(9 am. – promoted by ek hornbeck)
Solicitor General Neal Katyal, the lawyer who represents the Obama administration in the Supreme Court, argued Wednesday for reversal of a lower court ruling that would allow a lawsuit for money damages to proceed against George Bush’s attorney general, John Ashcroft. He is accused of abusing the “material witness” statute by using it as a pretext to jail-under barbaric conditions-a US citizen, Abdullah al-Kidd, suspected of no wrongdoing whatsoever.
You can read the rest about this latest provocation by the Obama administration here: http://wsws.org/articles/2011/…
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Not sure who this quote comes from, but it’s apt.
is what this case is all about. Some officials have been held to be “absolutely immune” from lawsuits, even civil rights suits. Others have “qualified immunity.” We can argue about the policy reasons why such a doctrine should or should not exist, but an expansion of the doctrine like the one I fear we’re about the get from the Supreme Court in this case, is a cause for concern. At bottom it means that an official can violate somebody’s rights in significant ways, but the courts will withhold compensation and all remedies for the victim. Put simply, the tortfeasor walks free and is beyond the reach of the law.