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José Padilla (criminal)

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File:Jose Padilla publicity photo.jpg
Jose Padilla, shown in a driver's license photo released shortly after his arrest.

José Padilla (born October 18, 1970), also known as Abdullah al-Muhajir or Muhajir Abdullah, is an United States citizen of white-Hispanic[1] origin, accused of being a terrorist by the United States government. He was arrested in Chicago on May 8, 2002, and was detained as a material witness until June 9, 2002, when President Bush designated him an illegal enemy combatant and transferred him to a military prison, arguing that he was thereby not entitled to the protection of United States law. On January 3, 2006, he was transferred to a Miami, Florida jail to face criminal conspiracy charges.

Life before imprisonment

Padilla's parents moved to the state of New York from the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, but later moved to Chicago, Illinois where he joined the Maniac Latin Disciples street gang and was arrested several times. During his gang years, he maintained several aliases, such as José Rivera, José Alicea, José Hernandez, and José Ortiz. As a small-time criminal he was convicted of aggravated assault as a juvenile when a gang member he kicked in the head died.[2] After serving his last jail sentence, he converted to Islam and professed a nonviolent philosophy. He went to the Masjid Al-Iman mosque in Fort Lauderdale, Florida with Adham Amin Hassoun, who at that time was the registered agent for Benevolence International Foundation, a charitable trust which U.S. investigators have accused of funding terrorist activities. Padilla and Hassoun became friends. U.S. authorities accuse Hassoun of consorting with radical Islamic fundamentalists, including Al-Qaeda. Hassoun was arrested in 2002 for overstaying his visa.[3]

Arrest

Padilla traveled to Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq. On his return, he was arrested by federal agents at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on May 8, 2002, and held as a material witness on a warrant issued in the state of New York stemming from the September 11, 2001 attacks.

On June 9, 2002, two days before District Court Judge Michael Mukasey was to issue a ruling on the validity of continuing to hold Padilla under the material witness warrant, President Bush issued an order to Secretary Rumsfeld to detain Padilla as an "enemy combatant," and Padilla was transferred to a military brig in South Carolina without any notice to his attorney or family. The order legally justified the detention using the AUMF, which authorized the President to "use all necessary force against . . . such nations, organizations, or persons" and by opining that a U.S. citizen detained on U.S. soil can be classified an enemy combatant. (This opinion is based on the decision of the United States Supreme Court in the case of ex parte Quirin, a case involving the detention of a group of German-Americans working for Nazi Germany).[4]

According to the text of the ensuing decision from the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, President Bush's order for Padilla's detention as an "enemy combatant" was for these reasons:

  1. Padilla was "closely associated with al Qaeda, an international terrorist organization with which the United States is at war";
  2. He had engaged in "war-like acts, including conduct in preparation for acts of international terrorism";
  3. He had intelligence that could assist the United States in warding off future terrorist attacks; and
  4. He was a continuing threat to American security.

Habeas corpus

Because Padilla was being detained without any criminal charges being formally made against him, he, through his lawyer, made a petition for a writ of habeas corpus to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, naming Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as the respondent to this petition. The government filed a motion to dismiss the petition on the grounds that:

  1. Padilla's lawyer was not a proper "Next Friend" to sign and file the petition on Padilla's behalf;
  2. Commander Marr of the South Carolina brig, and not U.S. Secretary Rumsfeld, should have been named as the respondent to the petition; and
  3. the New York court lacked personal jurisdiction over the named respondent Secretary Rumsfeld who resides in Virginia.

The New York District Court disagreed with the government's arguments and dismissed its motion. However, the court further declared that President Bush had constitutional and statutory authority to designate and detain American citizens as "enemy combatants" and that Padilla was entitled to challenge his "enemy combatant" designation and detention in the course of his habeas corpus petition. Since the New York District Court had in some way disappointed all sides of this legal battle, both Padilla and the government made an interlocutory appeal to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

On December 18, 2003, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals declared that:

