Colby Vokey is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 lawyer and former officer in the United States Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

. He currently practices criminal defense law with the Dallas-based firm Fitzpatrick Hagood Smith & Uhl. He represents clients in all types of criminal matters, with particular emphasis on cases involving military law. Vokey earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and served as a Judge Advocate in the United States Marine Corps during 21 years of service to his country. His retirement from the Marine Corps became effective Nov. 1, 2008. During his military career, Vokey earned worldwide praise for his work ethic and integrity, based in part on his work for defendants detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, who faced charges stemming from the war in Iraq.

Vokey has been the subject of controversy during his efforts to defend Omar Khadr

Omar Khadr

Omar Ahmed Khadr is a Canadian child soldier and one of the juveniles held at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. He was convicted of five charges under the United States Military Commissions Act of 2009 including murder in violation of the law of war and providing material support for terrorism,...

 one of the dozen captives held in the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba

Cuba

The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

 who eventually faced charges before a Guantanamo military commission

Guantanamo military commission

The Guantanamo military commissions are military tribunals created by the Military Commissions Act of 2006 for prosecuting detainees held in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps.- History :...

.

Gag order and investigation

In the fall of 2006 Vokey, and his paralegal Sergeant Heather Cerveny

Heather Cerveny

Sergeant Heather Cerveny is a member of the United States Marine Corps, and a paralegal.Cerveny who submitted an affidavit describing boasts of abusive treatment meted out to detainees held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba...

, had a gag order imposed on them after Cerveny filed an affidavit in which she described GIs in Guantanamo's enlisted club bragging about routine abuse of the captives.
Muneer Ahmad

Muneer Ahmad

Muneer Ahmad a professor of law at the Yale Law School. He is a specialist in international human rights and immigration law.He is known for his work as co-counsel for Omar Khadr, a Canadian that is detained at the Guantanamo Bay detainment camp....

, Khadr's civilian lawyer reported that Vokey and Cerveny had been ordered not to comment on conditions at Guantanamo.

The report quotes a statement released on behalf of Colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

 Carol Joyce

Carol Joyce

Carol Diane Joyce is a South African sprint canoer who competed in the late 2000s. At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, she finished seventh in the K-4 500 m event.-References:*...

, the Marines' chief defense counsel, who:

... had directed him not to communicate with the media "pending her review of the facts. This is necessary to ensure all actions of counsel are in compliance with regulations establishing professional standards for military attorneys,"

Colonel Richard Basset was the officer assigned to investigate the allegations in Cerveny's affidavit.
He returned from his investigation on November 15, 2006.
He submitted his report on December 10, 2006.
The report was not immediately made public.
A thirteen page heavily redacted summary of the inquiry was eventually made public.

Within a year, the lieutenant colonel had announced his retirement from the US Marine Corps.http://www.atlargely.com/2007/11/too-few-good-me.html

Retirement

The San Diego Union Tribune profiled Vokey following his retirement.
The Union Tribune noted he had been forced into retirement even though another of his clients, Staff Sergeant

Staff Sergeant

Staff sergeant is a rank of non-commissioned officer used in several countries.The origin of the name is that they were part of the staff of a British army regiment and paid at that level rather than as a member of a battalion or company.-Australia:...

 Frank Wuterich

Frank Wuterich

Frank Wuterich is a Staff Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps and is alleged to have participated, on November 19, 2005 in Haditha killings, where he and fellow Marines are accused of having killed 24 civilians after a Marine had died in an insurgent attack...

, who faces charges for the murder of two dozen civilians in Haditha

Haditha

Haditha is a city in the western Iraqi Al Anbar Governorate, about 240 km northwest of Baghdad. It is a farming town situated on the Euphrates River at . Its population of around 100,000 people is predominantly Sunni Muslim Arabs...

, Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

, has not had his court martial.

In an interview with Newsmax following his retirement, Vokey blamed policies and directives of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld for the problems at Guantanamo.