Mohammed’s lawyer naturally isn’t the only one with questions for the court. Under the rules, each defendant is entitled to ask questions, and by the looks of it, every defense attorney in the courtroom ...

We have come now to the part of the hearing where the lawyers get to question Judge Pohl to see if they want to move to disqualify him. This turns into quite a marathon. Each of the defendant's legal tea...

The pattern of defense lawyers’ injecting their concerns about the treatment of the detainees--and their access to them--into their own qualification colloquies continues through the other defense lawyer...

Our arraignment programming then shifts to the qualifications of defense counsel, which, under commission rules, must be recited on the record. There are some rules-mandated inquiries between Judge Pohl ...

Martins has introduced the government lawyers and paralegals, but Nevin now gestures towards others in the courtroom--who, according to the government, are assisting but not appearing as counsel. Does th...

In the next few days, the Naval War College will be devoting a workshop to the topic of the legal geography of the battlefield.  That includes the question of whether there is one, separate from where th...

The day has not been weird enough, so Bin ‘Attash’s lawyer, Cheryl Bormann, who is still dressed in full abaya, drives it over the cliff. As Judge Pohl is getting ready to go over the attorneys’ qualifi...

Judge Pohl turns to Mohammed’s attorneys and his right to counsel. Mr. Mohammed, he says, pursuant to the Manual for Military Commissions, you are today represented by two military lawyers, Derek Poteet ...

Walid ‘Bin Attash is now seated, and, like the other accused men, free from restraints. The defense strategy has now clearly come into focus: The defendants refuse to speak or engage the court, while th...

When the audio comes back on, Judge Pohl is asking counsel for Bin ‘Attash, Capt. Michael Schwartz, whether he knows why the feed went out. There is certain material, he says, that is not to be disclosed...

Judge Pohl turns to David Nevin. Let’s start with your client, he says. You have detailed counsel, he says to KSM. KSM does not answer. Mr. Mohammed, he says. Can you hear me? There is a long pause. N...

The hearing gets under way at 9:23, when Military Judge Col. James Pohl, looking resplendent in his jet-black robes, takes his seat--authority emanating from his very fingers--and calls the military comm...

The Smallwood theater at Fort Meade is unusually crowded with press today, but not with the usual suspects--who are all down at Guantanamo itself for the big event. Wells and I are joined by Swedish pres...

A gentle reminder - not that you really needed one, being a devoted Lawfare reader and all  - Ben and I will be live-blogging tomorrow's much-anticipated arraignment in United States v. KSM et al.  Accor...

Well, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act passed the House last week.  Now that the dust has cleared (and before we move on to the coming Senate battles) it’s probably worthwhile looking at...

Below is a recap of yesterday’s oral argument before the D.C. Circuit in Hamdan v. United States.  As for key takeaways, you’ll find Steve’s breakdown here, and my two cents' worth here. Again, it is an...

As I noted on Tuesday, Adis Medunjanin was convicted this week in connection with the NYC subway bombing plot.  Previously, he had moved to suppress inculpatory statements he’d made after his arrest, and...

Based on a longer article I’d written on this topic, the Hoover Institution published today my essay “Policing Terrorism”, in its institutional journal, Defining Ideas. Here’s how it begins: In recent mo...

Wells and I will be at Fort Meade for the KSM arraignment Saturday morning. In the meantime, I have written an oped in the Washington Post setting the stage and discussing the pivotal importance of this ...