2007年VOA标准英语-US Supreme Court Reverses Decision, Agrees to H

By Gary Thomas
Washington
29 June 2007

The U.S. Supreme¹ Court has reversed itself and agreed to hear the appeals of detainees held at the U.S. facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. As VOA correspondent Gary Thomas reports, legal scholars say it is a highly unusual move for the country's highest court.

Delta2 detention3 facility, at the Guantanamo Bay U.S. Naval4 Base, Cuba, Sep 2006)" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070704/1447470.jpg" width="182" vspace="2" border="0" />

A detainee sits behind a chain-linked fence on the grounds of Camp Delta detention facility, at the Guantanamo Bay U.S. Naval Base, Cuba, Sep 2006)

On the last day of its current session, the Supreme Court changed its mind about two cases involving detainees in government custody⁵. After denying earlier appeals by the Guantanamo detainees in April, the court said it will hear arguments in its next term about whether inmates⁶ whom the government deems to be enemy combatants have the right to challenge their detention in a U.S. court.

There is some difference among legal scholars about exactly when the last time such a reversal occurred in the Supreme Court, but there is general agreement that it was about 40 years ago.

Eric Freedman, a law professor at Hofstra University and a legal advisor⁷ for the detainees, says the turnabout is a major victory for the Guantanamo inmates.

"It's a huge step forward for the detainees, and a serious, serious setback⁸ for the government's efforts to do anything except allow the independent judicial⁹ review which is at the bedrock of the separation of powers," said Freedman.

National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said the Bush administration does not believe any legal review of its detainee procedures is necessary, but added that it is confident about its legal position.

But even conservative legal scholars say the court decision to take the cases does not bode¹⁰ well for the administration's detainee policies.

David Rivkin, a former Justice Department official in the Reagan and first Bush administrations, calls the court action unfortunate. He noted¹¹ that it takes only four of the nine justices to deny a hearing before the high court, but five to order a rehearing as it did Friday.

"It tells me that four justices for certain, and possibly five justices, entertain some questions about the propriety¹² and legal sufficiency of the Military Commissions Act, which is of course the key underlying¹³ legislation passed last November that governs all aspects of detention and prosecution¹⁴ of unlawful enemy combatants," he said.

The detainees seek the right to challenge their detention in a federal court. The Bush administration says they are enemy combatants and therefore not entitled to such rights. At the administration's urging, Congress last year passed the law denying them that legal avenue and setting up military commissions to try detainees.

Eric Freedman says the government must explain to a civilian¹⁵ court why it is holding people in detention indefinitely.

"It is simply inimical to our Constitution that our government can throw somebody into a prison, announce that they are a national security threat, and not explain to a court the factual and legal basis why they're doing that," he said.

David Rivkin is gloomy about the Supreme Court's about-face, but adds he does not believe the court will totally abandon the military commission system.

"The courts are not going to cleanly kill the system," said Rivkin. "I do not believe that at any point in time the courts are going to come out and say, the laws of war paradigm¹⁶ does not apply, these people are not enemy combatants, you've got to let them go. At least the Supreme Court is most unlikely to do that because, frankly¹⁷, even they understand how insane that would be."

The cases will be heard sometime after the next court term begins in October.

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

3 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

4 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

5 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

6 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

8 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

9 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

10 bode   

v.预示

参考例句：

• These figures do not bode well for the company's future.这些数字显示出公司的前景不妙。
• His careful habits bode well for his future.他那认真的习惯预示著他会有好的前途。

11 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

12 propriety   

n.正当行为；正当；适当

参考例句：

• We hesitated at the propriety of the method.我们对这种办法是否适用拿不定主意。
• The sensitive matter was handled with great propriety.这件机密的事处理得极为适当。

13 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

14 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

15 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

16 paradigm   

n.例子，模范，词形变化表

参考例句：

• He had become the paradigm of the successful man. 他已经成为成功人士的典范。
• Moreover,the results of this research can be the new learning paradigm for digital design studios.除此之外，本研究的研究成果也可以为数位设计课程建立一个新的学习范例。

17 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。