Me (Margaret Baumgartner) and one of my favorite members of our armed services.

Who Am I & What Did I Experience at Ft. Meade?

To put a face behind the name, I thought I’d include a picture of myself.  That handsome man beside me is my brother, who is part of the reason I’ve become interested in this project.  My other brother is still active duty but I want to preserve some of his anonymity since he is deploying again.  Thus, I didn’t include a picture of him (I’m not slighting him!!!).

With everything I’ve seen this week, I’ve gone through a wide range of emotions.  I wasn’t expecting that to occur.  I would walk into the hearing in the morning, feeling that the process in place was a fair one (I do believe in justice) and then I would leave feeling conflicted.  Nothing is black and white in this process.  For example, I expected the government would be the party slowing the process down to avoid a verdict as they’ve taken this long to bring charges.  Instead, it was the defense filing motion after motion and going off on tangents during arguments.  I also wasn’t sure what I expected in Mr. Nashiri.  From what the contractors said and my observations, he was very respectful (I’ve heard some of the 9-11 defendants are prone to outbursts).  There were no outbursts and his responses to questions were polite.  I did find it easy to keep an open mind throughout the process and I hope that in my posts, I’ve appeared neutral towards all parties and issues.

I have no career experience with international human rights law or criminal procedure.  In fact, with my career, I’ve never seen the inside of a court room (patent cases rarely, if ever, go to trial).  The only exposure I have to criminal procedure are the courses I took in law school (IU-McKinney School of Law, J.D. ’10) with Professor William Marsh.  Professor Marsh would periodically go down to Guantanamo Bay to advise detainees of their rights.  He would come back and detail his experience to us in the classroom.  This mostly included a trip down and his clients refusing to see him.  My interest was piqued by his chronicles (enough that I took two semesters of Criminal Procedure with him!).

Website Resources

The materials provided on this website have been a valuable resource to me.  Having limited knowledge of this area of law, I found myself able to get quickly up to speed.  I specifically like having everything in one place to download.  We were also provided with binders containing everything on the website.  I liked having the motions, conventions, and histories to flip through as I needed reference during the hearings.  If I found anything that might have been lacking, it would be biographies or summaries of the parties on the prosecution and the defense.

Another helpful item was a checklist that serves as a guide on what to look for and comment on during our observations.  I love lists (I get such joy from checking things off or filling out forms….that’s probably why I’m a patent attorney) and the questions in the list helped acquaint me with the defendant in greater detail.  The checklist itself is lengthy and encompasses the entire process.  I found myself flipping around to find questions relevant to the pre-trial process, but it was a fantastic resource.

Thoughts on the Process

Did I witness human rights violations?  Is the process fair?  There is no definitive answer that can be formulated with three observation days and not having access to ALL (including classified) information.  I believe that the length of time that Mr. Nashiri has had to wait to have his day in court would not be stood for if this occurred in a U.S. civilian court.  There would be all kinds of uproar in the media.  Yet, you don’t see headlines drawing attention to this. I also understand that information that is critical to our national security cannot be revealed, but conversely, defense counsel needs to be able to build an informed case.  I feel that this lack of information has contributed to the onslaught of motions and arguments (which is in turn slowing the pace).  They are trying everything they can to get something to stick given their limited resources.

I’m given the appearance that Mr. Nashiri is being treated with dignity during his detainment.  He seemed in good physical health at the trial.  He did not appear to be starving or sleep-deprived.  He seemed to be accorded his rights to attend proceedings.  I was concerned about Mr. Kammen’s comments that they are monitored by video when they meet with Mr. Nashiri.  A comment was also made that they thought the room also had audio surveillance.  A client has a right to attorney-client privilege and it makes me question if Mr. Nashiri is being given this right.  I am satisfied that Mr. Kammen is learned counsel given his experience.  He honestly seems to be giving his client his best effort and he appears genuinely concerned for his client.

Closing Thoughts

I highly encourage anyone who is qualified to attend as a representative to apply.  This program is a necessity to bring awareness to what is going on in Guantanamo Bay.  We need to keep an eye on what happens because it will affect how we are viewed by the rest of the international community.  Around D.C., there are signs posted in the metro that say “If you see something, say something”.  They are for reporting suspicious activity.  I think this phrase is pretty apt here as well.  Get the word out.