Get it in writing....

As a lawyer I always advise people to get it in writing.... seems a lot of people forget what they said when it gets to be the time when the buck must stop. I guess the lawyers for the CIA thought the same thing so they asked the White House to sign off on the approval to torture. Hats off to the talking dog for passing on the news.

Click on the title to get directed to the story.

FROM ROGER FITCH AND OUR FRIENDS DOWN UNDER

Roger Fitch Esq • October 8, 2008

Our Man in Washington

Not only is the economy unravelling at a rapid rate, but so too the well laid extraordinary legal regime of the Bush administration. All that remains are a few well worn Republican dirty tricks to rort the ballot

In a manoeuvre emblematic of George Bush’s lawless approach to law enforcement, military commission charges have been referred against a Tanzanian, Ahmed Ghailani, for civil offences.

As the Miami Herald noted, there’s a valid indictment against Ghailani in US District Court in New York for his alleged role in the 1998 bombing of the US Embassy in Tanzania (see my post of June 2), but the Bush administration prefers a military commission.

No doubt, it’s because the Pentagon intends to use evidence tortured from Ghailani or others.

CLICK ON THE TITLE TO READ THE REST....

Improper defendants???

A couple of days ago I received the email below from the department of injustice telling me that they intend on seeking dismissal of all defendants other than the secretary of defense.... in other words they don't think I should be able to name Bush, Rumsfeld and others that I have claimed are responsible. Just a little house cleaning before the election??? (by the way as best as I can tell the email went to all of the attorneys representing men at guantanamo.)


Counsel:
Respondents intend to file a motion to dismiss improper respondents in each of your cases. An improper respondent is anyone other than the Secretary of Defense in his official capacity. The basis of the motion is similar to those previously filed before Judges Leon and Sullivan (see e.g., 04-cv-1166-RJL Dkt#128). Please advise if you oppose the motion by noon October 14, 2008, ET. Thanks.

The inconventient existence of Abdul Al-Ghizzawi

Thank you Dan Feges at Pruning Shears for this story about my client Al-Ghizzawi. Click on the title to go directly to the article.

Appeals Court Enters Stay

The appellate court has entered a temporary "stay" on the release of the 17 Uighers which was scheduled for Friday. Both sides have been given a short time to file briefs after which the Court will hear argument.
As it was the Appellate Court that originally ordered these men released it would be a shame if this new panel now took sides with the government.
CLICK ON THE TITLE FOR MORE.

The U.N. has declared this.....

Dignity and Justice for Detainees week (click on the title for more)...

Maybe Judge Urbina knew tha when he ordered the 17 gitmo prisoners released to the US...

but clearly other judges never heard of it...

Transcript from Hearing

"Because the Constitution prohibits indefinite detention without cause, the Government's continued detention of Petitioners is unlawful. Furthermore, because separation-of-powers concerns do not trump the very principle upon which this nation was founded, the unalienable right to liberty, the Court orders the Government to release the Petitioners into the United States."

-- Hon. Ricardo M. Urbina, U.S. District Judge, ruling from the bench.

CLICK ON THE TITLE TO READ THE COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

TWO "RELEASED" 17 ORDERED FREE (updated with Order)

Over the weekend two men were released: Mammar Ameur, 939, an Algerian and Mustafa Ibrahim, 719, from the Sudan. I know that Mustafa was not cleared for release but I do not have the details on Mammar. Mustafa had been held in camp 4.

More importantly a judge today ordered 17 men, all Uighers, to be released into the US. These men, like my client Mr. Al-Ghizzawi should never have been held at Guantanamo after being found not to be enemy combatants back in 2004.

Here is his order:
Docket Text:
Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge Ricardo M. Urbina: Motion Hearing held on 10/7/2008. Motion [133] for judgment on 5 Detainees' Habeas Petition Order Release Into the Continental United States, heard and GRANTED; Motion [134] for Immediate Release on Parole Into the Continental United States Pending Final Judgment DENIED as MOOT; and Motion [172] for Immediate Release on Parole Into the Continental United States Pending Final Judgment and for Final Judgment on Their Habeas Petitions by the remaining detainees DENIED as to the first part and GRANTED as to the second part. Oral Motion by Defendant for a Stay of the Court's decision pending review and to seek an appeal, heard and DENIED. Oral Motion by Defendant for one (1) Week Administrative Stay, heard and DENIED. Court rules that the Uighurs Detainees be released into the United States and brought to this Court on Friday, October 10, 2008, at 10:00 a.m. A Hearing regarding conditions of their release is scheduled for 10/16/2008, at 2:00 p.m. The Court directs that a representative of Homeland Security be present for the hearing scheduled on Friday, October 16, 2008. (Court Reporter Catalina Kerr.) (jwd )


Like Mr. Al-Ghizzawi the petitioners and two or three other men were all reclassified as enemy combatants thanks to Matthew Waxman, now a professor at Columbia law school, so that our government could avoid the embarrassment of admitting it was holding "non enemies."

A hardy congratulations to the Bingham team for their hard work. Now it is time to get Mr. Al-Ghizzawi out of that hell hole.
CLICK ON THE TITLE TO READ MORE....

