Bush Loses “Enemy Combatants” Ruling
In a 2-1 decision, the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that Ali al-Marri–a legal resident of the United States–cannot be held indefinitely without charges under the administration’s new anti-terrorism laws. He will be released from military detention and charged in a civilian court.
“To sanction such presidential authority to order the military to seize and indefinitely detain civilians, even if the president calls them ‘enemy combatants,’ would have disastrous consequences for the Constitution–and the country,” the court panel said.
Al-Marri has been held in solitary confinement since June 2003 as an “enemy combatant.” He was originally arrested for credit card fraud, but was placed under indefinite military arrest after government agents claimed to find evidence of links to al-Qaida on his computer.
The Court’s decision validates the arguments of al-Marri’s attorneys, who claimed that last fall’s Military Commissions Act did not repeal the writ of habeas corpus.
“This is a landmark victory for the rule of law and a defeat for unchecked executive power,” al-Marri’s lawyer, Jonathan Hafetz, said in a statement. “It affirms the basic constitutional rights of all individuals–citizens and immigrants–in the United States.
Bush administration officials do not agree with the decision and plan to appeal.
Lets all hope they lose that appeal; it is only a short step from seizing and holding legal foreign residents to giving citizens the same treatment.
