Comments (13)

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 2:42 PM:

The wheel of justice is slow, but as an American Padilla received a sentence that was not a life sentence, he is not held 'until the war on terror is over' and the judge adjudicating the case in my opinion adjudicated the issue of his conditions of detainment fairly.

Considering the circumstances, Padilla's sentence demonstrates what 'is correct' about the rule of law. why other societies should seek this rule of law, and the specific reason why America is still a nation that you can be proud of.

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 2:48 PM:

I admire the judge repudiating the notion that the judiciary profession should not be a guardian of the guardians.

In as much as she was privy to information that due to national security the public will not be made accesable to, we have to defer to that judgement.

Who is the guardian of the guardians?

Thank God in America it is we the people, and those whom take their oaths to perform duties for their public offices are made irrespective of political considerations.

bob wrote on January 22, 2008 3:04 PM:

Did I miss something? He was TORTURED. Evidence taken under "duress" can't be used in a court of law.

This is a travesty of our system of justice, not a repudiation of it!

sailmaker wrote on January 22, 2008 3:14 PM:

Well, they have finally sentenced a "piece of furniture" to 17 years. For all the years, for all the torture, they could not agree on the charges, or the appropriate venue, never mind his right to habeas corpus. I don't know that I would call that a success.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/12/04/padilla_turning_a_man_into_furniture.php

Persona non grata wrote on January 22, 2008 3:25 PM:

How does being held incommunicado while being tortured for 4 years without the ability to confront the evidence or the persons making accusations amount to justice?

What a charade. What a total mockery of the ideals supposedly espoused by the US Bill of Rights.

Beacon of hope and light my ass.

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 3:38 PM:

bob wrote on January 22, 2008 3:04 PM:

sailmaker wrote on January 22, 2008 3:14 PM:

He cannot be charged under double jeopardy, he can appeal if there is subsequent relevant information that warrants it, he has been charged formally and sentenced formally, and that sets a basis for the ongoing circumstances that Mr. Padilla will deal with.

But lets look at the points of repudiation, That an American can be held without charges? That was repudiated.

That the conduct of the US government in custody of a US citizen is not an issue in the sentencing of that citizen, was repudiated.

What has happened is that the wheels of justice are moving again, it is so funny that as people focus on the DOW, they show that they know the price of everything and the value of nothing.

The issue of value is that US citizens do get their day in court, are formally charged, and that the conduct of their detention is not an arbitrary behaviour, but will be held in account in at least the sentencing phase.

Cosidering the long road of this case, considering the assertions that some made of near dictatorial powers, this is definetly a step forward which will be a blow to radicals who assert that we have no rule of law and that sariah law is just and our system is not, and then those who assert that the US can detain without charges Americans and treat them outside the established norms of cruel and unusual circumstances.

There is really one loser, and that is the radicals, the zealots, those of extreme and uncompromising positions, those whom refuse to yeild to consenual reality and governance.

It is a good day in my opinion for the rule of law, and an affirmation that our system works. Imperfect mind you, but works.

Persona non grata wrote on January 22, 2008 3:57 PM:

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 3:38 PM:

"It is a good day in my opinion for the rule of law, and an affirmation that our system works. Imperfect mind you, but works."

Thats not rain running down your back its piss!

sailmaker wrote on January 22, 2008 4:12 PM:

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 3:38 PM:
Summarizing:

Because of Padilla we now know that:
1) Americans can not be held without charges
2) The US government can not torture with impunity (but it is dependent upon an impartial judge to give relief after the fact).
3) He can not be charged under double jeopardy (but there is nothing to preclude the government from charging him with different crimes).

I maybe mistaken but I thought those rights had been settled in 1789. Further, turning a man, an American at that, into a mental piece of furniture so that he can not aid his own defense is so repugnant that the judge should have reversed the conviction to deny the government any type of victory in this case. Padilla may be or may not be a terrorist, but he has been so turned to smush that we will never know the truth. It is very weak tea to consider the locking up of a piece of furniture as emblematic that the system 'works'.

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 4:51 PM:

Persona non grata wrote on January 22, 2008 3:57 PM:

If Wilkes gets more time than Padilla there is still justice.

From the Washington Post:

Cohen in the Washington Post opines,

Jose Padilla Finally Catches a Break
Jose Padilla, the once-upon-a-time-but-not-really "dirty bomb" suspect, was sentenced today in federal court in Miami to 17 years and four months for his role in a terror conspiracy that barely got off the ground. The sentence is shorter by far than the 30-years-to-life sentence recommended under the federal sentencing guidelines.

