Appeals Court: habeas corpus is dead

February 20, 2007
Appeals Court: habeas corpus is dead

WASHINGTON - In a victory for President Bush, a divided federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that Guantanamo Bay detainees cannot use the U.S. court system to challenge their indefinite imprisonment. A Supreme Court appeal was promised.

The 2-1 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit dismisses hundreds of cases filed by foreign-born detainees in federal court and also threatens to strip away court access to millions of lawful permanent residents currently in the United States.

Army Officer Says No Abuse: Didn't Interview Any Detainees

February 5, 2007
Army Officer Says No Abuse: Didn't Interview Any Detainees

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - An Army officer who investigated possible abuse at Guantanamo Bay after some guards purportedly bragged about beating detainees found no evidence they mistreated the prisoners — although he did not interview any of the alleged victims, the U.S. military said
Wednesday.

Col. Richard Bassett, the chief investigator, recommended no disciplinary action against the
Navy guards named by Marine Sgt. Heather Cerveny, who had said that during a conversation in
September they described beating detainees as common practice.

U.S. soldier sentenced to 18 years after pleading guilty to murder in Iraqi detainees' deaths

January 25, 2007
U.S. soldier sentenced to 18 years after pleading guilty to murder in Iraqi detainees' deaths

FORT CAMPBELL, Kentucky: A 101st Airborne Division soldier was sentenced to 18 years in prison after pleading guilty Thursday to murdering an Iraqi detainee and taking part in the killings of two others, saying he went along with a plan to make it look like they were escaping.

Pfc. Corey R. Clagett, 22, was one of four soldiers from the division's 3rd Brigade "Rakkasans" who were accused in the detainees' deaths during a May 9 raid on the Muthana chemical complex in Samarra, about 60 miles (96 kilometers) north of Baghdad.

Official Attacks Top Law Firms Over Detainee

January 13, 2007
Official Attacks Top Law Firms Over Detainee

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12 — The senior Pentagon official in charge of military detainees suspected
of terrorism said in an interview this week that he was dismayed that lawyers at many of the
nation's top firms were representing prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and that the firms'
corporate clients should consider ending their business ties.

The comments by Charles D. Stimson, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for detainee
affairs, produced an instant torrent of anger from lawyers, legal ethics specialists and bar
association officials, who said Friday that his comments were repellent and displayed an ignorance
of the duties of lawyers to represent people in legal trouble.