Federal Court Agrees With Wu, Finds Military Commissions Act Unconstitutional

Press Release

FEDERAL COURT AGREES WITH WU, FINDS MILITARY COMMISSIONS ACT UNCONSTITUTIONAL

Last year, during debate of the Military Commissions Act, Congressman David Wu was the leading voice of opposition in the U.S. House of Representatives, calling the Act "unwise and unconstitutional." Today, a federal appeals court agreed.
"When I questioned the wisdom and constitutionality of the Military Commissions Act in floor debate last September, some went so far as to challenge whether I had even read the bill," Congressman Wu said. "I had, and now the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has, and agrees that the Military Commissions Act is as unwise as it is unconstitutional."
Without Congressman Wu's support, Congress passed and the president signed into law, H.R. 6166, the Military Commissions Act of 2006, a bill that created a parallel judicial system within the U.S. Department of Defense that limits access to habeas corpus.
Today, according to media reports, a federal judge ordered the trial judge in the case of Ali al-Marri to issue a writ of habeas corpus. Habeas corpus is a person's right to challenge their imprisonment.
Mr. Marri was a legal resident at the time of his arrest in December of 2001. He has been detained without charges since that time.
Federal Judge Diana Gribbon Motz reportedly wrote, "To sanction such presidential authority to order the military to seize and indefinitely detain civilians even if the president calls them ‘enemy combatants,' would have disastrous consequences for the Constitution — and the country. We refuse to recognize a claim to power that would so alter the constitutional foundations of our Republic."
Below are excerpts of Congressman Wu's statements made during debate of the Military Commissions Act in September of 2006:
"Habeas corpus is an ancient doctrine that has been with us since at least the days of Charles I. It has presented difficulties to many American Presidents from Jefferson to Lincoln to Grant to Roosevelt.
"Congress here is entering upon dangerous constitutional shoal waters, and it is, in my belief, unconstitutionally limiting access to habeas corpus.
"This legislation does not just apply to enemy aliens, but it also has an untold effect on every American's right to habeas corpus. We are not talking about their rights; we're talking about our rights.
"This law is unwise as it is unconstitutional, and we should not be enacting this in haste. The great writ is one of our great protections. It applies to all Americans, and Americans should not be tried by a military tribunal."

Source