Why the break for the guy introduced to us in 2002 as the face of terror? Easy: U.S. District Court Judge Marcia G. Cooke, a Bush appointee, was never convinced that the government had a strong case against Padilla and two other convicted in the case. As she said today, "There is no evidence that these defendants personally maimed, kidnapped or killed anyone in the United States or elsewhere."

The government's lawyers opposed her every step of the way, but Cooke did what she could to even the playing field for the hapless Padilla, a former Chicago gang member. But in the end had to accept an unseemly quick verdict rendered by a jury of Floridians rushing to get out of court after a long trial. She was a genuine judge in a kangaroo court case; a model of reality in a sea of surreality -- and if you don't believe me, just ask the CIA officials who destroyed interrogation videotapes that were material and relevant to Padilla's defense.

Cooke, you may remember, dismissed the terror conspiracy charges against Padilla a few years ago, only to see the federal appeals court reinstate them. Today Cooke took full advantage of her last opportunity to place her mark upon this unfortunate case. The relatively lenient sentence -- it's three years less than the one imposed upon poor John Walker Lindh, the "American Taliban" -- tells the feds this was never the major league terror case they wanted us to think it was after they abandoned their "dirty bomb" allegations against Padilla.

Cooke may get overturned on appeal, but she's always been right about this case and was again today. And that means that Padilla, the U.S. citizen who became the second "enemy combatant" in our legal war on terror, the man who had to wait years to talk to a lawyer let alone face charges, finally gets a good day from his own country's justice system.

And... Cohen is no bleeding heart to Yoo as well.

I'm just saying to you that as Padilla's Mom said, "I feel good about everything. This is amazing."

I find it astonishing that you fail to see this as a re-establishment of the rule of law as a good thing.

We need to state to the international community, that we respect international law, business law, and that our society is based on transparency and norms of trust, that our actions are not arbitrary and uncertain like say Pakistan, where the USA remains a leader in the international community and the business community and that that belief comes from the bottom up!

I can't think of a better day for this news, it is a clear statement that the USA can be trusted as a transparent society worthy of trust.

Trust me.. there is few countries around the globe where fairness is so integral to our beliefs, that backs our dollar much more than anything else.

Your comments show how little you actually know about the case, the judge, and the verdict.

erichwwk wrote on January 22, 2008 6:12 PM:

The Orlando Sentinel reported:

"He was charged, along with Hassoun and Jayyousi, with conspiring to murder, maim and kidnap people overseas; supporting those involved and providing material support to terrorist groups."

Seems to me that those charges could be applied to many receiving US taxpayer dollars, purporting to work for our government. Just what is it our military does? the CIA? the former SOA?

hugh from houston wrote on January 22, 2008 8:51 PM:

To suggest that Padilla's sentencing will be a public relations victory in the quest to demonstrate to the world that America is again asserting the "rule of law" back into its justice system is an excellent case of American provinicialism among even those with otherwise good sense.

There's still rendition, Guantanamo, Bagram, a brutal occupation of a foreign country....

The Padilla sentence may give some hope that the Constitution still binds in many courts of the land. But it is the unaccountability of the highest officials behind illegal and unconstitutional acts which will taint the world's opinion of whether America operates under the "rule of law" for a long, long time.

One sentence means next to nothing for most of the world's population vis-a-vis America's image as a country where the "rule of law" is supreme.

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 10:22 PM:

hugh from houston wrote on January 22, 2008 8:51 PM:

To suggest that Padilla's sentencing will be a public relations victory in the quest to demonstrate to the world that America is again asserting the "rule of law" back into its justice system is an excellent case of American provinicialism among even those with otherwise good sense.

Laughing.. well stated, but it is a first step.

Anonymous Citizen wrote on January 24, 2008 10:22 AM:

Months ago, reading the record of torture inflicted on Padilla (taken into account by the Judge in her sentencing decision) I found myself literally nauseated, close to retching. As a citizen and lawyer, it was an extraordinarily shameful moment -- the public destruction of America’s reputation as a nation subject to the rule of law. The Padilla case will forever be recognized as America's Dreyfus case. The first action of the Democratic President in January, 2009, must be to pardon Padilla and all others tortured by the United States. “Pardon Padilla” must be our national oath during the remaining eleven months of tyranny.