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NYT
Many Detainees at Guant=E1namo Rebuff Lawyers=20
By WILLIAM GLABERSON
Published: May 5, 2007
Many of the detainees at Guant=E1namo Bay, Cuba, are no longer =
cooperating with their lawyers, adding a largely invisible struggle =
between the lawyers and their own clients to the legal battle over the =
Bush administration's detention policies.
Some detainees refuse to see their lawyers, while others decline mail =
from their lawyers or refuse to provide them information on their cases, =
according to court do***ents, writings of some of the detainees and =
recent interviews.
The detainees' resistance appears to have been fueled by frustration =
over their long detention and suspicion about whether their lawyers are =
working for the government, as well as anti-American sentiment, some of =
the do***ents and interviews show. "Your role is to polish Bush's shoes =
and make the picture look good," a Yemeni detainee, Adnan Farhan =
Abdullatif, 31, wrote his lawyer in February.
Some of the lawyers accuse Guant=E1namo officials of feeding the =
detainees' suspicions of the lawyers, a charge Pentagon officials deny.
Lawyers said many of the relation****ps appeared to have deteriorated as =
the detainees' legal cause has suffered setbacks in Congress and the =
courts, and as Justice Department officials have begun efforts to limit =
lawyers' access to detainees, raising new concerns among the detainees =
about their lawyers' effectiveness.=20
"Every lawyer is afraid, every time they go down there, that their =
clients won't see them," said Mark P. Denbeaux, a professor at Seton =
Hall University School of Law who represents two Guant=E1namo detainees. =
"And it's getting worse, because it's pretty hard to say we're offering =
them anything."
The situation is awkward for the lawyers, who have become a considerable =
force not only in the courts but also in legislative, diplomatic and =
public debates about detention policies. Tense relation****ps or outright =
resistance from their clients could undercut their credibility and =
complicate their legal work.
The Justice Department, in a recent court filing, asked a federal =
appeals court to limit the number of times lawyers challenging detention =
could visit detainees and to allow officials to read lawyers' mail to =
detainees. Some of the lawyers said that court fight would be likely to =
further weaken their ties to some detainees because it raised questions =
about whether their communications would be confidential and whether =
they would be able to continue to see their clients.
Some detainees are clearly cooperating with their lawyers and are =
engaged in regular dialogue with them. In interviews, some lawyers =
denied there were problems in their relation****ps with detainees or =
declined to discuss the difficulties, saying such information would =
embolden the government. But other lawyers estimated that a third or =
more of the detainees who have worked with lawyers in cases challenging =
their detention were now resisting cooperating with them.
Of 10 detainees publicly identified by military prosecutors as targets =
of possible war-crimes charges, many, if not most, either have refused =
American lawyers or are now uncooperative or uncommunicative, four of =
the lawyers involved in the war crimes cases said. Some of those =
detainees face possible life sentences.
"The relation****p of the lawyers with many of the clients who still see =
us is very strained and tense," said David H. Remes, a Wa****ngton lawyer =
at Covington & Burling, who represents 17 Yemeni detainees in efforts to =
challenge their detention.=20
At times, the lawyer-client battles provide an insight into detainees' =
attitudes. Mr. Remes said one client grew furious when he learned his =
lawyers had interviewed his family members in Yemen to gather =
information for his case. The detainee assumed, Mr. Remes said, that his =
lawyers were acting as investigators for the American government.=20
Mr. Denbeaux said one client had pleaded with him to bring toothpaste. =
When he did on a later visit, military guards confiscated it and his =
client took that as proof that the lawyer was powerless. "I said, 'They =
took it from me,' " Mr. Denbeaux recalled, "and he said: 'What good are =
you? You can't even get me toothpaste.' "
Neal R. Sonnett, a Miami lawyer who has been an American Bar Association =
observer at Guant=E1namo, said the deterioration of the relation****ps =
could become an issue as courts continue to sort through the thicket of =
legal questions presented by the administration's detention policies. =
"Due process," he said, "includes the ability of the lawyers to =
effectively prepare their cases."
A Justice Department spokesman, Dean Boyd, declined to comment.=20
In the interviews, lawyers described differing reasons for the =
resistance from their clients, including what several lawyers described =
as depression or other mental illness, or resignation more than five =
years after the United States naval base at Guant=E1namo was opened as a =
detention camp.
Several said there had been cycles of wariness and peer pressure to =
reject American lawyers. Some of the lawyers said a new cycle might have =
gained intensity after a federal appeals court in February approved =
legislation Congress passed last year intended to strip the courts of =
the power to hear the habeas corpus cases, the main legal vehicle many =
of the lawyers had used to try to challenge their clients' detention. =
Last month, the Supreme Court declined to review that ruling.
