Supreme Court Rejects Padilla Torture Suit, Gitmo Detainee Cases

The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected suits by Guantanamo Bay detainees and Jose Padilla, the U.S. citizen who claimed he was tortured while he was held in a military brig in South Carolina. The court rejected the cases today, report Reuters, Huff Post Politics, Bloomberg News and SCOTUSblog. Padilla was…

Jun 11, 2012 5:12 PM CDT

Lawyer for Sept. 11 Defendant Says She Wore Hijab at Arraignment Out of Respect for Client

Corrected: A defense lawyer for one of five Sept. 11 suspects is defending her decision to wear a hijab during the arraignment before a military tribunal on Saturday. During the proceeding, lawyer Cheryl Bormann was “sporting a black burqa” while one of the female prosecutors “sent a silent message to…

May 7, 2012 12:04 PM CDT

Accused Sept. 11 Plotters to Be Arraigned; Lawyer Doesn’t Expect Guilty Pleas

A lawyer for one of five defendants accused of plotting the Sept. 11 attacks said he doesn’t expect any guilty pleas in their arraignments on Saturday before a Guantanamo military tribunal. Accused mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has claimed responsibility for the planning, and co-defendant Ramzi Binalshibh has said he was…

May 4, 2012 2:19 PM CDT

Accused Sept. 11 Mastermind and Alleged Conspirators to Get Joint Trial at Gitmo

A senior Pentagon official has authorized a Guantanamo trial for five men accused of plotting the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, including accused mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed. On Wednesday, Retired Vice Adm. Bruce MacDonald approved the case against the men for a joint trial, report the Washington Post and Reuters. The…

Apr 5, 2012 3:06 PM CDT

Gitmo Courts Impose Lighter Than Expected Sentences

Military commissions at Guantanamo have been criticized for lacking protections, but so far they have imposed lighter than expected sentences in six out of seven cases. The sentences were more lenient than those often handed out in civilian courts for similar offenses, the Associated Press reports. As one example, the…

Mar 5, 2012 2:17 PM CST

Obama Takes Advantage of Waiver Provision in Terrorism Law

Republicans who back a military detention requirement in a recent terrorism law intend to hold hearings on President Obama’s decision on Tuesday to take advantage of a waiver provision. Obama issued an order that exempts broad categories of terrorism suspects from the military detention requirement and gives civilian authorities broad…

Feb 29, 2012 4:25 PM CST

Lawyer Sues Over New Gitmo Policy Requiring Review of Attorney Mail to Detainees

A lawyer who filed suit in Washington, D.C., seeking relief from a rule that requires officials at the Guantanamo Bay military prison to review attorney-client mail, is at least the second to do so. James Connell’s suit, which names Rear Adm. David Woods as a defendant, was filed in federal…

Feb 10, 2012 6:12 PM CST

ABA President Calls for Probe of Attorney-Client Privilege Violations at Guantanamo

ABA President Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III is urging U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta to reverse a new Guantanamo policy that appears to violate attorney-client privilege. In a letter to Panetta dated Dec. 21, Robinson says lawyers for detainees are reporting that their privileged attorney-client communications are being intercepted and…

Dec 22, 2011 6:36 PM CST

Appeals Court Hears Case of Ex-Gitmo Prosecutor Fired by Library of Congress for Op-Eds

A federal appeals court on Thursday considered the First Amendment case of Guantanamo’s former chief prosecutor, who was fired by the Library of Congress for his “provocative tone” in two newspaper opinion pieces. A lawyer from the American Civil Liberties Union argued on behalf of retired Air Force Col. Morris…

Nov 11, 2011 12:30 PM CST

Military Tribunals Draw No Flak

Sep 1, 2011 5:50 AM CDT

With a Show of Hands, Lawyers Endorse Military Commissions over Civilian Trials

If there is significant opposition to the U.S. war on terror, it wasn’t apparent in a roomful of lawyers on Friday. Salli Swartz, chair of the ABA Section of International Law, mentioned xenophobia and a “mass intrusion on privacy” as she moderated an ABA Annual Meeting program on the impact…

Aug 5, 2011 7:39 PM CDT

Pentagon Considers Allowing Family Visits at Guantanamo

The Pentagon is reportedly negotiating with the International Committee of the Red Cross to set up a program allowing family members to visit detainees at Guantanamo Bay. Congressional aides tell the Washington Post that the ICRC is in “serious discussions” about family visitation. A pending Defense Department bill bans U.S.-funded…

May 12, 2011 4:19 PM CDT

Did Waterboarding Help Find Bin Laden? Holder Unsure; Old-Fashioned Intel Played Big Role

Did waterboarding produce intelligence that helped the United States find Osama bin Laden? Attorney General Eric Holder told the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday that he’s unsure about the answer to that question, The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room reports. Some are applauding the harsh interrogations, saying they unearthed information that…

May 4, 2011 1:10 PM CDT

Gitmo Lawyer Asks Court to Allow Him to Review and Discuss WikiLeaks Documents

A former Covington & Burling lawyer who represents Guantanamo detainees has asked a federal judge for permission to read WikiLeaks documents on his own computer. The U.S. Justice Department has warned lawyers that the documents are classified and they can only be viewed at secure government facilities, even though the…

Apr 28, 2011 4:00 PM CDT

DOJ Tells Gitmo Lawyers They Can’t Read Leaked WikiLeaks Documents Online

The U.S. Justice Department has warned lawyers representing Guantanamo detainees that they can’t look at leaked WikiLeaks documents online. The documents are still classified, the DOJ said, even though they are accessible to anyone with a computer, the New York Times reports. The leaked documents containing intelligence assessments of the…

Apr 27, 2011 12:53 PM CDT