Guantanamo/Detainees

Interpreter Shortage Could Delay Detainee Hearings in U.S. Courts

Lawyers representing detainees at Guantanamo Bay are rushing to meet with their clients who are challenging their detention in federal lawsuits, but a shortage of interpreters could create a logjam. About a dozen interpreters who live throughout the United States and visit Guantanamo have handled much of the critical work…

Aug 20, 2008 2:45 PM CDT

Judge Gives CIA 10 Days to Persuade Him Not to Issue Contempt Citation

A federal judge says he will give government lawyers 10 days to explain why he should not hold the CIA in contempt of court for destroying interrogation videotapes of al-Qaida detainees. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein of New York is considering whether the destruction of the tapes violated a court…

Aug 19, 2008 5:59 PM CDT

Lawyers Participate in Artist’s Coney Island ‘Waterboard Thrill Ride’

Artist Steve Powers hopes he reached people who aren’t familiar with waterboarding at his Coney Island “Waterboard Thrill Ride.” For just $1, park-goers were able to peer through bars and see motorized mannequins convulse while water was poured on their faces, the Washington Post reports. A SpongeBob SquarePants figure painted…

Aug 18, 2008 5:52 PM CDT

Ex-DOJ Lawyer: Politics in Ashcroft Justice Department Led to Ouster

A former senior lawyer with the Justice Department says political hiring and firing didn’t start with Alberto Gonzales, and she is Exhibit A. Writing for Legal Times, Jesselyn Radack says she was forced out of her job at the department when it was headed by John Ashcroft. It happened, she…

Aug 13, 2008 6:11 PM CDT

George Clooney Buys Film Rights to Hamdan Story

Hollywood superstar George Clooney secured movie rights to tell the story of Osama bin Laden’s personal driver Salim Hamdan, who was convicted last week of aiding terrorism and sentenced to 5½ years. If the movie gets made by Clooney’s production company, Smokehouse, it could be a controversial effort, the Los…

Aug 12, 2008 1:45 PM CDT

Hamdan Juror Says Verdict Wasn’t Intended as Message

A military officer who sat on the jury that gave the driver for Osama bin Laden a relatively light sentence says it was not intended as a message to the government. The juror told the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) that the jury gave Salim Ahmed Hamdan a five-and-a-half-year sentence…

Aug 11, 2008 11:19 AM CDT

‘Abusive’ Gitmo ‘Frequent Flyer’ Program Continued After Ban

A tactic to soften up Guantanamo Bay terrorism suspects, in which they were frequently moved from cell to cell to disorient them and prevent them from sleeping, was banned in 2004, and it has been deemed “abusive” by military officials. However, the so-called “frequent flyer” program was more widely used…

Aug 8, 2008 9:03 PM CDT

Hamdan Sentenced to Only 5.5 Years By Military Tribunal, Could Get Out in 5 Months

Prosecutors sought a prison term of at least 30 years for Salim Ahmed Hamdan, the Osama bin Laden chauffeur convicted this week of some, but not all, of the terrorism support charges against him. However, a jury of six military officers sentenced him to five-and-a-half years today. With credit for…

Aug 7, 2008 7:46 PM CDT

Military Jury Convicts Bin Laden’s Driver of Supporting Terrorism

The driver for Osama bin Laden has been found guilty of supporting terrorism in a trial before a military commission at Guantanamo Bay. The military jury announced its verdict this morning against Salim Hamdan, the first detainee to face trial, the Miami Herald reports. He was acquitted of a more…

Aug 6, 2008 2:42 PM CDT

Goal of Hamdan Terrorism Trial May Be to Bolster Military Commissions

The government’s goal in the terrorism trial of the driver for Osama bin Laden may be to establish the credibility of the Guantanamo military commissions and keep them operating as a new administration takes office. Observers told the Washington Post that it may be relatively easy to convict the driver,…

Jul 28, 2008 11:53 AM CDT

Osama Bin Laden’s Happiness at 9/11 Death Toll Recounted at Driver’s Trial

An FBI interrogator testified yesterday that the driver for Osama bin Laden overheard the al-Qaida leader saying he was happy with the death toll in the Sept. 11 attacks. Interrogator Ali Soufan said the driver, Salim Ahmed Hamdan, said bin Laden had expected only 1,000 to 1,500 people to die,…

Jul 24, 2008 4:03 PM CDT

Hamdan Interrogator Gained His Confidence With Magazines and McDonald’s

An al-Qaida expert who testified about two interviews he conducted with the driver for Osama bin Laden said he gained his subject’s confidence with small favors. FBI agent Ali Soufan said he gave Salim Ahmed Hamdan a car magazine and fast food such as McDonald’s fish sandwiches, the Associated Press…

Jul 23, 2008 4:23 PM CDT

Judge’s Ruling on Interrogation Evidence Could Affect Sept. 11 Trial

A military judge’s evidence ruling yesterday in the case of Osama bin Laden’s former driver could have an impact in the case against the accused mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks. The judge, Navy Capt. Keith Allred, refused to admit statements of Salim Ahmed Hamdan that were obtained under “highly…

Jul 22, 2008 12:18 PM CDT

Mukasey Calls on Congress to Set Rules for Gitmo Habeas Cases

Attorney General Michael Mukasey called on Congress yesterday to craft ground rules for federal appeals filed by detainees held at Guantanamo Bay. Mukasey outlined his recommendations for legislation in a speech to the American Enterprise Institute, Legal Times reports. If Congress doesn’t act, he said, judges will set the rules,…

Jul 22, 2008 11:41 AM CDT

Is Attorney General Mukasey Playing Caretaker or Terrorism Fighter?

Some had hoped Attorney General Michael Mukasey would fire a number of Justice Department insiders from the regime of his predecessor and investigate officials who approved harsh interrogations of terrorism suspects. Instead the former judge is leaving questions about terrorism interrogations and past political hiring for the federal courts and…

Jul 21, 2008 1:18 PM CDT