  1. Padilla's lawyer is a proper "Next Friend" to sign and file the habeas corpus petition on Padilla's behalf because she, as a member of the bar, had a professional duty to defend her client's interests. Further, she had a significant attorney-client relationship with Padilla and was far from being some zealous "intruder" or "uninvited meddler";
  2. Secretary Rumsfeld can be named as the respondent to Padilla's habeas corpus petition, even though it is South Carolina's Commander Marr who had immediate physical custody of Padilla, because there have been past cases where national-level officials have been named as respondents to such petitions;
  3. the New York District Court had personal jurisdiction over Secretary Rumsfeld even though Rumsfeld resides in Virginia and not New York because New York's "long arm statute" is applicable to Secretary Rumsfeld, who was responsible for Padilla's physical transfer from New York to South Carolina; and
  4. despite the legal precedent set by ex parte Quirin, "the President lacked inherent constitutional authority as Commander-in-Chief to detain American citizens on American soil outside a zone of combat". The 2nd Circuit Court relied on the case of Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (343 U.S. 579), where the U.S. Supreme Court had ruled that President Truman, during the Korean War years, could not use his position and power as Commander-in-Chief, created under Article 2, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution, to seize the nation's steel mills on the eve of a nation-wide steelworkers' strike. The extraordinary government power to curb civil rights and liberties during crisis periods, such as times of war, lies with Congress and not the President. Article 1, Section 9, Clause 2 of the U.S. Constitution grants Congress, and not the President, with the power to suspend the right of habeas corpus during a period of rebellion or invasion.

Without clear Congressional approval (per 18 U.S.C. § 4001(a)), President Bush cannot detain an American citizen as an "illegal enemy combatant" and the court ordered that Padilla be released from the military brig within 30 days[5]. However, the court had stayed the release order pending the government's appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

U.S. Supreme Court

On February 20, 2004, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the government's appeal. The Supreme Court heard the case, Rumsfeld v. Padilla, in April 2004, but on June 28, 2004, the court dismissed the petition on technical grounds because:

  1. It was improperly filed in federal court in New York instead of South Carolina, where Padilla was actually being detained; and
  2. the Court held that the petition was incorrect in naming the Secretary of Defense as the respondent instead of the Commanding Officer of the naval brig who was Padilla's actual custodian for habeas corpus purposes.

District Court, South Carolina

The case was refiled and a decision in Padilla's favor was issued in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina. On June 13, 2005, the Supreme Court denied the government's petition to have his case heard directly by the court, instead of the appeal being first heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia.

On September 9, 2005, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that President Bush does indeed have the authority to detain Padilla without charges, in an opinion written by judge J. Michael Luttig. In the ruling, Luttig cited the joint resolution by Congress authorizing military action following the September 11, 2001 attacks, as well as the June 2004 ruling concerning Yaser Hamdi. Attorneys for Padilla, plus a host of civil liberties organizations, blasted the detention as illegal. They said it could lead to the military holding anyone, from protesters to people who check out what the government considers the wrong books from the library. The Bush Administration denied the allegations.

But as the Congressional military authorization (the AUMF) pertained only to nations, organizations or persons whom the President "determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the September 11, 2001 attacks, or harbored such organizations or persons", others argue that this kind of Congressional limitation to the military power would assure an appropriately narrow range of detainees and the power to detain would last only so long as the Congressional authorization was not revoked or remained in effect by its terms. Also the Yaser Hamdi Supreme Court case (Hamdi v. Rumsfeld) upon which the court relied requires a habeas corpus hearing for any alleged enemy combatant who demands one, claiming not to be such a combatant, which would also place additional judicial or perhaps military tribunal oversight over each such detention.

However, one of the provisions of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 enacted on October 17, 2006 states:

Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, and notwithstanding any other law [emphasis added] (including section 2241 of title 28, United States Code, or any other habeas corpus provision), no court, justice, or judge shall have jurisdiction to hear or consider any claim or cause of action whatsoever, including any action pending on or filed after the date of enactment of this chapter, relating to the prosecution, trial, or judgment of a military commission convened under this section, including challenges to the lawfulness of the procedures of military commissions under this chapter.

The Military Commission Act of 2006 does not apply by its terms to Jose Padilla, since he is a U.S. citizen held in the United States, but does not rule out similar enemy combatant designations of U.S. citizens either. Other provisions of the Military Commission Act of 2006 may provide civil and criminal amnesty to those involved in his case, who might otherwise face civil right lawsuits or criminal liability for unlawfully detaining someone.

