Truth, Justice And The American Way

OK, that's Superman. It certainly doesn't apply to the Justice Department which is asking the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to dramatically reduce lawyers' contact with Guantanamo detainees.

The Feds would like to end contact, they still argue that detainees don't have a right to have a lawyer represent them. But softies that they are, they're willing to have a lawyer visit a detainee once prior to a decision by the detainee to hire the lawyer to defend himself. After "signing up," a detainee could have his lawyer visit him three times.

Oh, communication other than the three visits? The Justice Department wants to "permit a team of intelligence officers and military lawyers not involved in a detainee's case to read mail sent to him by his lawyer." NYTimes, online, April 26, 2007.

We aren't done yet. The lawyers defending the detainees have security clearances. Justice wants to be able, apparently without court approval or review, to deny the defense lawyers access to the secret evidence used by the military panels to determine in the first place that the detainee was an enemy combatant.

What's the rationale for all this? Lawyers are telling the detainees what's happening in the world and telling news organizations what's happening to the detainees "caus[ing] 'intractable problems and threats to security at Guantanamo.'" NYTimes, online.

This is the same Justice Department that, until he resigned earlier this year, employed Charles Stimson who suggested that corporations which were represented by lawyers who defended detainees should part ways with the lawyers.

Where's Superman when you need him?