Supreme Court Upholds Habeas Corpus for Detainees

Image from source, Salon

I still don't understand how George W. Bush, his administration and 25% (give or take) of the American people continue to believe that the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay have no rights. Many of them have been there for six years, and all of the above maintain that they don't need to be told why they're being held, have no access to counsel, no recourse whatsoever.

Conservatives will allege that they're terrorists, and don't deserve any of those things. Believers in human rights would say that they're suspected terrorists, and are innocent until proven guilty. And therein lies the rub. There is scant evidence on many of these people, so actual court trials would be difficult to prove. The Supreme Court decided today that is not the primary issue; habeas corpus is the issue. Good for them.

[Excerpt]

Supreme Court to Bush: You're not above the law

June 13, 2008 For the third time in four summers, the U.S. Supreme Court has slammed the Bush administration's detention policies at Guantánamo Bay -- locking up terrorist suspects indefinitely and beyond the law. And this time, some real progress might even come out of it. In a 5-4 decision drafted by Justice Anthony Kennedy, the court ruled in Boumediene v. Bush that Guantánamo detainees have a constitutional right to habeas corpus -- that is, to challenge the legal basis for their detention in a federal court. . .

Read more at: Salon