Circuit Court

Well no sooner did I write about the lack of movement by our courts when the Circuit Court decided to throw out Al-Ghizzawi's appeal for medical care and for his medical records. As his first of two appeals on the same issue was filed almost 2 years ago I guess I cannot feign surprise. Seems the appellate court does n0t think they have jurisdiction (despite the Supreme Court's holding in Boumediene) but hey, they go on to say that even if they did have jurisdiction Al-Ghizzawi has not shown irreparable harm in not getting medical care...sigh.
I guess that is because he is still alive.
It is clear... only by dying can Al-Ghizzawi show the irreparable harm necessary to convince the court.
Well I guess it is time to try the Supreme Court again.

a word on palin

As many of you know I am not the biggest Obama fan... but I guess I will vote (I have to admit I am still thinking about that one for the first time in my so called adult life). Assuming I vote and as I could never vote for McCain, Obama will get my vote. So there you have it.
That being said, when McCain announced his running mate my first thought was that naming a woman was a good political move... trying to capture some of those Hillary supporters who were mad at Obama (by the way I am not particularly mad at Obama I just do not think you pluck someone up and make him president just because he gives a good speech).
It was not until I watched the VP debates that I realized that palin was not in the race to capture the Hillary voters (ok, duhhhhh). As I watched palin's "cute" smiles and that wink (was someone telling her in that little box on her back to "wink now"?) I knew she was in the race to capture a certain male voter... no serious Hillary supporter could possibly give her the time of day... but it wasn't just any male voter McCain was aiming for...and that is the funny part .... you see, I could actually picture McCain telling palin to wink and in my mind I could hear McCain saying...."they will love that" ...and "smile again" "do that grin where you stick your tongue between your teeth ...it is so cute." I can picture and hear all of this in my mind because McCain is such a known sexist. This isn’t about a running mate, this is McCain waiving his little Bunny in front of the crowd. Problem is that the men McCain is trying to impress are men like himself….and if they bother to vote they would have been voting for McCain anyway.
So anyway click on the title and sing along.
I will be back with more Guantanamo news later.... including news about more releases...(no not my clients).

As I Was Saying...

The New York Times today reports on what many of us habeas attorneys have been talking about for quite awhile and what I reported about just recently. The District Court judges continue to disregard the U.S. Supreme Court and refuse to move forward on the Habeas Petitions for the Guantanamo prisoners. CLICK ON THE TITLE TO READ THE STORY.

Are the judges hoping for another congressional intervention? Why are they so afraid to rule? (they cannot all be hoping for seats in the circuit or supreme court!).

After practicing law for more than 25 years I cannot point to a more disappointing display by our judiciary in my lifetime. I am not saying that the courts as a whole have not done worse... but in my lifetime this is the worst.

Shame on all of them...

Cheney

And just when you thought you knew more about our current VP then you ever wanted to know... you learn there is more that you need to know,including:
* How Cheney killed a State Department proposal to close secret CIA prisons, deleting it from the agenda of an NSC meeting.
Click on the title.

Bail out help needed

Of course when Bush pushes the panic button, which he regularly does, I automatically wonder what part of our constitution will be voted obsolete this time. I read that the Senate bill passed today would:

• Make permanent authority for undercover operations.
• Make permanent authority for disclosure of information relating to terrorist activities.

Does anyone have any details on these provisions?

By the way I have sent my letters to representatives and congress to stop this bill in its tracks. What about you?

British soldiers face Prosecution if they hand prisoners over to known torturer: US

So now the British are telling their soldiers they can't turn over prisoners in Iraq to the US without themselves facing prosecution because they know, as we all know, that the US tortures prisoners. Soldiers who turn prisoners over to the US would be in violation of both the Human Rights Act and the European Convention on Human Rights which forbids the turning over of prisoners to groups known to torture.
Click on the title to read the legal opinion rendered to the British Parliament by Michael Fordham QC.
A synopsis of the opinion can be found in the Guardian:

The conclusion reached by Fordham and his colleague Tom Hickman is that an offence would definitely have been committed. If acted on, the opinion could mean that UK troops would not be allowed to "render" detainees to the US military until it was clear that they would no longer face the possibility of torture or ill-treatment.

What prompted the inquiry was a statement made in February this year by Ben Griffin, a former SAS soldier who was on active service in Iraq. In his statement, Griffin said that he was "in no doubt" that individuals handed over to the US military "would be tortured". He cited what had happened to those detained at Guantánamo Bay, Bagram airbase and Abu Ghraib prison.

The opinion adds: "UK forces operating in Iraq are potentially also subject to UK criminal law, tort law and Iraqi law. Notably, the Criminal Justice Act 1988 makes it a criminal offence for a public official, whatever his nationality and wherever located, to commit an act of torture."

FROM ROGER FITCH AND OUR FRIENDS DOWN UNDER

Death throes of the Bush regime … Key case to test concept of “enemy combatants” ... Last minute election tricks in the Republican armoury … Cheney ordered not to destroy his papers … The 20 most corrupt members of Congress.

Even in its dying days the Bush administration seeks to vindicate a frightening principle and make it a permanent feature of American law.

It’s the notion that a US president, on his own say-so, can seize and indefinitely detain anyone, anywhere in the world, including US citizens and those on US soil, for any reason he chooses – without “second-guessing”, as the Bush lawyers call judicial review.

CLICK ON THE TITLE TO READ THE REST....