Indictment

On November 22, 2005, CNN's front page broke the news that Padilla had finally been indicted on charges he "conspired to murder, kidnap and maim people overseas."[6] Many news sources correlated the indictment's timing as avoidance of an impending Supreme Court hearing on the Padilla case: "the administration is seeking to avoid a Supreme Court showdown over the issue".[7] None of the original allegations put forward by the U.S. government three years ago, the claims that held Padilla in the majority in solitary confinement throughout that period, were part of the indictment: "Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announced Padilla is being removed from military custody and charged with a series of crimes" and "There is no mention in the indictment of Padilla's alleged plot to use a dirty bomb in the United States. There is also no mention that Padilla ever planned to stage any attacks inside the country. And there is no direct mention of Al-Qaeda. Instead the indictment lays out a case involving five men who helped raise money and recruit volunteers in the 1990s to go overseas to countries including Chechnya, Bosnia, Somalia and Kosovo. Padilla, in fact, appears to play a minor role in the conspiracy. He is accused of going to a jihad training camp in Afghanistan but his lawyers said the indictment offers no evidence he ever engaged in terrorist activity."[8] Considering Padilla was held for years in military custody with no formal charges brought, many were shocked by this move by the George W. Bush presidential administration[9], and some reasoned that a repeat of such a process would allow the U.S. government to detain citizens indefinitely without presenting the cause that would eventually be tried. A transfer to civilian court was denied the U.S. Administration by a federal appeals court in December 2005. The court recognized "shifting tactics in the case threatens [the government's] credibility with the courts".[10] This was countered by Solicitor General Paul Clement: the federal appeals court decision "defies both law and logic," he stated in a request to the Supreme Court for immediate transfer on December 30, 2005,[11] one day after Padilla's lawyers filed a petition of their own charging the U.S. President of overstepping his authority.[12]

On January 3, 2006, the United States Supreme Court granted a Bush administration request to transfer Padilla from military to civilian custody. Padilla was transferred to a federal prison in Miami from the Navy brig in Charleston while the Supreme Court decided whether to accept his appeal of the government's authority to keep citizens it designates "enemy combatants" in open-ended military confinement without benefit of trial.[13]

On April 3, 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court declined, with three justices dissenting from denial of certiorari, to hear Padilla's appeal from the 4th Circuit Court's decision that the President had the power to designate him and detain him as an "enemy combatant" without charges and with disregard to habeas corpus.

Criminal proceedings

Padilla was indicted on three criminal counts in the Miami, Florida criminal proceeding to which he was transferred from military custody. He pled not guilty to all charges. As of August of 2006, the trial was scheduled to commence on January 22, 2007.[1]

Partial dismissal of counts against Padilla

Two weeks after the presiding judge upbraided prosecutors for being "light on facts" in its conspiracy allegations[14], one of the three charges against Padilla was dismissed and another was dismissed in part.

The first of the three counts Padilla was charged with, conspiracy to murder (punishable by life imprisonment), was dismissed on August 16, 2006, on the grounds that it was duplicative of the other two counts pending against him. The second count was conspiracy to materially aid terrorists under 18 U.S.C. § 371 (punishable by five years in prison) and the third was 18 U.S.C. § 2339A (punishable by 15 years in prison). The trial court ordered that the government elect only a single criminal statute in its second count of the indictment. However, on January 30th, 2007, the Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit reversed the ruling and reinstated a charge of conspiracy to "murder, kidnap, and maim."[15]

Allegation of torture during imprisonment

In the criminal case, legal brief filed on behalf of Padilla alleges that during his imprisonment he has been subjected to torture, including sensory deprivation, sleep deprivation, and enforced stress positions.[16]

George Monbiot, writing in The Guardian, reports that Padilla's mental faculties have been so impaired by the conditions of incarceration and interrogation that:[17]

...he appears to have lost his mind. I don't mean this metaphorically. I mean that his mind is no longer there.

The forensic psychiatrist who examined him says that he "does not appreciate the nature and consequences of the proceedings against him, is unable to render assistance to counsel, and has impairments in reasoning as the result of a mental illness, ie, post-traumatic stress disorder, complicated by the neuropsychiatric effects of prolonged isolation".

Two additional motions also filed in October of 2006, argued that the case should be dismissed because the government took too much time between arresting Padilla and charging him.[2] In essence, the argument is that for constitutional speedy trial purposes, the arrest took place prior to his detention as an enemy combatant, and not simply when he was transferred to civilian custody.

