31 May 2011

Supreme Court rules detained 'witness' cannot sue U.S. officials - CNN.com

(CNN) -- The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a lifelong U.S. citizen who was held in jail for 16 days as a "material witness" in an ongoing terror investigation cannot hold former Bush administration officials liable for wrongful arrest and detention.

Abdullah al-Kidd, a Kansas native, was never charged and was never called to testify. He wanted to hold former Attorney General John Ashcroft and others personally liable for wrongful arrest and detention.

The unanimous 8-0 ruling from the court is a victory for the government's efforts to detain those with potential links to terrorism. Al-Kidd's pending lawsuit was dismissed.

Material witness laws allow officials to detain those who may have knowledge of crimes committed by others to ensure they will testify in legal proceedings, including grand jury sessions and trials.

American Civil Liberties Union lawyers representing al-Kidd say the government has warped the law to allow open-ended arrests and confinement of citizens without anyone being later held accountable for those wrongfully held.

With their destruction of the 4th amendment the other week and this decision here, the Supreme Court has made it officially legal for the police or government to come and take you away forever just like they did in Soviet Russia and there's nothing you can do about it. We are the Soviets now and we make the Russians look like choir boys.

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