Constitutional Law

Obama Reverses Course On Military Prisons, Harsh Interrogations

President Barack Obama ordered the shuttering of the military prison at Guantánamo Bay and the CIA’s network of secret prisons. The New York Times reports that the executive orders signed by Obama direct the CIA to end the practice of imprisoning detainees in secret locations for long periods of time and to cease using an array of harsh interrogation methods on detainees. Obama also ordered a suspension of the military commissions at Guantánamo so the new administration can review the cases. In a press statement, ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero called the order “remarkable in its timing and its clear intent to close down Guantánamo and unequivocally halt the Bush administration’s shameful military commissions. While the order leaves some question as to how some detainees will be released or prosecuted, we trust that’s not President Obama’s intent and hope that any ambiguity is due to the fact that this order was done on day one in record time.”

Full post as published by ACS Blog on January 22, 2009 (boomark / email).