What the Supreme Court ruling means for Guantanamo prisoners

Question: What does the Supreme Court decision recognizing habeas corpus rights for Guantanamo prisoners mean for them?

Answer: Currently, about 270 men are at Guantanamo – 19 already charged with war crimes, and 250 or so being held without charges, many for more than six years. These prisoners can now get a day in court before a federal judge who will determine whether the government has sufficient evidence that they committed crimes. Habeas corpus is a constitutionally guaranteed right to challenge detention for anyone in U.S. custody, but the Pentagon has denied it to the terror suspects held at Guantanamo. If the district court judges find the government lacks legal grounds for detaining any of the men, the government must release them.

Q: How does the decision affect those already charged with war crimes, including confessed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed?

A: The 19 detainees identified for trial by military commissions will not be immediately affected by the high court ruling. The government has demonstrated the grounds for holding those men in the charges sworn out against them by prosecutors. But legal analysts point out that federal district court hearings for the 250 or so not yet charged could define more clearly what constitutes an “enemy combatant,” and provide the charged prisoners’ lawyers with opportunities to challenge the legality or jurisdiction of the tribunal.

Q: How did lawyers for the detainees react to the court’s decision?

A: Lawyers representing the Guantanamo prisoners in the habeas corpus petitions predicted that the government will be unable to prove to civilian judges in many of the cases that it has sufficient evidence the men committed war crimes. Michael Ratner, president of the Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents most of the detainees in their habeas challenges, said he expected “a high number” of the 250 will have to be released after the district court reviews.

Q: What does the court ruling signal for the future of the detention and interrogation facilities at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in southern Cuba?

A: There could be a sharp reduction in the number of prisoners held there. The Pentagon justifies indefinite detention for the men it has not charged on the grounds that the men could pose a danger if released. If, after a habeas corpus hearing, a judge decides that those suspicions are not enough to continue holding them, the population could drop to the 60 or 80 men who Pentagon officials have said they plan to prosecute. Some legal analysts say they believe no more than two dozen could ever be brought to trial.

Q: How soon will the district court hearings occur, and where are they likely to be held?

A: The Supreme Court ruling ordered rapid review of the habeas petitions and suggested consolidation of the cases to speed resolution, which lawyers interpreted to mean hearings before autumn. Most, if not all, of the cases will be reviewed in district court in Washington, D.C., because that is where most of the habeas petitions were first filed, years ago.

Q: How have the Guantanamo prisoners reacted to the news of the Supreme Court ruling?

A: Lawyers who represent the prisoners note that they are unable to communicate directly with their clients. It may take two weeks for their letters explaining the ruling’s implications to reach the men in their cells. One habeas lawyer, Wells Dixon, was at Guantanamo to visit a client and was likely to convey the news to him, but it was unclear whether or how fast that information would be circulated.

 carol.williams@latimes.com