Boumediene Boumediene v. v.

Bush (2008)Bush (2008)

Background to the Case• Following the September 11 attacks in 2001, the United States

launched a "Global War on Terror"

• The Bush administration stated that the captives in Guantanamo Bay are not subject to American law and have no right to protection under the United States Constitution or the American justice system.

Background to the Case• Lakhdar Boumediene and five other Bosnians were arrested by

local Bosnian police on suspicion of plotting to attack the U.S. embassy in Sarajevo. The Bosnian authorities released them for lack of evidence after a three-month investigation.

• On the same day, the Bosnian police delivered them to U.S. military officials in Sarajevo, who transported them to the U.S. Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

• The U.S. government claims that they are being legitimately detained to prevent them from participating further in terrorist

activities

The Dilemma• Six years later (2008), they were still not formally charged with a

crime but remained in detention until further notice.

• Do foreign nationals detained at Guantanamo Bay have the constitutional right to challenge the legality of their imprisonment?

• Do the Detainee Treatment Act and Military Commissions Act violate the Suspension Clause of the U.S. Constitution?

• Suspension Clause- "The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion, the public safety may require it."  - The right of prisoners to challenge the legal basis of their detention

Court Ruling

• On June 12th, 2008, the Supreme Court ruled in an historic decision that the detainees at Guantánamo Bay have a constitutional right to habeas corpus- to challenge their detention before a neutral judge in a real court. 

• In the decision, the Court strongly criticized the President and Congress's attempt to declare that because Guantánamo was outside the sovereign territory of the United States, the Constitution did not apply. 

Court Ruling

• The decision in Boumediene v. Bush is the third Supreme Court decision to assert the rights of Guantánamo detainees 

• The Supreme Court’s ruling firmly rejects the Bush administration’s view of Guantanamo as a “law-free zone,”

• The ruling was 5-4 

Court Ruling

Impact of Ruling•  Judge Richard J. Leon of the United State District Court for the

District of Columbia ordered the release of five Guantánamo detainees, including Boumediene.

• On May 15th, 2009, Boumediene was transferred to France, where he has relatives - his wife and children have joined him since his release.

• Since Boumediene v. Bush, Guantánamo detainees have won about two-thirds of their habeas corpus challenges in lower trial courts.