NEW DOJ POLICY OR 'bad apple' DOJ ATTORNEYS ON A LARK

I have been watching this issue unfold over the months, although it is not one that concerns either of my two clients. I guess it starts with the fact that the whole concept of our legal system is foreign to most of the men at Guantanamo (and to some of us who have worked in our legal system for say 25 years or so...) and some are not sure that they want attorneys (hmmm, I guess I cannot blame them on that score either). In addition, some of the men have severe mental health problems after years of being held in the cruelest of conditions without any charges against them or any end in sight....The bottom line is that some men at Guantanamo refuse to sign any piece of paper (I wonder why that would be???) and so they have not authorized their attorneys to represent them in writing and some men refuse to see their attorneys or only see their attorneys sporadically. The attorneys for these men keep plugging away and continue to file all the necessary papers and continue to work to get their clients out of Guantanamo.
So who cares?
Apparently some in the Department of Justice think that this is the perfect group to go after and a convenient way of getting rid of some of the habeas lawsuits...and now the DOJ is threatening to step up their efforts to dismiss the habeas cases for those men who have not signed or otherwise authorized their attorneys to represent them.
So my question is this, is this really the policy of the new DOJ? (I have now heard this from three separate attorneys with three different DOJ attorneys and all in the last week)... Or do we have a subgroup of hanger-ons who are continuing with the agenda from the last administration? Is anyone higher up paying attention? Does the justice department really want some of these men at Guantanamo to be unrepresented?

The DOD's New General Counsel (and his two guiding principles)

And a welcome sight he is:

Within hours of being sworn in as the general counsel of the U.S. Department of Defense on Feb. 10, Jeh C. Johnson circulated a rare, if not unprecedented, e-mail to all 10,000 civilian and military lawyers working for the agency. "I wanted to send a message, and thought it would be significant if I sent it on my first day in office," said Mr. Johnson, 51, who, left a lucrative partner position at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison to take the third public service job of his 27-year career. A witness to the 9/11 terror attacks, Mr. Johnson said he left his law practice because he was concerned about the safety of the country and his own family. But he said that an uncle's experience with racial prejudice during World War II also has taught him that a concern for safety must be leavened with a respect for the law.

As general counsel, Mr. Johnson supervises an office of 100 attorneys, which functions as the principal legal adviser to Defense Secretary Robert M.

Gates. In the e-mail<http://www.nylj.com/nylawyer/adgifs/decisions/030309johnsonemail.pdf>bearing

his general introductory remarks to his new colleagues he vowed that he would be guided by two basic principles. First, he said that "our advice concerning the rule of law must remain consistent throughout changing and challenging times. Adherence to the rule of law permits us to occupy the moral high ground, and display the very best of American values." In that regard, he quoted Justice Sandra O'Connor's opinion in *Hamdi v.

Rumsfeld*<http://supreme.justia.com/us/542/507/case.html>,

542 U.S. 507 (2004), which reversed the denial of a habeas corpus petition filed on behalf of a U.S. citizen being detained indefinitely as an "illegal enemy combatant" under procedures Mr. Johnson's predecessor as general counsel helped develop. In *Hamdi*, Justice O'Connor wrote: "It is during our most challenging and uncertain moments that our nation's commitment to due process is most severely tested; and it is in those times that we must preserve commitment at home to the principles for which we fight abroad."

Second, Johnson pledged to foster "a collegial and collaborative working relationship between civilian and military lawyers," which would go "a long way toward timely, effective and quality legal services and legal advice."

Imagine (if you can) how many lives could have been saved over these past eight years if someone with principles like these had been in the position that Johnson is in now....

Best of luck to you Jeh.

FIRE JOHN YOO ... NEW UPDATE

I feel quite certain that Berkeley has not given him his walking papers... but read Scott Horton's latest blog and you can wonder yourself.
As I see it, going after his law license is our first job...then we go for the criminal indictment.
Thanks to the Fire John Yoo group for continuing this Battle and
Click on the title to read Scott's latest.

