Does our Bill of Rights apply to everyone?

Question

With the passage of the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, "no court, justice, or judge" is allowed to review habeas corpus applications by Guamtanamo Bay detainees. Are these "detainees" protected under our Bill of Rights, and if not what rights if any do they have? If they have some rights who should decide which rights they are granted, does the president have this power? Also with this and other recent legislation these "detainees" are to be tried in military courts, is this fair and lawful, or should they be tried in federal courts?

Answer 1

The Bill of Rights (the first ten ratified Amendments to the Constitution of the United States are comprised of two types. The first eight are exclusionary in that they excluded the federal government from initiating certain acts. Amendments 9 and 10 are Statements of truth imitating from the evolution of Common Law. All of the rights mentioned and not mentioned are sourced in the Sovereignty of the Individual.

Such rights are recognized for the citizens of the United States and any others who wish to avail themselves of these rights must immigrate to the United States and become citizens. Those who are detainees at Guantánamo are not citizens and laws of the United States are not applicable to them as citizens.

feistycharley is correct, the Detainee Treatment Act is bad legislation most particularly where it allows the government to suspend habeas corpus as applicable to United States Citizens. While a case can be made that in that sense it is extra-Constitutional, it is important to keep it in context in that this is not the first time that such legislation and executive acts have occurred in our history. Under Presidents, Adams, Wilson, Roosevelt, and in particularly Lincoln, similar events occurred. This in no way excuses such similar acts by President Bush and the support by Congress.

Answer 2

The Detainee Treatment Act is a horrible piece of legislation that denies review of habeas corpus, so that means that if anyone declares a writ of habeas corpus then there's nothing that the law can do. That effectively takes away most of the bill of rights. Speedy trials? Not with habeas corpus. Freedom of speech? Nope. Bear arms? Well, obviously not. Cruel and unusual punishment? It would be quite cruel and unusual to be held without charges if you were innocent.

Military courts are a lot tougher on the defendant than federal courts. Basically, this Act has taken away the rights of these people altogether.

What a lot of people don't understand is that these detainees are not all guilty. A lot of the men look very similar over there, given their religious beliefs about hair and facial hair cutting. If you see a heavily bearded Arab man, it's hard to know you've got the right guy. Also, many of these men were detained by the military after locals told them these might have been the men that the military was looking for. So if you hate your neighbor, just go tell the Americans that he's Al Queada, and BOOM! He's in Gitmo.

It was a sad, sad day for America.

Answer 3

The Bill of rights applies to everyone on US soil. Recent US SUpreme court decisions have said detainees at Guantanamo are entitled to challenge their status in a US Federal court, but are not physically in the US, meaning the Bill of Rights does not apply.
They are currently under the protections (technically) of the Geneva Convention, which governs treatment of prisoners of war.

Answer 4

I think, that the "Bill of Rights" is meant and should only apply to legal residents who call America their home. This means that illegal aliens, detainees and other such elements would fall under international law. By international law, un-uniformed combatants are not required to be treated as true prisoners of war.

Answer 5

See Prisonplanet.com
There is a lot of insight there particularly pertaining to the Military Commissions Act with deals directly with citizens.

Answer 6

The Republicans have abandoned the bill of rights, and scoff the constitution. They must be removed from power for the sake of preserving the union.

Answer 7

Well, assuming you are an American citizen, they certainly apply to you. May I suggest that, if you are that unhappy with the way people whose sole reason for being is to eliminate the infidels are being treated, you leave this Country - after renouncing your citizenship of course.

Answer 8

In my opinion.....POWs have no rights except to be given some kind of trial....be that federal court or militay trials.....they should also be entitled to a lawyer or some kind of defence.......thats about it.