Posted on Dec 26, 2017
Judge: American accused of fighting for ISIS must get lawyer
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A federal judge ruled Saturday that the U.S. military must provide legal counsel to an American citizen who was picked up months ago on the Syrian battlefield and accused of fighting with Islamic State militants.
Judge: American accused of fighting for ISIS must get lawyer
Posted from militarytimes.com
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 8
Posted >1 y ago
As is appropriate. The United States government is not allowed to hold an American citizen incommunicado, without charging them with a crime, cannot deny them legal representation when the citizen has requested counsel, and cannot deny them access to the courts for addressing their captivity. That includes someone who surrendered themselves in a combat zone.
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SSG (Join to see)
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What if we classify the individual as an enemy combatant and a prisoner of war? The "War on Terror" will never end, as there will always be extremist groups wanting to commit acts of terror against the US. Sounds fairly win/win to me.
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Capt Gregory Prickett
>1 y
SSG (Join to see) - an American citizen has the right to access the courts, with counsel. Period. You still can try them and hold them accountable, but you do not get to deny them access to the courts.
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SSG (Join to see)
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Capt Gregory Prickett - What about Hamdi v. Rumsfeld? Didn't the courts decide that a U.S. citizen captured in a foreign country with enemy forces could be held as an enemy combatant and that they were not entitled to access to civilian courts?
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Capt Gregory Prickett
>1 y
SSG (Join to see) - Hamdi said that US citizens could be held, but were entitled to due process in front of a impartial tribunal, that habeas could not be denied except under the conditions stated in the Constitution (which were not met by the enemy combatant designation). Hamdi was cited by the District Court in its order.
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Posted >1 y ago
This is why you leave them on the ground where you find them.
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