Mental competency hearing

In January 2007 a mental competency hearing was scheduled for February 22, 2007 over allegations of torture by the military[18], after two mental health experts hired by the defense concluded Padilla is not mentally fit for trial and a third evaluation submitted by the Bureau of Prisons found him mentally competent. The judge also ordered that Sandy Seymour, technical director of the Charleston brig, Craig Noble, brig psychologist, Andrew Cruz, brig social worker, four employees of the Miami federal detention center, and a Defense Department lawyer appear at the hearing.[19]

On February 22, 2007 at the competency hearing Angela Hegarty, a psychiatrist hired by Padilla's defense, said that after 22 hours of examining Padilla it was her opinion that he was mentally unfit to stand trial. She said that he exhibited “a facial tic, problems with social contact, lack of concentration and a form of Stockholm Syndrome”. She diagnosed his condition as post-traumatic stress disorder.[20][21] She told the court "It's my opinion that he lacks the capacity to assist counsel. He has a great deal of difficulty talking about the current case before him."[21] In cross examination Federal prosecutor John Shipley pointed out that Padilla had a score of zero on Hegarty's post-traumatic stress disorder test and pointed out that this information was omitted in her final report. Hegarty responded that this omission was an error on her part.[21] Another psychiatrist hired by the defense testified along the same lines. The Miami Herald reported that a "U.S. Bureau of Prisons psychiatrist who believes Padilla is fit to face trial and Defense Department officials -- are expected to testify at the ongoing hearing before U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke."[21]

Names

According to his attorney and others, Padilla has changed the pronunciation of his family name from the typical puh-de-yah (with the ll vocalized as /ʎ/, as in quesadilla and other Spanish words and names) to puh-DILL-uh.[22][8] (See also Ll.) Padilla's Muslim name Abdullah al-Muhajir, which he began using during his jail sentence, literally means "Abdullah the migrant". "al-Muhajir" is a laqab (epithet) rather than an adopted family name. Padilla is not related or known to be connected in any way to Abu Hamza al-Muhajir.

Padilla and speculation about the Oklahoma City bombing

Following Padilla's arrest, several media outlets pointed to a resemblance between Padilla and police sketches of an Oklahoma City bombing suspect known as "John Doe No. 2," although no official sources have connected him with that event. However, some commentators, such as talk radio host Glenn Beck, continue to subscribe to the theory Padilla was "John Doe No. 2" and that he was involved with the plot at Oklahoma City. Also, both Padilla and Timothy McVeigh had lived in the greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida area. [3] [4] [5]

Timeline

  • March 2002: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, purported mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks and al-Qaida's operational planner and organizer, allegedly suggests Jose Padilla target up to three high-rise buildings that use natural gas with a radiological "dirty bomb."
  • May 8, 2002: Padilla arrives at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport after an overseas trip, carrying $10,526, a cell phone and e-mail addresses for al-Qaida operatives. He is arrested on a material witness warrant.
  • June 9, 2002: Padilla is listed as an "enemy combatant" and transferred to the Defense Department.
  • Dec. 18, 2003: The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals orders Padilla to be released from military custody within 30 days and if the government chooses, tried in civilian courts.
  • Jan. 22, 2004: The 2nd Circuit suspends its ruling after the Bush administration appeals the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
  • March 3, 2004: Lawyers for Padilla meet with him for the first time since his incarceration at a naval brig in June 2002.
  • June 28, 2004: In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court rules that Padilla should have filed his appeal in federal court in Charleston, S.C., because he is being held at a Navy brig there, rather than in New York.
  • Sept. 9, 2005: A panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rules that the government can continue to hold Padilla indefinitely.
  • Oct. 25, 2005: Padilla appeals the appeals court decision to the Supreme Court. The Bush administration's deadline for filing arguments is Nov. 28.
  • Nov. 22, 2005: Padilla is indicted by a federal grand jury in Miami on charges that he conspired to "murder, kidnap and maim" people overseas. The charges do not include any allegations of a "dirty bomb" plot or other plans for U.S. attacks.
  • Dec. 21, 2005: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge J. Michael Luttig chastises the administration for using one set of facts to justify holding Padilla without charges and another set to persuade a grand jury in Florida to indict him. Luttig said the administration has risked its "credibility before the courts."
  • Jan. 4, 2006: Supreme Court agrees to let the military transfer Padilla to Miami to face criminal charges, overruling the 4th Circuit.
  • Jan. 12, 2006: Padilla pleads not guilty to charges alleging he was part of a secret network that supported Muslim terrorists. The charges could bring a life in prison sentence.
  • April 3, 2006: Supreme Court rejects Padilla's appeal, although Chief Justice John Roberts and other key justices said that they would be watching to ensure Padilla receives the protections "guaranteed to all federal criminal defendants."
  • Aug. 16, 2006: Federal trial court in Miami, Florida dismisses conspiracy to murder charges against Padilla, leaving the most serious charge still pending a charge that could bring a 15 year prison sentence.
  • Oct., 2006: Padilla moves to dismiss the federal criminal case against him alleging that he had been tortured and that proceedings had been delayed too long from his arrest in May of 2002.
  • Jan. 30, 2007: The U.S. Court of Appeals reverses the August 2006 decision and reinstates the conspiracy to murder charge with a potential life sentence.

