Thursday, November 19, 2009

Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law

So, Attorney General Holder is unsure whether Osama bin Laden is entitled to a Miranda warning, should he be captured on the field of battle. Here's another question: are his captors subject to penalty under 18 U.S.C., Section 242, for that failure?
This statute makes it a crime for any person acting under color of law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom to willfully deprive or cause to be deprived from any person those rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution and laws of the U.S.

This law further prohibits a person acting under color of law, statute, ordinance, regulation or custom to willfully subject or cause to be subjected any person to different punishments, pains, or penalties, than those prescribed for punishment of citizens on account of such person being an alien or by reason of his/her color or race.
If not, why? It seems to me that if you're going to treat terrorism as a criminal act (as opposed to an act of war), that you have to follow criminal law procedure. For example, it seems pretty clear that waterboarding becomes a violation of the 5th Amendment (and possibly the 4th as well). Doesn't that make everyone involved in waterboarding in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 242?

Me, I think these guys don't know what they're doing; that they're making it up as they go; and that the country will be much, much less safe as a result.

1 comment:

wolfwalker said...

Now that's an angle I hadn't considered. I didn't know that was in the US Code.

The widespread and unremitting stupidity and incompetence of this administration, at all levels and on all topics, makes me think that this is simply another unintended consequence ...

... but I can see how a lot of people will take it as another step in the Democrats' Master Plan to eventually charge President Bush, VP Cheney, and many of their senior advisors with crimes for their prosecution of the War on Terror, even as the bipedal pig KSM walks free due to "government misconduct."