Appellate Law

DC Circuit: GS-9s can torture and interfere with religion much as they want

By S. COTUS

The DC Circuit holds that former GTMO detainees can?t sue the government.  Nobody really expected the DC Circuit to rule otherwise, so I don?t think there is much to report on here.  But, it is sort of funny to watch their acrobatics over the RFRA claims.  In this case, the DC Circuit figured that the GTMO detainees are not ?persons? under the RFRA, because although they were brought to GTMO against their will they don?t have enough a connection with the place, and then quoted Johnson v. Eisentrager.  But, again, it isn?t as if the DC Circuit really wants to take these claims too seriously, anyway, and it is just a weigh station before petitioning for cert., and then waiting until a new president tries to fix this mess.  Tnx. SCOTUSblog.   (By the way, if I thought that the DC Circuit was taking the Westfall Act issue and the Bivens issue seriously, I would have some thoughts on it, but they are not.  So, I am keeping it to myself.)  Now, of course, it remains to be seen whether detainees will start filing administrative claims under the FTCA.

DotD comments here on all the DC Cirucit's practice of deference to the government.

Full post as published by Appellate Law and Practice on January 11, 2008 (boomark / email).