By Lyndsey Kelly
Impunity Watch, Desk Reporter

WASHINGTON D.C., United States of America – On Wednesday, 4 June 2014, a lawsuit that alleges unconstitutional practices used by California’s Department of Corrections moved forward and was scheduled for trial. Originally filed in 2012, the suit alleges the solitary confinement of inmates in California violates the eighth amendment of the U.S constitution.

The suit is the latest in a series of actions taken by human rights activists to end the use of near-isolation in California. The practice of near-isolation keeps inmates with suspected ties to prison gangs in small concrete cells for a minimum of 22 ½ hours per day. There are nearly 120,000 inmates in the California prison system and 4,054 are held in solitary confinement for almost 24 hours a day. The rooms in which these inmates are housed are no larger than 100 square feet.

The focus of the lawsuit is the security-housing unit at the state’s notorious Pelican Bay prison. There, 539 inmates are currently being housed and 227 of them for more than ten years.

Federal Judge Claudia Wilken ruled that the inmates who have been housed in the Pelican Bay units for more than ten years can be part of the suit as a class action. The Judge divided the inmates into two groups, those who have the right to sue under the eighth amendment, which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, and those who may sue under the 14^th amendment, which protects a persons due process rights.

The U.S Justice Department has also paid particularly close attention to the poor conditions in Los Angeles County jails. A recent report by the U.S. Justice Department has said that the nation’s largest jail system has “serious systematic deficiencies” and “deplorable environmental conditions”, despite a 2002 court order that required the state to address the appalling conditions.

In a separate lawsuit, the Supreme Court declined on Monday, 9 June 2014 to hear an appeal of a court order that requires California to ensure that disabled inmates who are housed in country jails receive appropriate accommodations.

In her 2012 order, U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken required the state to track 2,000 disabled inmates in its custody and report to county jails when an inmate who was entitled to accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act was transferred  to country jurisdiction.

A report issued by the Justice Department noted that jail officials have failed to address a dramatic increase in suicides over the past two years stating, “fifteen suicides in 25 months produces almost no discernible changes in the jails’ custodial practices.”

The recent reforms in California have sparked other States to follow suit. On Thursday, 5 June 2014, Judge Stephen Reinhardt of the U.S. 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a federal district court ruling that Arizona inmates can press a class- action claim against the state. The case echoes the prisoner civil rights cases that have kept California’s prison system under federal control.

 

For more information please see the following:

BBC – LA Jail conditions ‘ Unconstitutional’– 16 June 2014.

L.A. TIMES – Arizona Prison Litigation Echoes California Cases – 16 June 2014.

REUTERS –  Lawsuit Calling Isolation in California Prisons Torture Moves Forward – 16 June 2014.

REUTERS – Supreme Court Refuses to Hear California Prison Overcrowding Case – 16 June 2014.

 

By: Lyndsey Kelly
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, D.C.,United States of America – In an interview with Democracy Now!, Richard Clarke, the nation’s former top counterterrorism official, stated that he believes former U.S President George W. Bush and former U.S Vice President Dick Cheney are guilty of committing war crimes during their 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Richard Clarke served as the national coordinator for security and counterterrorism for just one year during President Bush’s term in office. Clark resigned in 2003 following the invasion of Iraq. When asked about the decisions made by former U.S President Bush regarding the 2003 invasion, Clarke stated, “I think things that they authorized probably fall within the area of war crimes.” 

The United Nations was careful to create an all-encompassing definition of war crimes to ensure the accountability of those who act illegally during a time of war.

War crimes are criminal acts committed during armed conflicts and the term refers to grave breaches of the rules of warfare…Acts such as torture, destruction of property, and the killing of civilians or hostages can be defined as war crimes, as can the wanton destruction of cities, towns and villages, or any devastation not justified by military necessity.

Clarke who previously made headlines for accusing President Bush of ignoring warnings regarding an attack by al-Qaeda prior to September 11, 2001 stated, “It’s clear that things that the Bush administration did – in my mind, at least, it’s clear that some of the things they did were war crimes.”

