Stories by Willam Fisher

William Fisher has managed economic development programs in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia for the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development. subscribe to Willam Fisher's feed

3 Months in Juvie For a MySpace Joke? How the For-Profit Prison Industry Locks Up More People Each Year

Posted on: Jul 6, 2011, Source: TruthOut.org

Private prisons are marked by corruption, expense, abuses--and yet their reach is vast, and it's growing.

System for Those Seeking Asylum in the US Is Mostly Broken, And Attempts at Reform Have Been Failing

Posted on: Nov 29, 2010, Source: IPS News

DHS's announcement in 2009 came on the heels of two government reports that had concluded that the U.S. immigration system was inappropriately modeled on correctional systems.

ICE Won't Let Local Police Opt Out of Assisting Federal Enforcement

Posted on: Nov 4, 2010, Source: TruthOut.org

Data provided by ICE shows that contrary to their goals, people targeted by the Secure Communities program have minor criminal convictions or have no criminal convictions.

The Obama Administration Will Put a Child Soldier On Trial at Gitmo This Summer

Posted on: Jun 2, 2010, Source: IPS News

Omar Khadr, who has spent his entire adult life at Guantanamo, was threatened with rape by U.S. interrogators upon his capture more than seven years ago.

U.S. Overflowing Prisons Spur Call for Reform Commission

Posted on: May 18, 2010, Source: IPS News

"We are wasting billions of dollars and diminishing millions of lives. We need to fix the system."

Calls Grow to Get Rid of Full Body Scanners at U.S. Airports

Posted on: Apr 23, 2010, Source: IPS News

Over 30 privacy and civil liberties organizations have filed a formal petition with the Department of Homeland Security.

Judge Orders Man Once Labeled "Highest-Value Detainee" Released From Gitmo

Posted on: Apr 13, 2010, Source: IPS News

After nine years in captivity, including physical and psychological torture, Mohamedou Ould Salahi has been ordered released by Federal District Judge James Robertson.

Families Sue Over So-Called Guantanamo 'Suicides'

Posted on: Mar 20, 2010, Source: IPS News

The families are asking a federal court to hold the U.S. government accountable for their sons' torture, arbitrary detention, and ultimate deaths.

Is the Obama Administration Covering Up Three Murders at Guantanamo?

Posted on: Jan 22, 2010, Source: IPS News

An explosive new article reveals that three Gitmo prisoners whose deaths were labeled suicides were murdered. Obama's Department of Justice has refused to investigate.

Christmas Bomb Plot May Mean No Release For Yemeni Prisoners at Gitmo Anytime Soon

Posted on: Jan 5, 2010, Source: IPS News

Legal experts and human rights advocates are pushing back against calls from politicians to halt the planned release of prisoners from Guantanamo to their home country.

Obama Quietly Backs Renewing Patriot Act Surveillance Provisions

Posted on: Nov 24, 2009, Source: IPS News

Three contentious provisions are scheduled to expire next month; opponents of these sections have been pushing to roll them back. But Obama seems ready to renew them.

Decision to Try Terror Suspects in New York Draws Praise from Human Rights Activists

Posted on: Nov 15, 2009, Source: IPS News

At the same time, the Justice Department is being strongly criticized for keeping the military commissions in place to try some suspects.

Could Bush Attorney General John Ashcroft Pay For Jailing an Innocent Man After 9/11?

Posted on: Sep 8, 2009, Source: IPS News

A federal appeals court has ruled that Ashcroft can be held personally responsible for the wrongful detention of Abdullah Al-Kidd.

ACLU Sues Controversial Arizona Sheriff

Posted on: Sep 2, 2009, Source: IPS News

The self-proclaimed "toughest sheriff" in America this week added another lawsuit to the thousands pending against him.

Federal Judge Slams U.S. Govt for Ongoing Detention of Alleged Child Soldier at Gitmo

Posted on: Jul 27, 2009, Source: IPS News

Calling the case "an outrage," U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle urged the lawyers to "let him out. Send him back to Afghanistan."

Why Are Muslim Charities Still Being Branded as Terrorist Bankrollers?

Posted on: Jul 8, 2009, Source: IPS News

Civil rights groups are calling on President Obama to "address systemic problems" with the government's treatment of Muslim charities.

Human Rights Groups Slam Obama's Move to Suppress Torture Photos

Posted on: May 14, 2009, Source: IPS News

Two factors reportedly led to Obama's U-turn: objections from military brass and the president's upcoming speech in Egypt.

Bush Torturers May Face Justice Yet

Posted on: Apr 20, 2009, Source: IPS News

Spanish law gives its courts jurisdiction beyond borders in cases of torture, based on a doctrine known as universal justice.

Court: Abu Ghraib Victims Can Sue Torturers

Posted on: Apr 20, 2009, Source: IPS News

A federal court has ruled that four men who were tortured and released without charge can sue CACI, the U.S. contractor hired to do interrogations.

If the U.S. is Closing Gitmo, Why is the Pentagon Recruiting New Lawyers to Defend its Detentions?

Posted on: Apr 15, 2009, Source: IPS News

The Pentagon is offering $39,407 to $130,211 a year for lawyers to respond to habeas corpus petitions filed by detainees in federal courts.

How the U.S. Tried to Bribe a Gitmo Prisoner into Silence

Posted on: Mar 24, 2009, Source: IPS News

As a condition for his release, the U.S. government told Binyam Mohamed to plead guilty, deny torture, and not to talk to media.

Obama Loses Phrase "Enemy Combatants," But Detention System Remains the Same

Posted on: Mar 18, 2009, Source: IPS News

Many human rights advocates see the shift as a case of old wine in new bottles.

Senate Committee Holds Hearings on "Truth Commission" to Investigate Bush Crimes

Posted on: Mar 4, 2009, Source: IPS News

Witnesses' ranged from calling a commission a "profoundly bad idea" to "critically important."

Indefinite Detention Case Will Test Obama's Pledges

Posted on: Feb 4, 2009, Source: IPS News

The Supreme Court is poised to hear what could be one of the most consequential cases in U.S. history.

Foreign Mercenaries Losing Their Immunity in Iraq

Posted on: Dec 18, 2008, Source: IPS News

Under the agreement approved by the Iraqi government last week, U.S. contractors will be subject to Iraqi law for the first time.

How Much Have Taxpayers Coughed Up for the Most Secretive White House Ever?

Posted on: Sep 16, 2008, Source: IPS News

According to a new study, the Bush administration has spent almost $200 on keeping secrets to every dollar allocated to open them.

One Fifth of Iraq Funding Goes to Private Contractors

Posted on: Sep 6, 2008, Source: IPS News

If spending continues at the current rate, the U.S. will have spent 100 billion dollars on military contractors in Iraq by the end of the year.

Will Bush Officials Invoke State Secrets Privilege to Block Court Review of Arar Case?

Posted on: Aug 18, 2008, Source: IPS News

Among the defendants in the lawsuit by extraordinary rendition Maher Arar are John Ashcroft, Tom Ridge, and Robert Mueller.

Will Pay For Good News

Posted on: Dec 6, 2005, Source: TomPaine.com

The Iraq news payola scandal reinforces how the United States is exporting hypocrisy -- not democracy.