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Hmmm... Been taking a few minutes to reacquaint myself with this case...
It seems to me KC, that you may have left out some pertinent facts....
The first and most important being that a judge has already decided that he should be able to consult a lawyer.
The feds are appealing that decision.
So, this is not a case of the guy just being held and nobody hearing a wrd from him.
He was arrested, then turned over to military control back in May 2002. By December there had been the first court decision on his petition to be able to see legal consel.
One important not in this is that he was not arrested as a criminal, but rather as a material witness. Therefore, at the time of arrest he did not have the rights of someone being charged with a crime. He wasn't being charged, he was being held as a material witness. Two totally different scenarios.
anyway, onward and upward... Between December 2002 and November of this year, there have been at least 3 different court decisions issued. Each of them affirming his right to legal counsel. The Feds have appealed each of these decisions in turn.
The Feds (and states) have as much right to use the appellate process to their advantage as the Padilla does.
In all probability, he will receive his right to counsel eventually after the Feds have worn out their appeals.
But, he is not necessarilly being denied his constitutional rights.. He is involved in the constitutional process at this point.
http://www.chargepadilla.org/news.html
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He's a US Citizen. He still has not been in front of a Judge and he has not seen a lawyer.
The legal process that's currently pending was started when the ACLU filed a legal brief on his behalf. I wonder if he even knows the ACLU stepped up for him. Probably not.
Last edited by KC at Dec 1 2003, 03:27 PM