Some of the detainees' comments, in writings given to the lawyers or =
recorded in their declassified notes, showed confusion about what role =
the lawyers were playing. Mohammed Nasser Yahia Abdullah Khussrof, a =
61-year-old Yemeni, explained a common suspicion of the lawyers among =
the detainees.=20
"Some people don't have full trust in attorneys," Mr. Khussrof said, =
according to Mr. Remes's notes. "They think you work for government."=20
Several lawyers noted that in the war-crimes cases, defendants were =
assigned military lawyers who visit them dressed in uniforms similar to =
those of some of the jailers.
Clive A. Stafford Smith, a lawyer who represents 35 detainees, said one =
of his clients, Omar Deghayes, a Libyan, had said that in lawyer-client =
meetings at Guant=E1namo, "we all know that everything we say in these =
rooms is being monitored by them." Military officials say they do not =
eavesdrop on those meetings.=20
Mr. Stafford Smith also said several of his clients had described what =
he said were efforts by Guant=E1namo officials to foster detainees' =
distrust of the lawyers. He said detainees had described investigators' =
telling them that their lawyers were Jewish or gay or that prisoners =
with lawyers were less likely to be released than those without them.
Mr. Stafford Smith and other lawyers also said clients had told them of =
investigators who posed as lawyers and then questioned detainees.=20
The military spokesman in Guant=E1namo, Cmdr. Richard W. Haupt, said =
each of those accusations was false. "It is our policy to in no way =
interfere with legal counsel," he said. He said that military officials =
had worked to make it as easy as possible for lawyers to visit detainees =
and that there had been an increase in such meetings this year.
Court records show that the detainees' concerns about whether lawyers' =
mail will remain confidential may be based, in part, on experience. =
Officials acknowledged in court last year that during an investigation =
after three suicides at Guant=E1namo in June they seized written =
materials and personal items from all detainees, a total of more than =
1,100 pounds, "including legal material and other correspondence."=20
Although the detainees' lawyers have had some notable successes in =
American courts, no detainee has been freed as a result of a court =
order. Some have come to rely on the lawyers as their only conduit to =
the outside world. But even in that capacity, the lawyers said, military =
rules have often made it impossible for them to satisfy simple requests. =
Mr. Remes, the Wa****ngton lawyer for the 17 Yemenis, said military =
officials had barred lawyers from giving detainees rudimentary reading =
materials, including a Dr. Seuss book and "Jack and the Beanstalk." =
Commander Haupt said lawyers were permitted to provide "properly =
cleared" reading material to the detention camp library.
Joseph Margulies, a detainee's lawyer who teaches at Northwestern =
University School of Law, said the growing skepticism of some detainees =
was not surprising. "They don't trust that we will be able to accomplish =
anything," he said.
........................................................................
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th&oref=3Dslogin
........................................................................
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<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana><STRONG><FONT size=3D4><FONT=20
size=3D1><EM>NYT<BR></EM></FONT>Many Detainees at Guant=E1namo Rebuff=20
Lawyers</FONT></STRONG> </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana></FONT> </DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana>
<DIV class=3Dbyline>By <A title=3D"More Articles by William Glaberson"=20
href=3D"http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/g/will=
iam_glaberson/index.html?inline=3Dnyt-per"><FONT=20
color=3D#004276>WILLIAM GLABERSON</FONT></A></DIV></NYT_BYLINE>
<DIV class=3Dtimestamp>Published: May 5, 2007</DIV><NYT_TEXT>
<P align=3Djustify>Many of the detainees at <A=20
title=3D"More news and information about Guant=E1namo."=20
href=3D"http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/national/usstatesterritoriesan=
dpossessions/guantanamobaynavalbasecuba/index.html?inline=3Dnyt-geo"><FON=
T=20
color=3D#004276>Guant=E1namo Bay</FONT></A>, <A=20
title=3D"More news and information about Cuba."=20
href=3D"http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterr=
itories/cuba/index.html?inline=3Dnyt-geo"><FONT=20
color=3D#004276>Cuba</FONT></A>, are no longer cooperating with their =
lawyers,=20
adding a largely invisible struggle between the lawyers and their own =
clients to=20
the legal battle over the Bush administration=92s detention =
policies.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Some detainees refuse to see their lawyers, while =
others=20
decline mail from their lawyers or refuse to provide them information on =
their=20
cases, according to court do***ents, writings of some of the detainees =
and=20
recent interviews.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>The detainees=92 resistance appears to have been =
