Terrorism

Fallout From War On Terror Threatens Rule of Law, Federal Judge Says

When U.S. District Judge John Coughenour handed down a 22-year prison sentence to “millennium bomber” Ahmed Ressam, more than a dozen death threats resulted, and he and his family had to get special protection from U.S. Marshals. None of the threats apparently were from Ressam or individuals in his circle,…

Mar 29, 2010 7:19 PM CDT

John Yoo Sees Himself as West Berlin During the Cold War

The former Justice Department official who wrote legal memos authorizing harsh interrogations of terrorism suspects views his position as a conservative law professor at a liberal school through the prism of history. John Yoo has prompted so much protest that administrators at the University of California at Berkeley’s Boalt Hall…

Mar 29, 2010 1:15 PM CDT

Obama Administration Lawyers ‘Deeply Divided’ Over Enemy Combatants

Obama administration lawyers have pulled back from claims that the president has far-reaching powers to indefinitely detain terrorism suspects, but they have disagreed behind the scenes on the paramaters. The lawyers are “deeply divided,” the Washington Post reports. “The rift has been most pronounced between top lawyers in the State…

Mar 29, 2010 12:46 PM CDT

CIA Lawyer Reportedly Given Immunity in Probe of Destroyed Interrogation Tapes

CIA lawyer John McPherson has reportedly been given immunity to testify in a probe into the destruction of videotapes showing harsh interrogations of terrorism suspects. Two sources told the Washington Post that McPherson could be called to testify before a grand jury later this month or in April. McPherson had…

Mar 25, 2010 1:09 PM CDT

Supreme Court Lets Stand Order Keeping Judges Out of Gitmo Transfer Decisions

The U.S. Supreme Court has let stand an order barring federal judges from ruling on the transfer of detainees from Guantanamo Bay. SCOTUSblog says the refusal to review the federal appeals court decision is “a significant victory for the federal government, enhancing its authority to decide when and where to…

Mar 22, 2010 2:46 PM CDT

Taking ‘Judicial Control,’ Judge Rejects 9/11 Deal and Questions Attorney Fees

A federal judge in Manhattan has rejected a settlement that would have paid rescue and cleanup workers at the destroyed World Trade Center up to $657.5 million using money from a federally funded insurance company. At a hearing on Friday, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein said the settlement was “not…

Mar 22, 2010 2:22 PM CDT

9th Cir. Panel Refuses En Banc Rehearing of Ruling Ex-AG Ashcroft Can Be Sued by Witness

Refusing an en banc rehearing of an earlier 2-1 ruling by an appellate panel, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has effectively held once more that former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft can be sued for civil damages by a man who says he was unconstitutionally jailed…

Mar 18, 2010 9:36 PM CDT

Holder Says Bin Laden Won’t Be Captured Alive

Attorney General Eric Holder told a House subcommittee on Tuesday that Osama bin Laden would have the same rights as any accused murderer if he were tried in an American courtroom—but in reality a trial will never occur. Holder said Bin Laden won’t be tried because he won’t be captured…

Mar 17, 2010 12:14 PM CDT

Republicans Criticize AG Holder’s Failure to Disclose Terrorism Briefs

The Justice Department has confirmed that Attorney General Eric Holder failed to disclose during the confirmation process his work on amicus briefs in terrorism cases. The briefs opposed President Bush’s power to declare American citizen Jose Padilla to be an enemy combatant, the New York Times reports. Justice Department spokesman…

Mar 12, 2010 8:25 PM CST

Lawyers for 9-11 Responders Would Take One-Third Under Settlement

Rescue and cleanup workers at the destroyed World Trade Center site have reached a settlement that creates a compensation system similar to the one established for the families of the victims of the Sept. 11 attack. The settlement will be paid by an insurance company funded by the federal government…

Mar 12, 2010 1:17 PM CST

Judge OK’s Torture Suit Against Rumsfeld

A federal judge from the Northern District of Illinois has allowed a suit filed by two former U.S. workers for an Iraq-owned security firm against former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to proceed. Two of the men’s three counts were dismissed, the Wall Street Journal Law Blog reported. But Donald Vance…

Mar 8, 2010 6:49 PM CST

Obama Advisers Likely to Recommend Military Trial for 9/11 Mastermind

President Obama’s advisers are about to recommend a military trial for the man who has taken credit for masterminding the Sept. 11 attacks, a published report says. Anonymous administration officials told the Washington Post that the advisers are close to completing a review of the case of 9/11 mastermind Khalid…

Mar 5, 2010 12:28 PM CST

ABA Prez Defends Lawyers Dubbed ‘Al Qaeda Seven’

Updated: ABA President Carolyn Lamm on Thursday criticized efforts to smear the reputation of Justice Department lawyers who at one point represented detainees at Guantanamo Bay. “Impugning the character of lawyers who have sought to protect the fundamental rights of unpopular clients is a divisive and diversionary tactic,” Lamm said…

Mar 4, 2010 10:10 PM CST

Lawmakers Call for Wider Probe Into Yoo & Bybee Terrorism Memos

Although a U.S. Department of Justice report last week recommended no sanctions be pursued against two lawyers who authored controversial terrorism memos, that doesn’t appear to be the final answer as far as a number of federal lawmakers are concerned. Senior Democrats are joining with Republicans in calling for further…

Feb 26, 2010 9:51 PM CST

2nd Circuit Judges Spar Over ‘Outlier’ Lenient Sentence for Lawyer Lynne Stewart

A New York-based federal appeals court has issued sparring opinions on the sentence meted out to lawyer Lynne Stewart, convicted for passing along messages from an imprisoned sheik convicted for plotting terrorism. A panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had already told U.S. District Judge John Koeltl…

Feb 24, 2010 2:42 PM CST