See also

References

  1. ^ From Taco Bell To Al Qaeda
  2. ^ Saunders, Debra J (2004-04-27). "Padilla's life and Times". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ Candiotti, Susan (2002-06-15). "Feds arrest man linked to 'dirty bomb' suspect". CNN. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ Authorization for Use of Military Force: Padilla v. Bush: Jose Padilla under the Joint Resolution The Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce, issued by the Syracuse University College of Law
  5. ^ Holding, Reynolds (2003-12-19). "Courts affirm rights of terror suspects / Judges reject Bush policies on prisoners in Cuba and U.S." San Francisco Chronicle. p. A-1. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ Arena, Kelli (2005-11-22). "Terror suspect Padilla charged". CNN. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ Barbash, Fred (2005-11-22). "Padilla's Lawyers Suggest Indictment Helps Government Avoid Court Fight". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ a b Amy Goodman, Andrew Patel, Bill Goodman (2005-11-23). Why did the Bush Administration Hold Jose Padilla for 3 Years as an Enemy Combatant? No Mention of al Qaeda or Plot to Attack U.S. in Indictment (RTSP/RDP video; mp3 audio). Democracy Now. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite AV media}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ McCaffrey, Shannon (2005-11-23). "Indictment of Padilla unveiled". Knight Ridder. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ Hirschkorn, Phil (2005-12-22). "Court rejects government request to move 'enemy combatant'". CNN. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ Meyer, Josh (2005-12-29). "U.S. asks justices to transfer Padilla". Seattle Times. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ Lichtblau, Eric (2005-12-29). "Supreme Court Is Asked to Rule on Terror Trial". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Greenhouse, Linda (2006-01-05). "Justices Let U.S. Transfer Padilla to Civilian Custody". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ "Judge agrees Padilla terror case 'light on facts' / Prosecutors ordered to back up claims defendants conspired to injure, kill". MSNBC. Associated Press. 2006-06-21. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  15. ^ St. Onge, Jeff (2007-01-31). "Appeals Court Renews Charge Against Padilla". New York Sun. Retrieved 2007-02-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ Eggen, Dan (2006-11-19). "More setbacks for case against terror suspect / Legal debate flares over trying charges in a criminal court". San Francisco Chronicle. Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  17. ^ Monbiot, George (2006-12-11). "Routine and systematic torture is at the heart of America's war on terror". The Guardian. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) (mirror)
  18. ^ Richey, Warren (2007-02-16). "Was Jose Padilla tortured by US military?". Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2007-02-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ Blum, Vanessa (2007-02-16). "Judge says 3 from Navy brig must testify at terror suspect's sanity hearing". Sun-Sentinal. Retrieved 2007-02-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ "Padilla 'not fit to stand trial'". BBC. Thursday, 22 February 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Retrieved on Feb. 22, 2007
  21. ^ a b c d Jay Weaver (Feb. 22, 2007). "Terror suspect hearing gets underway". Miami Herald. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Retrieved on Feb. 22, 2007
  22. ^ Donna Newman (2005-11-22). Does Not Rhyme With "Tortilla" (WMA audio). Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite AV media}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  1. Lewis, Neil A (2005-03-01). "Judge Says Terror Suspect Can't Be Held as an Enemy Combatant". New York Times. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. Markon, Jerry (2005-09-10). "U.S. Can Confine Citizens Without Charges, Court Rules". Washington Post. p. A01. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. Sontag, Deborah (2007-01-04). "In Padilla Wiretaps, Murky View of 'Jihad' Case". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. Anderson, Curt (2007-01-24). "Judge: Lawyer Leaked Padilla Transcripts". Associated Press. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links