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In a 5-4 vote, the court struck down a 2006 law supported
by President Bush that took away terrorism suspects' habeas
corpus rights. Habeas corpus is the constitutional right to
have a court decide if a person is being lawfully imprisoned.
The court also found that the government's screening process
for determining if a detainee is an "enemy combatant"
does not meet basic legal standards.
"The laws and Constitution are designed to survive,
and remain in force, in extraordinary times," said Justice
Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority.
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Antonin Scalia said the
decision "will make the war harder on us. It will almost
certainly cause more Americans to be killed."
In response to the ruling, President Bush said the administration
would abide by the court's decision, but did not agree with
it.
Guantanamo detention center
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Guantanamo Bay has held terrorism suspects since the center
opened in 2002 and now holds 270 prisoners. |
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The Guantanamo Bay detention
center was established in 2002 to hold suspected terrorists
captured in Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
It now holds terror suspects captured in other countries and
regions as well.
Pentagon officials categorize the detainees as "enemy
combatants." As a result, they are not granted the rights
of U.S. citizens accused of crimes, or the rights granted
to prisoners of war.
The U.S. government is currently holding some 270 detainees
without filing formal charges or holding a public trial.
The Bush administration has argued that because Cuba owns
Guantanamo Bay, and the detention center is not on American
soil, it's outside the jurisdiction of the law.
Two-thirds of the 800 prisoners who have passed through Guantanamo
since 2002 have been freed, mostly without charge, after several
years in captivity.
The legal debate
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The Supreme Court ruled against the Bush administration's
detainee policy three times. Chief Justice John Roberts
did not agree with the court's recent decision. |
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The government's policies
with regard to Guantanamo have been controversial from the start
and the Supreme Court has now ruled against the administration's
detainee policy three times.
The current case was brought by a group of 37 prisoners led
by two lead plaintiffs. Lakhdar Boumediene, an Algerian, was
arrested in Bosnia in 2001 in connection with a suspected
plot to attack the U.S. Embassy in Sarajevo. The other lead
challenger is Khaled Al Odah, a Kuwaiti citizen who was captured
in Pakistan in 2002.
The case questioned the constitutionality of the Military
Commissions Act, passed by Congress in October 2006.
That act was the most recent attempt to create a legal system
for military terrorism trials at Guantanamo. The act also
removed detainees' rights to habeas corpus, despite previous
Supreme Court rulings saying detainees should be allowed access
to U.S. civilian courts.
The Constitution states that habeas corpus cannot be suspended,
except for public safety in cases of invasion or rebellion.
The 2006 act also required suspects to prove to a three-person
panel of military officers they are not a terror threat.
The Supreme Court said in its decision that suspending habeas
corpus for the detainees was unconstitutional, and that the
system of military tribunals proposed as an alternative to
civil courts was not an adequate substitute.
The dissenting justices argued that the process of tribunals
is indeed a fair substitute, and Justice Scalia rejected the
idea that Constitution's protections extend beyond the geographical
boundaries of the United States.
Future impact
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court's decision will not impact the ongoing military
tribunal of alleged 9/11 plotter Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. |
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Just how this will change
the situation for detainees remains to be seen. Past Supreme
Court decisions in favor of detainee rights have had little
impact on detainees' attempts to challenge their imprisonment.
The military tribunal system set up by the Military Commissions
Act is also already in use. In early June, proceedings began
against Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-proclaimed planner
of the 9/11 attacks.
The Supreme Court's decision is not expected to immediately
impact the fates of detainees such as Mohammed, who are already
moving through the military tribunal system, NewsHour reporter
Marcia Coyle said after the ruling.
"The court's decision, first, will have an immediate
impact for the 37 detainees who went to the Supreme Court,"
Coyle said.
"The court made very clear that it felt these detainees,
many of whom have been held for at least six years, are entitled
to prompt review."
U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey said the administration
would continue the military trials in Cuba despite the verdict.
He said he is "disappointed with the decision insofar
as I understand that it will result in hundreds of actions
challenging the detention of enemy combatants to be moved
to federal district court."
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American schools and financial aid should be only for legal citizens of the United States. There should be no exceptions to this.
