Boumediene V. Bush: an Unconstitutional Suspension of the Writ of Habeas Corpus
Kevin C
March 26, 2013
US History I Honors
Boumediene v. Bush The United States is a free country that was forged out of the tyrannical English Monarchy. Thomas Jefferson wrote that “All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights” (Declaration of Independence). Those rights are represented in the United States Constitution which is the foundation which strongly upholds American ideals and beliefs. Although the Constitution does not always apply to foreigners, Boumediene and the other detainees at Guantanamo Bay deserve habeas corpus rights because it is a fundamental principle that applies to everyone, regardless of state or nationality. The final decision that was made by the US Supreme Court was the correct one because they realized that Guantanamo is under US jurisdiction, the DTA provides an inadequate substitution to habeas corpus, and that MCA does violate the Suspension Clause of the Constitution.
In 2008, Boumediene, a captive at Guantanamo Bay had his habeas corpus rights denied by the D.C. District Court and the Appellate Court based on bills passed by Congress. The founding fathers specifically state in Article 1, Section 9 that congress shall not pass any bill that restricts habeas corpus rights. The detainees at Guantanamo Bay live in cells for twenty-three hours of the day. They are in constant fear of being abused and tortured, mentally and physically by the guards and many have been at the naval base for over five years. Among all the detainees, none have been given access to any type of tribunal board to hear what their being convicted of. The biggest problem is that all of them have been denied habeas corpus rights which effectively allows the Executive Branch of the US government to hold them indefinitely. The United States has adopted many of England’s traditions. One of which are habeas corpus rights derived from the Magna Carta signed in 1215. However, when the case
March 26, 2013
US History I Honors
Boumediene v. Bush The United States is a free country that was forged out of the tyrannical English Monarchy. Thomas Jefferson wrote that “All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights” (Declaration of Independence). Those rights are represented in the United States Constitution which is the foundation which strongly upholds American ideals and beliefs. Although the Constitution does not always apply to foreigners, Boumediene and the other detainees at Guantanamo Bay deserve habeas corpus rights because it is a fundamental principle that applies to everyone, regardless of state or nationality. The final decision that was made by the US Supreme Court was the correct one because they realized that Guantanamo is under US jurisdiction, the DTA provides an inadequate substitution to habeas corpus, and that MCA does violate the Suspension Clause of the Constitution.
In 2008, Boumediene, a captive at Guantanamo Bay had his habeas corpus rights denied by the D.C. District Court and the Appellate Court based on bills passed by Congress. The founding fathers specifically state in Article 1, Section 9 that congress shall not pass any bill that restricts habeas corpus rights. The detainees at Guantanamo Bay live in cells for twenty-three hours of the day. They are in constant fear of being abused and tortured, mentally and physically by the guards and many have been at the naval base for over five years. Among all the detainees, none have been given access to any type of tribunal board to hear what their being convicted of. The biggest problem is that all of them have been denied habeas corpus rights which effectively allows the Executive Branch of the US government to hold them indefinitely. The United States has adopted many of England’s traditions. One of which are habeas corpus rights derived from the Magna Carta signed in 1215. However, when the case