Word: pentagonal
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...military court will hear key pre-trial motions in the terrorism case against Salim Ahmed Hamdan, the onetime driver of Osama bin Laden. Among the defense witnesses will be Air Force Col. Morris Davis, who resigned in protest last fall as Gitmo's chief prosecutor. His allegation: that top Pentagon officials - who are legally required to remain neutral - have tried to exert political influence on the conduct and outcomes of a whole series of high-profile trials scheduled for later this year...
...lawyers say they will challenge the basic fairness of the proceedings. Indeed, this week, Hamdan's lawyers will allege "unlawful command influence" over their client's prospective trial. Col. Davis, Guantanamo's former chief prosecutor, is expected to testify that Gordon Englund, the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Pentagon's second-highest civilian, told him last year, "We need to think about charging some high-value detainees because there could be strategic value before the [November] election." Davis is also expected to repeat, as he has in court filings, that the Defense department's former top lawyer, general counsel...
...them saying, We need to stick our hands up your back and move your mouth for you.' ROBERT BEVELACQUA, retired Green Beret and former Fox News military pundit, describing Pentagon efforts to influence news coverage via sympathetic analysts...
...gung-ho chief military prosecutor in charge of all cases at Guantánamo Bay. But before the end of April, Davis will be on the witness stand, testifying in defense of Salim Ahmed Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's onetime driver. Davis will swear, according to court papers, that top Pentagon officials interfered in planned detainee trials, subverting the judicial process for political reasons...
...three of these Pentagon officials dispute Davis' version of events. Yet his statements under oath may affect future prosecutions, notably those of six high-value detainees, including alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, whose trials are slated to begin later this year. Their lawyers are likely to use Davis' testimony to show that the Pentagon crossed legal boundaries, bolstering claims that key evidence against their clients was obtained through torture. Ensuing legal wrangling could push proceedings well into next year, after President Bush has left office. And all three candidates vying to replace him have already called for shutting Guant?...