David H. Remes
Encyclopedia
David H. Remes is an American
lawyer.
Remes was a partner at the law firm Covington & Burling
.
Remes has been recognized for his human rights
work.
attorney for some of the captives held in extrajudicial detention
in the United States
Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba
.
Remes played a role in a challenge focussed around the captives' detention based on an avenue of appeal that the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005 (DTA) opened.
The DTA closed the opportunity for captives who had not yet had writs of habeas corpus
filed on their behalf.
But the DTA allowed captives to challenge the determinations of their Combatant Status Review Tribunal
s, that they were properly classified as "enemy combatant
s".
The DTA allowed captives to challenge the enemy combatant determination if the Tribunal failed to follow the rules laid out in their mandate.
One aspect of that challenge was a request that the court force the DoD to release more information on the evidence used to justify the captive's detention.
Leading officials in the United States counter-terrorism establishment appealed a July 20, 2007 appeals court ruling forcing the release of information about the captives on national security grounds.
Remes responded:
Remes is one of the attorneys for Saifullah Paracha
, a Pakistan
i businessman who lived in the USA
for several years, who is suffering from serious heart disease.
Paracha has been appealing to get permission to travel temporarily to an American hospital for heart surgery.
Camp authorities claim his heart surgery could be performed in Guantanamo's infirmary. They complained that $400,000 had been spent preparing the infirmary for his surgery. Paracha's lawyers have argued that previous procedures at Guantanamo have been botched.
. (Pending cases were left open.) The DTA opened a path for Guantanamo captives to submit a limited appeal to Federal Courts of appeal in Washington DC.
The Military Commission Act of 2006 (MCA) closed down the pending habeas corpus cases.
Attorneys for the captives have both initiated a challenge to the constitutionality
of the MCA's stripping of the right to habeas corpus; and they have initiated appeals in the DC Federal Courts of appeal.
The DTA's limited avenue of appeal only allows challenges as to whether the Combatant Status Review Tribunal correctly followed their rules.
Remes was one of the first lawyers to initiate an appeal in the DC courts.
reported that the Government wanted to "rewrite detainee evidence". The impetus to rewrite the evidence is a reaction to the Supreme Court's June 12, 2008 ruling on Boumediene v. Bush
. The Supreme Court had ruled that Guantanamo captives were entitled to challenge the basis for their detention through the US Justice System, because the Combatant Status Review Tribunal
s were not an adequate substitute for habeas corpus. According to the Associated Press:
The Associated Press quoted Remes reaction to this development.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lawyer.
Remes was a partner at the law firm Covington & Burling
Covington & Burling
Covington & Burling LLP is an international law firm with offices in Beijing, Brussels, London, New York, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, San Diego, and Washington, DC. The firm advises multinational corporations on significant transactional, litigation, regulatory, and public policy matters...
.
Remes has been recognized for his human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
work.
Volunteered to serve Guantanamo captives
Remes is notable for volunteering to serve as a pro bonoPro bono
Pro bono publico is a Latin phrase generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment or at a reduced fee as a public service. It is common in the legal profession and is increasingly seen in marketing, technology, and strategy consulting firms...
attorney for some of the captives held in extrajudicial detention
Extrajudicial detention
Arbitrary or extrajudicial detention is the detention of individuals by a state, without ever laying formal charges against them.Although it has a long history of legitimate use in wartime , detention without charge, sometimes in secret, has been one of the hallmarks of totalitarian states...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
.
Remes played a role in a challenge focussed around the captives' detention based on an avenue of appeal that the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005 (DTA) opened.
The DTA closed the opportunity for captives who had not yet had writs of habeas corpus
Habeas corpus
is a writ, or legal action, through which a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. The remedy can be sought by the prisoner or by another person coming to his aid. Habeas corpus originated in the English legal system, but it is now available in many nations...
filed on their behalf.
But the DTA allowed captives to challenge the determinations of their Combatant Status Review Tribunal
Combatant Status Review Tribunal
The Combatant Status Review Tribunals were a set of tribunals for confirming whether detainees held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp had been correctly designated as "enemy combatants". The CSRTs were established July 7, 2004 by order of U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense...
s, that they were properly classified as "enemy combatant
Enemy combatant
Enemy combatant is a term historically referring to members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. Prior to 2008, the definition was: "Any person in an armed conflict who could be properly detained under the laws and customs of war." In the case of a civil war or an...
s".
The DTA allowed captives to challenge the enemy combatant determination if the Tribunal failed to follow the rules laid out in their mandate.
One aspect of that challenge was a request that the court force the DoD to release more information on the evidence used to justify the captive's detention.
Leading officials in the United States counter-terrorism establishment appealed a July 20, 2007 appeals court ruling forcing the release of information about the captives on national security grounds.
Remes responded:
Remes is one of the attorneys for Saifullah Paracha
Saifullah Paracha
Saifullah Paracha is a citizen of Pakistan currently held in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba.The Department of Defense reports that Paracha was born on August 17, 1947,in Mongwal, Pakistan....
, a Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i businessman who lived in the USA
for several years, who is suffering from serious heart disease.
Paracha has been appealing to get permission to travel temporarily to an American hospital for heart surgery.
Camp authorities claim his heart surgery could be performed in Guantanamo's infirmary. They complained that $400,000 had been spent preparing the infirmary for his surgery. Paracha's lawyers have argued that previous procedures at Guantanamo have been botched.
Brought Guantanamo cases to Federal court under the Detainee Treatment Act
The Detainee Treatment Act of 2005 (DTA) closed off the right of Guantanamo captives to submit new petitions of habeas corpusHabeas corpus
is a writ, or legal action, through which a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. The remedy can be sought by the prisoner or by another person coming to his aid. Habeas corpus originated in the English legal system, but it is now available in many nations...
. (Pending cases were left open.) The DTA opened a path for Guantanamo captives to submit a limited appeal to Federal Courts of appeal in Washington DC.
The Military Commission Act of 2006 (MCA) closed down the pending habeas corpus cases.
Attorneys for the captives have both initiated a challenge to the constitutionality
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
of the MCA's stripping of the right to habeas corpus; and they have initiated appeals in the DC Federal Courts of appeal.
The DTA's limited avenue of appeal only allows challenges as to whether the Combatant Status Review Tribunal correctly followed their rules.
Remes was one of the first lawyers to initiate an appeal in the DC courts.
Remes reacts to the Governments desire to "rewrite detainee evidence"
On June 20, 2008 the Associated PressAssociated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
reported that the Government wanted to "rewrite detainee evidence". The impetus to rewrite the evidence is a reaction to the Supreme Court's June 12, 2008 ruling on Boumediene v. Bush
Boumediene v. Bush
Boumediene v. Bush, 553 U.S. 723 , was a writ of habeas corpus submission made in a civilian court of the United States on behalf of Lakhdar Boumediene, a naturalized citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, held in military detention by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camps in Cuba...
. The Supreme Court had ruled that Guantanamo captives were entitled to challenge the basis for their detention through the US Justice System, because the Combatant Status Review Tribunal
Combatant Status Review Tribunal
The Combatant Status Review Tribunals were a set of tribunals for confirming whether detainees held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp had been correctly designated as "enemy combatants". The CSRTs were established July 7, 2004 by order of U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense...
s were not an adequate substitute for habeas corpus. According to the Associated Press:
The Associated Press quoted Remes reaction to this development.