Litigation

Delayed Hearings for Terror Suspects Weighed

By Peter Hardin

The Obama administration is not only looking at possible legislation to let investigators take longer before informing terror suspects of their Miranda rights, it also is thinking about ways to hold these suspects longer before they appear before a judge.

The latter was revealed in a New York Times article. It said the overall goal is to lengthen the window of time in which investigators can question a terror suspect and avoid an interruption that might end his talking to authorities.

Following the arrest of a suspect in the Times Square bombing attempt, Attorney General Eric Holder recently floated the idea of changes to limit the constitutional rights granted terrorism suspects (see Gavel Grab). He was talking about witholding Miranda warnings for a time.

The ideas under discussion have sparked controversy.

?It?s highly troubling that the Obama administration might propose to lengthen the time in which a potential defendant would come before a judge,? said Anthony Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. ?Both proposals would severely undercut the Obama administration?s assertion that they believe in the rule of law.?

A New York Times editorial entitled “The Threat to Miranda” advised caution in pursuing proposed changes:

“A change to a fundamental constitutional protection like Miranda should not be tossed out on a Sunday talk show with few details and a gauzy justification. If Attorney General Eric Holder really wants to change the rules, he owes the public a much better explanation.”

To learn more, click on Gavel Grab stories regarding detainees, or see JAS?s web page, Civil Liberties and National Security.

Full post as published by The Gavel on May 17, 2010 (boomark / email).