it looks like the dod is finally allowing yaser esam hamdi to see a lawyer. you remember him, don't you? he's been held in south carolina since 2001 as an 'enemy combatant' after capture in afghanistan without access to anyone even though he's a us citizen. i guess they thought they might lose a court case or something if it went that way, and they definitely wouldn't want to set that as a legal precedent.
DoD is allowing Hamdi access to counsel as a matter of discretion and military policy; such access is not required by domestic or international law and should not be treated as a precedent.DoD decided to allow Hamdi access to counsel because Hamdi is a U.S. citizen detained by DoD in the United States, because DoD has completed its intelligence collection with Hamdi, and because DoD has determined that the access will not compromise the national security of the United States.
so their argument is basically, 'we're being nice this time. don't count on it again.' they never brought any charges against him, but after a lengthy detention and interrogation period, now he can see a lawyer, especially since that lawyer was gonna take it to the supreme court.
DoD policy is that it will permit access to counsel by an enemy combatant who is a U. S. citizen and who is detained by DoD in the United States after DoD has determined that such access will not compromise the national security of the U. S.; and after DoD has completed intelligence collection from that enemy combatant or after DoD has determined that such access will not interfere with intelligence collection from that enemy combatant.
well, that's a giant list of caveats. i especially like the fact that they've got to be held on us soil. hamdi was brought out of gitmo once it was determined that he was a us citizen. i imagine that if they don't want to let you see a lawyer, they won't let you out of gitmo period, us citizen or not.
once again, three cheers for high moral standards, where we treat everybody else differently! legal limbos, huzzah!
Posted by kilgore at December 2, 2003 10:51 PM | TrackBack