fueled by=20
frustration over their long detention and suspicion about whether their =
lawyers=20
are working for the government, as well as anti-American sentiment, some =
of the=20
do***ents and interviews show. =93Your role is to polish Bush=92s shoes =
and make the=20
picture look good,=94 a Yemeni detainee, Adnan Farhan Abdullatif, 31, =
wrote his=20
lawyer in February.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Some of the lawyers accuse Guant=E1namo officials of =
feeding the=20
detainees=92 suspicions of the lawyers, a charge Pentagon officials =
deny.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Lawyers said many of the relation****ps appeared to =
have=20
deteriorated as the detainees=92 legal cause has suffered setbacks in =
Congress and=20
the courts, and as Justice Department officials have begun efforts to =
limit=20
lawyers=92 access to detainees, raising new concerns among the detainees =
about=20
their lawyers=92 effectiveness. </P>
<P align=3Djustify>=93Every lawyer is afraid, every time they go down =
there, that=20
their clients won=92t see them,=94 said Mark P. Denbeaux, a professor at =
<A=20
title=3D"More articles about Seton Hall University"=20
href=3D"http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations=
/s/seton_hall_university/index.html?inline=3Dnyt-org"><FONT=20
color=3D#004276>Seton Hall University</FONT></A> School of Law who =
represents two=20
Guant=E1namo detainees. =93And it=92s getting worse, because it=92s =
pretty hard to say=20
we=92re offering them anything.=94</P>
<P align=3Djustify>The situation is awkward for the lawyers, who have =
become a=20
considerable force not only in the courts but also in legislative, =
diplomatic=20
and public debates about detention policies. Tense relation****ps or =
outright=20
resistance from their clients could undercut their credibility and =
complicate=20
their legal work.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>The Justice Department, in a recent court filing, =
asked a=20
federal appeals court to limit the number of times lawyers challenging =
detention=20
could visit detainees and to allow officials to read lawyers=92 mail to =
detainees.=20
Some of the lawyers said that court fight would be likely to further =
weaken=20
their ties to some detainees because it raised questions about whether =
their=20
communications would be confidential and whether they would be able to =
continue=20
to see their clients.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Some detainees are clearly cooperating with their =
lawyers and=20
are engaged in regular dialogue with them. In interviews, some lawyers =
denied=20
there were problems in their relation****ps with detainees or declined to =
discuss=20
the difficulties, saying such information would embolden the government. =
But=20
other lawyers estimated that a third or more of the detainees who have =
worked=20
with lawyers in cases challenging their detention were now resisting =
cooperating=20
with them.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Of 10 detainees publicly identified by military =
prosecutors as=20
targets of possible war-crimes charges, many, if not most, either have =
refused=20
American lawyers or are now uncooperative or uncommunicative, four of =
the=20
lawyers involved in the war crimes cases said. Some of those detainees =
face=20
possible life sentences.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>=93The relation****p of the lawyers with many of the =
clients who=20
still see us is very strained and tense,=94 said David H. Remes, a <A=20
title=3D"More news and information about Wa****ngton, D.C.."=20
href=3D"http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/national/usstatesterritoriesan=
dpossessions/wa****ngtondc/index.html?inline=3Dnyt-geo"><FONT=20
color=3D#004276>Wa****ngton</FONT></A> lawyer at Covington & Burling, =
who=20
represents 17 Yemeni detainees in efforts to challenge their detention. =
</P>
<P align=3Djustify>At times, the lawyer-client battles provide an =
insight into=20
detainees=92 attitudes. Mr. Remes said one client grew furious when he =
learned his=20
lawyers had interviewed his family members in Yemen to gather =
information for=20
his case. The detainee assumed, Mr. Remes said, that his lawyers were =
acting as=20
investigators for the American government. </P>
<P align=3Djustify>Mr. Denbeaux said one client had pleaded with him to =
bring=20
toothpaste. When he did on a later visit, military guards confiscated it =
and his=20
client took that as proof that the lawyer was powerless. =93I said, =
=91They took it=20
from me,=92 =94 Mr. Denbeaux recalled, =93and he said: =91What good are =
you? You can=92t=20
even get me toothpaste.=92 =94</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Neal R. Sonnett, a Miami lawyer who has been an <A=20
title=3D"More articles about American Bar Association"=20
href=3D"http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations=
/a/american_bar_association/index.html?inline=3Dnyt-org"><FONT=20
color=3D#004276>American Bar Association</FONT></A> observer at =
Guant=E1namo, said=20
the deterioration of the relation****ps could become an issue as courts =
