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Thank the (US) Founding Fathers for an independent judiciary!
It's about time: US Constitution 1, Bush-Ashcroft 0
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A federal judge Tuesday ordered the government to allow lawyers to meet with alleged "enemy combatant" Jose Padilla, an American citizen accused of being an al Qaeda operative who plotted to detonate a radioactive "dirty bomb" inside the United States.
The decision is a legal setback for the Bush administration, which sought to block Padilla from meeting his defense lawyers under any circumstances, saying national security is more important than a detainee's right to counsel.
U.S. District Judge Michael Mukasey rejected the government's argument in a 35-page decision, ordering the government to permit Padilla's New York-based attorneys to visit the prisoner, who has been held incommunicado in a South Carolina Navy brig since June.
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OUCH!!! - That's judgespeak for "shut the **** up and move on." 
Lest anyone think I have a shred of sympathy or interest in Padilla himself, I think the SOB should be tried, and given the maximum sentence applicable if convicted. At least a couple of the chargeable offenses carry the death penalty, which is fine by me.
It's not the fate of one individual (who if guilty, deserves to fry) that is a concern. The Bush-Ashcroft position is the biggest, most direct assault on the Constitution in US history. The right to legal counsel is an absolute, and Padilla was arrested by law enforcement officials in the US, not captured in combat operations. The idea that one appointed law enforcement official could declare that a criminal suspect is totally beyond the reach of the Constitution and judicial system is absolutely repulsive to the system of government our founders set up.
Great job by Judge Mukasey.
Hopefully a more enlightened future administration will consider him for a higher court.
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A federal judge Tuesday ordered the government to allow lawyers to meet with alleged "enemy combatant" Jose Padilla, an American citizen accused of being an al Qaeda operative who plotted to detonate a radioactive "dirty bomb" inside the United States.
The decision is a legal setback for the Bush administration, which sought to block Padilla from meeting his defense lawyers under any circumstances, saying national security is more important than a detainee's right to counsel.
U.S. District Judge Michael Mukasey rejected the government's argument in a 35-page decision, ordering the government to permit Padilla's New York-based attorneys to visit the prisoner, who has been held incommunicado in a South Carolina Navy brig since June.
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"Absent agreement, the court will impose conditions," Mukasey wrote. "Lest any confusion remain, this is not a suggestion or a request that Padilla be permitted to consult with counsel, and it is certainly not an invitation to conduct further 'dialogue' about whether he is permitted to do so."
Lest anyone think I have a shred of sympathy or interest in Padilla himself, I think the SOB should be tried, and given the maximum sentence applicable if convicted. At least a couple of the chargeable offenses carry the death penalty, which is fine by me.
It's not the fate of one individual (who if guilty, deserves to fry) that is a concern. The Bush-Ashcroft position is the biggest, most direct assault on the Constitution in US history. The right to legal counsel is an absolute, and Padilla was arrested by law enforcement officials in the US, not captured in combat operations. The idea that one appointed law enforcement official could declare that a criminal suspect is totally beyond the reach of the Constitution and judicial system is absolutely repulsive to the system of government our founders set up.
Great job by Judge Mukasey.
Hopefully a more enlightened future administration will consider him for a higher court.
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