Brazil top court: Italian militant can stay

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) -- Brazil's top court has ruled against extraditing a former leftist rebel from Italy who was convicted in his homeland of four murders carried out in the late 1970s.

The order late Wednesday upholds a presidential decision late last year that angered Italy.

The Italian government has repeatedly called for fugitive Cesare Battisti to be sent home so he can pay for his alleged crimes. It has warned that failure to do so will create tension between the two countries.

The court's nine judges voted 6-3 to deny the extradition request and to free Battisti.

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