Since 2002, Jose Padilla, a US citizen, has been held in a military stockade without being formally charged with a crime. According to the US government such action was warranted in light of the fact that he was viewed as an enemy combatant. When Padilla was arrested in 2002, it was alleged that he was involved in a plot to detonate a radiological (dirty) bomb in a major American city, presumably Chicago. Padilla was arrested at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport after disembarking a plane that had just arrived from Pakistan.

Padilla is no saint to be sure; the former street thug has a lengthy criminal history in several US states. At some point Padilla, converted to Islam, presumably in jail. According to US officials Padilla first traveled to Afghanistan after his conversion in 1998. At some point it is premised that Padilla became affiliated with Al Qaeda and received instructions while in Afghanistan and later Pakistan on terror tactics and made plans for the detonation of a dirty bomb. Finally this week, Padilla has been charged. But not for his involvement in a plot to bomb a major American city, indeed, his indictment simply mentions his plan to incite jihad in America.

Now that Padilla has been indicted he will be transferred from military to civilian custody. Essentially, Padilla has been indicted for being a member of Al Qaeda, who’s stated aims are clear to most Americans. While there can be no mercy for terrorists and the purveyors of indiscriminate destruction, we at the Phalanx are concerned. How is it that an American citizen can be held for 3 years without charge, simply because the administration says to. Either we are a nation of laws or we aren’t. If the assertions that Padilla is a terrorist are legitimate then why not try the man? This country should not stoop to the level of the terrorists in order to fight them. We are a nation of laws and US citizens should not be held indefinitely in military prisons simply because we don’t want to try him.

As we have noted, this country is a nation of laws, governed by a constitution. How can Bush call himself a strict constructionist after such a stunt? The president has no legal authority to suspend habeas corpus, except in times of rebellion, which clearly does not apply. We at the Phalanx are as committed as anyone to wiping the scourge of terror from the globe, but does this mean we must surrender our rights as citizens. If so haven’t the terrorists already achieved their goals? And why is it that simply being a member of Al Qaeda is an indictable offense, for which a person may serve life in prison, while membership in similar organizations caries no similar consequence. We submit that other terror groups should be treated with equal disdain, including our own domestic terror organization known as the Ku Klux Klan. That being said, if Padilla is indeed guilty of these crimes, his fate should be no different than Al Qaeda has in store for the rest of us.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4460566.stm