Unraveling the mystery surrounding documents filed with the Court Security Office (CSO)

Last weekend it hit me that none of the documents that I have filed with the CSO have been cleared for public filing since November 2008 (except for my Supreme Court Cert petition). With new players at the DOJ and many new Habeas counsel entering the cases (to help with the discovery and hearings) most probably do not know how unusual this is and/or have not given this much thought. I however believe that it is detrimental to have this historic litigation unfolding with a big piece of the paper trail missing from the public record.

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

Guantanamo: The Definitive Prisoner List

Andy Worthington, London-based journalist and author of "The Guantánamo Files" (Pluto Press), today releases the first definitive list of the 779 prisoners held in the US prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

Links to the list:

Part 1 (ISNs 002 to 200):


Part 2 (ISNs 201 to 496):


Part 3 (ISNs 497 to 732):



Part 4 (ISNs 743 to 10030):



The list, which is the result of three years’ research and writing about Guantánamo, provides details of the 533 prisoners who have been released, and includes, for the first time ever, accurate dates for their release. It also provides details of the 241 prisoners who are still held, including the 59 prisoners who have been cleared for release. Although some stories are still unknown, the stories of nearly 700 prisoners are referenced either by links to Andy’s extensive archive of articles about Guantánamo, or to the chapters in "The Guantánamo Files" where they can be found.

MORE

More Torture documents:
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/documents/olc-memos.htm

More Tapes of Torture Destroyed:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/03/washington/03web-intel.html?_r=1&hp

More Laws being broken:
http://washingtonindependent.com/31944/obama-doj-defies-federal-judge?ref=fp8

From Roger FItch and our Friends down under.

Justinian...
Roger Fitch Esq • February 24, 2009

Our Man in Washington

Prez Obama adopts Bush legal strategies … Boeing subsidiary sued for flying rendition planes … Bagram prison likely to replace Guantánamo as dumping ground for the indefinitely detained … Uighurs trapped in partisan appeals cour image. The American nightmare may not be over.

While President Barack Obama’s first fortnight finished well enough, by the end of the third week his lawyers were adopting the most shameful “legal” positions of the old regime.

It looks like Mr Obama intends to (1) block investigation of Bush administration crimes and (2) maintain for his own use the extravagant court rulings Bush obtained.

The most disappointing development was Obama’s invocation of the dreaded state secrets doctrine.

CLICK ON THE TITLE TO FINISH READING...

musical interlude

Happy belated to George...

The Road Ahead

It is really easy to complain about what is going on... and I am embarrassed to say that I too have been caught up in this. I am stopping, for now.
My clients have been held in hell for seven years because of Bush and his criminal gang. Obama has been president for five weeks, it will take time not only to undo all of the mess but to figure out who is part of the problem. We can complain or we can help. I believe helping is the most productive thing I can do at this time.
For the next few weeks I will try to use this Blog to focus on not only what can be done to clear out the criminals (from the Bush regime) as quickly as possible so that we can all move forward but also to point out the positive changes, so that we all understand this is not a continuation of Bush.
I am starting with something I discussed a few blogs back "window dressing". I admit, I was pissed: changes were going into effect at Guantanamo quickly and without acknowledging not only the horrors of the past, but that the changes were only now being implemented. However, upon further reflection these are really two different subjects and they need to be dealt with separately. The horrors of Guantanamo and the treatment of these men needs to be examined and the people responsible need to be held accountable... but the fact remains that change is taking place... and it is a welcome change.
For the first time in more than two years my client Al-Ghizzawi is allowed to sit around and just shoot the shit with the other men in camp 6. For the first time in seven years he can actually sit and watch a movie and read a real newspaper (well except for the fact that he can't see anymore ...but lets not go there). For the first time in more than two years he can spend time totally outside camp 6, where he can see the trees, mountains, sun. And that is because Obama announced that a team was coming in to inspect.... and the military knew that it better get its collective ass in gear... Obama has begun the process of fixing things and we must encourage and demand the continuation of that process.
Yeah, I want to see the people responsible for this criminal enterprise prosecuted. But right now what I really want to see is Mr. Al-Ghizzawi and the other men start to heal. Socialization, nature, a semblance of normality will start the healing process...... and for that I am grateful.
I for one will focus my energy on encouraging the change that must happen to help the men at Guantanamo... later I will go after the criminals with a vengeance.

