the trials of Nazi leaders after World War II.

May and Milosevic, both strong personalities, clashed regularly in the courtroom over countless issues, ranging from the defendant’s complaints about telephone use in his cell to his efforts to blame the Balkan wars on Western political leaders.

Milosevic has rejected the legitimacy of the tribunal and refuses to follow courtroom etiquette. In a sign of his disdain, he referred to May as “Mister May” or “Gospodine May” in his native Serbo-Croatian, rather than using the honorary title of judge.

May was often visibly frustrated with Milosevic but went to great lengths to ensure that he was treated fairly, assisting him in questioning witnesses and explaining how he could best contest the 66 war crimes allegations against him.

“The job of presiding judge in the Milosevic trial was perhaps the most difficult in the tribunal’s history,” said a tribute to May by the Washington-based Coalition for International Justice. “Judge May willingly assumed primary responsibility for assuring the trial was fair to all concerned -- the accused, the victims and the larger public.”

May joined the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in 1997 and had presided over the Milosevic trial since February 2002.

From the beginning, the judge set strict courtroom rules that confined the hearings to the allegations facing the ousted Serbian leader. But Milosevic had other ideas.

“I challenge the legality of this court, because it is not established on the basis of law,” he said defiantly the first day of trial, demanding that he be released.

“Your views on this court are entirely irrelevant,” May responded tersely. “The matters on which you are choosing to address us are matters upon which we have already ruled, as you would know if you had taken the trouble to read our decisions.”

After announcing his resignation suddenly in February, May was replaced by Lord Bonomy, also of Britain.

The trial is set to resume Monday when Milosevic begins his defense. Judge Patrick Robinson has assumed the position of presiding judge.

May, once an aspiring politician who unsuccessfully challenged Margaret Thatcher in an election, had a long career in the British courts.

A Cambridge University graduate, he joined the bar in 1965 and later served for 10 years as a district judge.

He helped edit several books on judicial procedures, including International Criminal Evidence, published in 2002.

May was married to Radmilla May and is survived by three children.