[Peace-discuss] Obama vs. Bill of Rights

[C. G. Estabrook]

[It will be interesting to see if the administration continues its 
unconstitutional behavior in regard to this case.  It already amounts to a high 
crime and misdemeanor within the meaning of the act, as our constitutional 
scholar/president clearly knows.  --CGE]


	Judge Orders High-Profile Gitmo Detainee Released
	Military Prosecutors Had Hoped to Execute Salahi
	by Jason Ditz, March 22, 2010

Federal judge James Robertson today ordered Mohamedou Ould Salahi, once referred 
to as the “highest value detainee” in all of Guantanamo Bay, released after 
ruling that the government lacked any legal basis to hold him. The details of 
the release order are classified, but a redacted version is expected in the next 
few weeks.

Salahi has been held by the US since November 20, 2001. The memo regarding his 
detention accused him of traveling to Afghanistan to wage jihad, though this was 
decades ago in response to the Soviet occupation. He was arrested in Mauritania 
and renditioned to Jordan.

Salahi’s abuse in US custody, amid accusations that he was a “top” al-Qaeda 
operative, have been well documented, and prosecutors have repeatedly expressed 
hope that he could eventually be executed.

Though the Justice Department is said to be reviewing the ruling and Salahi 
remains in custody for the time being, the order does serious damage to the 
credibility of the military commissions system, as his attorney, Nancy Hollander 
noted: “they were considering giving him the death penalty. Now they don’t even 
have enough evidence to pass the test for habeas.”

http://news.antiwar.com/2010/03/22/judge-orders-high-profile-gitmo-detainee-released/

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