This NSI Law and Policy Paper:
- Describes the history and purpose of the military commissions convened at Guantanamo Bay as well as the protracted delays plaguing several of the government’s highest-priority commissions trials;
- Evaluates the rationale behind military commissions “apparent unlawful influence” jurisprudence, the contempt powers of the military commissions trial judiciary, and detainee monitoring at Guantanamo Bay – issues that have contributed significantly to the unreasonably long pre-trial litigation phase of the commissions;
- Argues that modest reforms would enable the commissions to accelerate the pace of pretrial litigation without undermining the rights of the Accused;
- Proposes actionable recommendations that can help resolve these procedural delays to justice and protect an important war power for the United States.
Click here to read the complete paper.
About the Author:
Adam Pearlman is a former Associate Deputy General Counsel of the United States Department of Defense. While at DoD, he was agency counsel for complex civil and criminal national security matters in federal and military courts, and led the Supreme Court and appellate unit of the team dedicated to litigating classified counterterrorism cases.