S.2052 - Federal Government

Norbert Basil MacLean III said

This is important legislation that would correct a very long standing inequity in American law by affording all convicted court-martialed U.S. troops the right to petition the Supreme Court to review their cases. The American Bar Association passed a resolution in August 2006 urging Congress to fix the law. See http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/policy/am06116.pdf As it now stands, enemies of America, to include detainees have greater access to our high court than that of our own troops. (Compare: section 950g(d) of the Military Commissions Act with 28 United States Code sections 1259(3) and 1259(4)) Notwithstanding, if the service member wins in a lower military court; the Government can and often does appeal it to the Supreme Court. Service members deserve procedural due process in their own country. It is unfair to send them off to war and to promote democracy world-wide and then to not afford them the due process protections that they are defending and promoting. Many of America's allies, to include Australia, Canada, Israel, New Zealand and the United Kingdom all afford their military access to their highest courts if any of their members are court-martialed. Our U.S. troops deserve procedural due process.