Clarke’s accusations of misconduct of the Bush administration are not unprecedented. Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, former Secretary of State Colin Powell’s chief of staff, accused former Vice President Cheney of war crimes in 2011.Wilkerson emphasized the former Vice President’s affinity for enhanced interrogation methods. Wilkerson stated, “Waterboarding is a war crime, unwarranted surveillance…all of which are crimes.”

Bush and seven top members of his administration were convicted in absentia of war crimes in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2012 for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Current United States President, Barack Obama, has tasked the Department of Justice with a case that seeks immunity for Bush and his administration for any and all war crimes they may have committed.

When President Obama first took office he stated that he would not seek criminal charges against former President Bush or any of his staff. Obama inherited two wars started by Bush, thus he may be worrisome that he may be charged with war crimes by any future President. Based upon the definition of war crimes provided by the United Nations, a closer examination of military decisions in the past century may likely lead to the conclusion that many former president’s are guilty of war crimes.

For further information please see:

Democracy Now! – Former Counterterrorism Czar Richard Clarke: Bush Committed War Crimes – 9 – June – 2014.

Examiner – Bush and Cheney are War Criminals, Says Former Bush Counterterrorism Official – 9 – June – 2014.

Huffington Post – Former Counterterrorism Czar Richard Clarke: Bush, Cheney Committed War Crimes – June – 9- 2014.

The Washington Times – Ex- Bush Intel Man: President, Cheney, Rumsfeld Guilty of War Crimes – June- 9 – 2014.

By Lyndsey Kelly
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States of America–  Guantanamo Bay has been highly criticized by human rights groups for imprisoning individuals for extended periods of time without being charged or given a trial. President Obama’s administration wants to close the detention center in Cuba, however the President’s plan has been thwarted by the difficulties of transferring the detainees.

The Senate Armed Services Committee recently wrapped up a defense bill on Thursday 22 May 2014. The bill would authorize the transfer of prisoners currently incarcerated at Guantanamo Bay to U.S soil for detention, trial, and incarceration.  The bill is in accordance with last years National Defense Authorization Act that eased restrictions on transferring detainees to foreign countries and is another step towards closing the Guantanamo Bay facilities.

In an effort to close Guantanamo Bay, President Obama has been talking to several countries about relocating inmates. The U.S President recently spoke with Uruguayan President Jose Mujica about accepting six detainees. Uruguay agreed in March to take some inmates from Guantanamo Bay, in return, the United States was to free some Cuban prisoners. Uruguayan media reported that the detainees to be transferred were four Syrians and one Pakistani.

Under the current laws the Secretary of Defense must review all cases of detainees to be transferred and examine the procedures put in place to monitor the detainees so as to certify to Congress that they will not be at risk to return to the battlefield. United Stated Defense Secretary, Chuck Hagel, stated on Wednesday 28 May 2014 that he would soon make a decision regarding the detainees at Guantanamo Bay whom Uruguay has offered to accept. Defense officials said there was no timetable for Hagel to make the decision, and Hagel’s only indication as to the timeframe of his decision was his response that the decision would be made “fairly soon.”

Hagel responded to comments about his drawn-out decision by stating, “What I am doing is taking my time to assure that any decision I make is…by standards Congress gave me, that I in fact can notify and certify that this is the responsible thing to do.”

The decision to close Guantanamo Bay has been controversial due to the high security interest. Top Senate Republicans have vowed to do all they can to keep the facility open, or at the very least slow the process of transferring the detainees. Of the 166 men who were held in detention in May 2013 only 12 have ben transferred out of Guantanamo Bay in the past year.

Hagel has addressed the oppositions concerns to close the facility by stating that he has created a system whereby he will carefully examine the risk the detainees could potentially pose as well as measures put in place to mitigate those risks. However, Hagel acknowledged the risk in closing Guantanamo Bay when stating, “there is a risk in everything … I suspect I will never get a 100-percent deal.”

 

For More Information Please See:

ABC News – Obama Win on Guantanamo Prison May be Short-Lived– 30 May 2014.

Huffington Post – Time to Close Guantanamo — Not One More Day – 30 May 2014.

Reuters – Hagel to Make Decisions on Guantanamo Detainees ‘Fairly Soon’ – 30 May 2014.

Wall Street Journal – Hagel Reviewing Cases in Transfer of Six Detainees to Uruguay – 30 May 2014.