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Thursday, 06 January 2005

Does Anybody Here Remember Jose Padilla?

Soj has written an excellent diary over at Daily Kos that should be required reading for every American. I'm reprinting it in full here because I enjoy indulging in plagiarism.


Does anybody here remember Jose Padilla?  I'm sure you recognize the name, but you've probably mostly forgotten about him, right?

I'm sure you know his story:


Born in the United States and an American citizen his entire life, Jose Padilla was "arrested" in Chicago's O'Hare airport by federal agents.  I say "arrested", although the better word is "detained" since to "arrest" someone means to take them into custody and charge them with a crime.


Attorney General Ashcroft praised the arrest, saying Padilla had plans to make a "dirty bomb" and use it in a terrorist attack in the United States although Padilla had absolutely nothing illegal on his person or in his baggage at the time of his "arrest".  Padilla was sent to a naval prison (brig) in South Carolina where he has been ever since.


Padilla has never been charged with a crime in conjunction with his 2002 "arrest".  Instead, the Justice Department has declared he is an "enemy combatant".  He is not allowed to see his family, his loved ones or a lawyer.


Can you imagine what you've been doing since May 2002? All the places you've gone, all the things you've done? Now imagine spending two and a half years in jail, not charged with a crime and unable to talk to a single friendly person, not even a lawyer.


Here's what Ashcroft said at the time:

"We have acted with legal authority both under the laws of war and clear Supreme Court precedent, which establishes that the military may detain a United States citizen who has joined the enemy and has entered our country to carry out hostile acts," Ashcroft said.

A volunteer and unpaid legal team was assembled to argue for Padilla's case even though they couldn't meet with their client.  A year and a half after Padilla's "arrest", a federal appeals court in New York said President Bush does not have the power to detain an American citizen seized on American soil as an enemy combatant:

The three-judge appeals panel in New York -- in a 2-1 ruling -- said the detention of Padilla wasn't authorized by Congress -- and that the administration cannot designate Padilla as an enemy combatant without that authorization.

The majority judges also note Padilla is accused of serious crimes, and that the government should pursue the case vigorously under civilian law.

Despite the ruling, the government refused to either release Padilla or charge him with a crime.  The government appealed the New York court's ruling and the case was heard by the Supreme Court.  First however they decided to smear Padilla further by making allegations against him against which he could not defend himself:

Jose Padilla, a U.S. citizen held as a terrorism suspect for two years, sought to blow up apartment buildings in the United States in addition to planning an attack with a "dirty bomb" radiological device, the U.S. government said Tuesday.

At a news conference Tuesday, Deputy Attorney General James Comey said Padilla's partner in the attacks was to be Adnan El Shukrijumah, one of seven suspected al-Qaida operatives who the Justice Department cited last week as planning attacks on the United States this summer. Nicknamed "Jafar the pilot," the Saudi native once lived in Florida and has been sought by federal authorities for more than a year.

Al-Qaida officials, including Abu Zubaydah and Mohammed, were skeptical of Padilla's ability to set off a dirty bomb but were very interested in the apartment operation, Comey said. He said Padilla was trained on how to seal the apartments after turning on the gas.

Despite the statements of the Justice Department, Padilla was still not charged with any crimes relating to this - or relating to anything else.  Furthermore, Comey admitted that if Padilla had been charged with a crime he would not have been convicted!


Padilla's case finally made it to the Supreme Court in Rumsfeld v. Padilla (PDF) but was thrown out on a technicality - Padilla's case was originally filed in the "wrong" jurisdiction (New York instead of South Carolina) and thus his lawyers had to begin all over again at square one.


Well yesterday Padilla's lawyers were in court yet again, this time in front of a federal judge in South Carolina named Henry Floyd:

"Anyone the government says in an enemy combatant can be plucked off the street of any American city and detained indefinitely without charge," attorney Jonathan Freiman said. "The government essentially is asking for its own power to be permanently enhanced. It's a total restructuring of our constitutional system."

Judge Floyd said it will take him at least 30 to 45 days -- and maybe even longer -- to make a decision.

Padilla was designated an enemy combatant by the government and has been held at the brig at the Charleston Naval Weapons Station since his arrest, though he has not been charged with any crime.

This man has been in custody since May 2002... almost three years.  He's never been charged with a crime so he cannot defend himself in court against allegations that he is a terrorist.  Maybe he is one and maybe he isn't, but how are we ever going to know if the government refuses to present evidence against him in a court of law?


As many of you know, I used to work in law enforcement.  There were times when we were sure we knew who the "bad guy" was but didn't have enough evidence against him.  Did we arrest him anyway and throw him in a hole for three years? No, what we did was go out there and find the evidence.  If someone committed a serious crime then there is going to be evidence, you just have to work harder in some cases to obtain it.


I think it's time for a look at the 5th Amendment of the Constitution of the United States:

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Those are supposed to be our rights, not privileges.  If they can be taken away whenever the government feels like it, then they are not rights, they are simply indulgences.


I'll end with the famous poem from Martin Niemoller:


They came first for the Communists and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

Then they came for the Jews and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Catholics and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.

Then they came for me--and by that time no one was left to speak up.


If they can do this to Padilla, they can do it to me and they can do it to you.

Posted by flow Frazao on January 6, 2005 at 06:46 PM in Scary Bush | Permalink



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