Ever since the first detainees began arriving at Guantanamo Bay in 2002, there has been debate about the proper forum in which to prosecute suspected terrorists. There is really no need for debate. Federal criminal courts can handle terrorism cases and have for years. In fact, they are our best line of judicial defense against terrorism.

Detention without charge and the military commissions system at Guantanamo have led to numerous problems: Those not guilty of wrongdoing had no way to contest their detention, while truly dangerous suspects tried in military commissions have had the warrior status they seek conferred upon them instead of being delegitimized as mere criminals. In addition, the illegitimacy of the military commissions give rise to interminable challenges that delay, rather than deliver, justice. Continuing these commissions so deeply associated with Guantanamo Bay, even with piecemeal changes, will merely add to the erosion of international confidence in American justice, provide more fodder for America’s enemies, and lead to prolonged challenges and years of continued litigation.

Human Rights First spearheaded the most comprehensive and thorough examination to date of the federal prosecution of terrorism cases. Its report, available at http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/prosecute/, shows that in more than 100 international terrorism cases prosecuted in the existing criminal justice system over the past fifteen years, the federal system has capably handled important and challenging terrorism cases without compromising national security or sacrificing rigorous standards of fairness and due process.

Richard Reid, who tried to blow up a Boeing 767 with explosives in his shoes in late 2001, was tried in a federal court and is currently serving a life sentence in the ADX Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado. Omar Abdel-Rahman, convicted of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, is also serving a life sentence in Florence. No inmate has ever escaped from a Supermax prison. Clearly our criminal justice system, which can successfully prosecute and incarcerate the perpetrator of a successful and fatal terrorist attack on American soil, is capable of bringing terror suspects at Guantanamo to justice.

Why create a new, inherently flawed, system to replace one that works?

Learn more at http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/prosecute/ (read less)

Ever since the first detainees began arriving at Guantanamo Bay in 2002, there has been debate about the proper forum in which to prosecute suspected terrorists. There is really no need for debate. Federal criminal courts can handle terrorism cases and have for years. In fact, they are our best line of judicial defense against terrorism.

Detention without charge and the military commissions system at Guantanamo have led to numerous problems: Those not guilty of wrongdoing had no way to... (read more)