Khadr's Attorneys (updated)

Khadr, the Canadian that we have been holding since he was 15 years old, should be sent back to Canada... and a few weeks ago it looked like that was ready to happen. Now there seems to be a new twist: at least some of Khadr's attorneys (the military attorneys) have been barred from seeing him... . This is very distressing news, it is difficult enough for anyone held at Guantanamo to have confidence in anything that is going on... and having some of your attorneys taken away without an explanation can be the last straw to the already frail mental health of the prisoner(s). Seems the controversy stems from criticism by Khadr's military attorneys about the cozy relationship that the prosecution attorneys are attempting with the new Obama people.
The military has long been out of control at Guantanamo and with this development we know that will not end soon.
Click on the title for more.
and for another take on this click here...

International Red Cross Must be Allowed to Release its Findings on Conditions at Guantanamo

There are only two choices: accept the whitewash of a report on conditions at Gitmo or allow the ICRC to publicly release its findings on conditions over the past seven years. Clearly, as I noted earlier this week, there has been a rush to improve conditions over the last two months in preparation for the review. Camp 4, the best of the camps, has actually been improving over the last six or eight months but even Camp 4 got many of its new perks in the last month. So we can either quietly accept the lie or make a public call for the release of findings by the only outside group allowed to monitor conditions (a group that was only allowed in if it kept what it saw confidential). Click on the title to read the Pentagon's review of itself.
Click here to read the Center for Constitutional Rights report on conditions.

same old, same old...

OK, so I am not patient,but I will say that for the first month I kept telling myself, "it has only been two weeks" "it has only been three weeks" ....etc
But some of the things that are going on in the litigation (or I guess I should say, that are not going on) very clearly needed quick direction... and really are not all that difficult. I will start with the definition of "enemy combatant" the bushies defined it in such a way as just about anyone, anywhere could be deemed an enemy combatant and held forever without charge. There was a much more limited definition of enemy combatant prior to the bushies and the U.S. Supreme Court (in the Hamdi case) gave us a working definition during the bushie years...and yet the Obama administration is apparently unprepared to deal with this question. And I have to say it is not just the habeas counsel that are miffed, the judges don't understand it either. Were they not doing their homework?
Well five weeks in and they still can't get that definition together...this does not bode well....and it has also stalled all of the Court proceedings.
More on the lack of direction from the new administration later.

Andy Worthington interviews Stephen Abraham

As you may have noticed I am busy playing catch-up on all the things that are happening and that happened during this past week. Andy Worthington's website should already be on your list to check every day. I am directing you to this particular article of his because he is interviewing Stephen Abraham, one of the members of Al-Ghizzawi's first CSRT when Al-Ghizzawi was determined not to be an enemy combatant back in 2004. CLICK ON THE TITLE FOR MORE.

Binyam Goes Home (updated)

During the night a plane left Guantanamo headed for London and on it was Binyam Mohamed, a British resident who has been held for almost seven years and subjected to horrific torture. Click on the title to read more....and if that is not enough read the book by Clive Stafford Smith (depending on which side of the ocean you are on called "bad men" or "8 o'clock ferry from the windward side").
Congrats to Binyam's hard working military attorney Lt. Col. Yvonne Bradley(Yes another of those heroes on the military side)and the Reprieve attorneys, for their long and difficult work getting Binyam out of Guantanamo.

Col. Darrel Vandeveld speaks...

Col. Vandeveld is another of our heros on the military side. He was the seventh prosecutor in the Military Commissions at Guantanamo to Just Say No. Vandeveld refused to move ahead with the prosecution of Mohammed Jawad for the noble and courageous reasons he discusses in his interview with the Talking Dog....instead he resigned. Like the others before him Vandeveld has been attacked by the right wingers but in my view the attack against Vandeveld is the most personal and vicious... perhaps the attack against him is directly related to how powerful his refusal to prosecute really is. Please click on the title to read the interview.