continue=20
to sort through the thicket of legal questions presented by the =
administration=92s=20
detention policies. =93Due process,=94 he said, =93includes the ability =
of the lawyers=20
to effectively prepare their cases.=94</P>
<P align=3Djustify>A Justice Department spokesman, Dean Boyd, declined =
to comment.=20
</P>
<P align=3Djustify>In the interviews, lawyers described differing =
reasons for the=20
resistance from their clients, including what several lawyers described =
as=20
depression or other mental illness, or resignation more than five years =
after=20
the United States naval base at Guant=E1namo was opened as a detention =
camp.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Several said there had been cycles of wariness and =
peer=20
pressure to reject American lawyers. Some of the lawyers said a new =
cycle might=20
have gained intensity after a federal appeals court in February approved =
legislation Congress passed last year intended to strip the courts of =
the power=20
to hear the habeas corpus cases, the main legal vehicle many of the =
lawyers had=20
used to try to challenge their clients=92 detention. Last month, the =
Supreme Court=20
declined to review that ruling.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Some of the detainees=92 comments, in writings given =
to the=20
lawyers or recorded in their declassified notes, showed confusion about =
what=20
role the lawyers were playing. Mohammed Nasser Yahia Abdullah Khussrof, =
a=20
61-year-old Yemeni, explained a common suspicion of the lawyers among =
the=20
detainees. </P>
<P align=3Djustify>=93Some people don=92t have full trust in =
attorneys,=94 Mr. Khussrof=20
said, according to Mr. Remes=92s notes. =93They think you work for =
government.=94 </P>
<P align=3Djustify>Several lawyers noted that in the war-crimes cases, =
defendants=20
were assigned military lawyers who visit them dressed in uniforms =
similar to=20
those of some of the jailers.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Clive A. Stafford Smith, a lawyer who represents 35 =
detainees,=20
said one of his clients, Omar Deghayes, a Libyan, had said that in =
lawyer-client=20
meetings at Guant=E1namo, =93we all know that everything we say in these =
rooms is=20
being monitored by them.=94 Military officials say they do not eavesdrop =
on those=20
meetings. </P>
<P align=3Djustify>Mr. Stafford Smith also said several of his clients =
had=20
described what he said were efforts by Guant=E1namo officials to foster =
detainees=92=20
distrust of the lawyers. He said detainees had described =
investigators=92 telling=20
them that their lawyers were Jewish or gay or that prisoners with =
lawyers were=20
less likely to be released than those without them.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Mr. Stafford Smith and other lawyers also said =
clients had told=20
them of investigators who posed as lawyers and then questioned =
detainees. </P>
<P align=3Djustify>The military spokesman in Guant=E1namo, Cmdr. Richard =
W. Haupt,=20
said each of those accusations was false. =93It is our policy to in no =
way=20
interfere with legal counsel,=94 he said. He said that military =
officials had=20
worked to make it as easy as possible for lawyers to visit detainees and =
that=20
there had been an increase in such meetings this year.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Court records show that the detainees=92 concerns =
about whether=20
lawyers=92 mail will remain confidential may be based, in part, on =
experience.=20
Officials acknowledged in court last year that during an investigation =
after=20
three suicides at Guant=E1namo in June they seized written materials and =
personal=20
items from all detainees, a total of more than 1,100 pounds, =
=93including legal=20
material and other correspondence.=94 </P>
<P align=3Djustify>Although the detainees=92 lawyers have had some =
notable successes=20
in American courts, no detainee has been freed as a result of a court =
order.=20
Some have come to rely on the lawyers as their only conduit to the =
outside=20
world. But even in that capacity, the lawyers said, military rules have =
often=20
made it impossible for them to satisfy simple requests. </P>
<P align=3Djustify>Mr. Remes, the Wa****ngton lawyer for the 17 Yemenis, =
said=20
military officials had barred lawyers from giving detainees rudimentary =
reading=20
materials, including a Dr. Seuss book and =93Jack and the Beanstalk.=94 =
Commander=20
Haupt said lawyers were permitted to provide =93properly cleared=94 =
reading material=20
to the detention camp library.</P>
<P align=3Djustify>Joseph Margulies, a detainee=92s lawyer who teaches =
at <A=20
title=3D"More articles about Northwestern University"=20
href=3D"http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations=
/n/northwestern_university/index.html?inline=3Dnyt-org"><FONT=20
color=3D#004276>Northwestern University</FONT></A> School of Law, said =
the growing=20
skepticism of some detainees was not surprising. =93They don=92t trust =
that we will=20
be able to accomplish anything,=94 he said.</P></NYT_HEADLINE>
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