Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Miami Herald
September 5, 2008
Pg. 7
A third judge has ruled that a general can't act as a legal advisor in a terror trial because he appears to be biased in favor of the prosecution.
By Carol Rosenberg
A military judge in the case of a Canadian captive at Guantánamo on Thursday again barred a general at the Pentagon from acting as a legal advisor because of a perception that he favors the prosecution.
In his [FONT=Times New Roman, Times]ruling[/FONT], Army Col. Patrick J. Parrish did not stop the Oct. 8 terror trial of Omar Khadr, 22. Khadr, who was captured at age 15, allegedly threw a grenade that killed a U.S. commando during a 2002 firefight in Afghanistan.
But the judge said Air Force Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Hartmann appears to have lost his neutrality in his role as the Pentagon's legal advisor to military commissions.
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times]14 other cases[/FONT]
Parish becomes the third judge to disqualify Hartmann. He still has legal advisor status in 14 other cases, although defense lawyers have filed other so-called ''unlawful influence'' motions seeking his disqualification in others.
Hartmann took charge of the system a little over a year ago and has emerged a relentless, aggressive champion who has said his behavior was necessary to kick-start a sputtering legal system.
But another Guantánamo general, Army Brig. Gen. Gregory Zanetti, testified that Hartmann was [FONT=Times New Roman, Times]''abusive[/FONT], bullying and unprofessional'' in a ''spray and pray'' strategy to stage the tribunals in a compound called Camp Justice.
Khadr's Navy defense lawyer, Lt. Cmdr. William Kuebler, said the ruling offered ''token relief.'' He noted that Hartmann's Pentagon headquarters has already refused to fund a mental health expert, notably a child psychologist, to assist in the Canadian's defense.
''The practical effect is to let an officer whom even the judge recognizes as biased continue to be involved in the case until the government gets its coveted conviction,'' Kuebler said.
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times]Bin Laden's driver[/FONT]
A Navy judge had earlier barred Hartmann from the July trial of Osama bin Laden's driver, Salim Hamdan, for an appearance of bias . A military jury convicted Hamdan of supporting terror, but spurned a Pentagon request for a 30-year sentence. It said Hamdan could go free Jan. 1.
Hartmann is also banned from oversight in the trial of Mohammed Jawad. The judge in that case, Army Col. Steve Henley, ordered a Pentagon review of the charges because of testimony that Hartmann withheld information in recommending the charges.
At issue is the legal advisor's dual role -- at times supervising prosecutors, at times analyzing the law.
''His active approach to his supervisory responsibilities of the prosecutors in this case,'' Parrish wrote, ``has created the appearance that he will be unable to remain neutral and impartial .''
If there's a conviction, a senior Pentagon official can overturn it or reduce any sentence based on a legal advisor's analysis.
September 5, 2008
Pg. 7
A third judge has ruled that a general can't act as a legal advisor in a terror trial because he appears to be biased in favor of the prosecution.
By Carol Rosenberg
A military judge in the case of a Canadian captive at Guantánamo on Thursday again barred a general at the Pentagon from acting as a legal advisor because of a perception that he favors the prosecution.
In his [FONT=Times New Roman, Times]ruling[/FONT], Army Col. Patrick J. Parrish did not stop the Oct. 8 terror trial of Omar Khadr, 22. Khadr, who was captured at age 15, allegedly threw a grenade that killed a U.S. commando during a 2002 firefight in Afghanistan.
But the judge said Air Force Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Hartmann appears to have lost his neutrality in his role as the Pentagon's legal advisor to military commissions.
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times]14 other cases[/FONT]
Parish becomes the third judge to disqualify Hartmann. He still has legal advisor status in 14 other cases, although defense lawyers have filed other so-called ''unlawful influence'' motions seeking his disqualification in others.
Hartmann took charge of the system a little over a year ago and has emerged a relentless, aggressive champion who has said his behavior was necessary to kick-start a sputtering legal system.
But another Guantánamo general, Army Brig. Gen. Gregory Zanetti, testified that Hartmann was [FONT=Times New Roman, Times]''abusive[/FONT], bullying and unprofessional'' in a ''spray and pray'' strategy to stage the tribunals in a compound called Camp Justice.
Khadr's Navy defense lawyer, Lt. Cmdr. William Kuebler, said the ruling offered ''token relief.'' He noted that Hartmann's Pentagon headquarters has already refused to fund a mental health expert, notably a child psychologist, to assist in the Canadian's defense.
''The practical effect is to let an officer whom even the judge recognizes as biased continue to be involved in the case until the government gets its coveted conviction,'' Kuebler said.
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times]Bin Laden's driver[/FONT]
A Navy judge had earlier barred Hartmann from the July trial of Osama bin Laden's driver, Salim Hamdan, for an appearance of bias . A military jury convicted Hamdan of supporting terror, but spurned a Pentagon request for a 30-year sentence. It said Hamdan could go free Jan. 1.
Hartmann is also banned from oversight in the trial of Mohammed Jawad. The judge in that case, Army Col. Steve Henley, ordered a Pentagon review of the charges because of testimony that Hartmann withheld information in recommending the charges.
At issue is the legal advisor's dual role -- at times supervising prosecutors, at times analyzing the law.
''His active approach to his supervisory responsibilities of the prosecutors in this case,'' Parrish wrote, ``has created the appearance that he will be unable to remain neutral and impartial .''
If there's a conviction, a senior Pentagon official can overturn it or reduce any sentence based on a legal advisor's analysis.