Posts by David Frueh

New Book Alleges Bush Lawyers "Hoodwinked" Military Chief Into Allowing Gitmo Torture
Posted by David Frueh, Jurist Legal News and Research on April 22, 2008 at 8:58 AM.

Retired Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff General Richard Myers was "hoodwinked" into believing aggressive interrogation techniques used on Guantánamo detainees were taken from the army's field manual, University College London law professor Philippe Sands claims in his new book, Torture Team, scheduled for release in May. Excerpts from the book were published by the UK Guardian newspaper Saturday. Sands alleges the new techniques, approved by then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, were actually developed by inexperienced Guantánamo lawyers and pushed through by senior Bush administration lawyers Alberto Gonzales, David Addington and William Haynes.

Myers reportedly believed the prisoners were protected against torture by the Geneva conventions' Common Article 3 even though a memo written by Haynes made it clear the Guantánamo detainees could not rely on the protections. According to former chief of staff to then Secretary of State Colin Powell, Larry Wilkerson, Rumsfeld recommended Myers for the job because he "was not a very powerful chairman" and was easily cut out of important meetings and plans. The Guardian has more.

Pentagon Official Who Spoke of Rigging Gitmo Trials Resigns
Posted by David Frueh, Jurist Legal News and Research on February 26, 2008 at 10:32 AM.

Pentagon General Counsel William J. Haynes II will resign his position with the U.S. Department of Defense next month, according to an announcement from the DOD Monday. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates commented that Haynes' tenure as D.O.D. general counsel was the longest in US history. Principal Deputy General Counsel Daniel Dell'Orto will serve as acting general counsel after Haynes' departure.

Haynes leaves the Department of Defense less than five months after former Guantanamo Bay chief military prosecutor Col. Morris Davis resigned his position citing political pressure from the Defense Department. In an interview with The Nation last week, Davis implied the tribunal process may be rigged, saying that Haynes had told him none of the detainees could be acquitted. President George W. Bush nominated Haynes for a federal appeals court judgeship multiple times since 2003, but the nomination was never approved by the Senate and was eventually withdrawn in 2007. Haynes' nomination met resistance in part over his role in helping to draft the Defense Department's detention and interrogation policies after September 11th.