How a Military Prosecutor Changed From Gung Ho Terrorism Fighter to Gitmo Critic
A military prosecutor who quit his post at Guantanamo because of ethical qualms tells of his transformation from gung ho terrorism fighter, brushing off tales of detainee abuse as “hyperbole,” to a critic of the system who is providing declarations helping defense lawyers.
Writing in the Washington Post, former military prosecutor Darrel Vandeveld says he ignored early warning signs, such as complaints by the chief military prosecutor, Col. Morris Davis, that he was being bullied by Bush political appointees who wanted him to bring charges before he was ready. Vandeveld dismissed as “idiotic” claims of abuse by detainee Mohammed Jawad, who said he was 16 at the time of arrest. And he viewed Jawad’s defense lawyer as a terrorist sympathizer.
But Vandeveld’s views began to change as he saw the evidence. “Jawad had been hooded, slapped repeatedly across the face and then thrown down at least one flight of stairs,” Vandeveld writes. “Detainee records show that once at Guantanamo, he was subjected to a sleep deprivation regime during which he was moved to different cells 112 times over a 14-day period—an average of every 2½ hours. It was called the frequent-flier program.”
Vandeveld “sank deeper and deeper into despair.” He made his decision to quit his post last September after consulting an online priest, who advised him to leave. At the time, Vandeveld said he had “ethical qualms” about the “slipshod” system of turning over exculpatory evidence to the defense.
“I am ashamed that it took me so long to recognize the stain of Guantanamo, not simply on America’s standing in the world, but as part, now, of a history we cannot undo,” Vandeveld writes. But, he says, “There is a way out of Guantanamo.”
He says the real terrorists and war criminals should be tried in federal court, and the others should be rehabilitated so they can be reintegrated into their societies.
“No one who has fought for our country and its values has done so to enable what happened in Guantanamo,” he says. “We did not sacrifice so that an administration of partisan civilians, abetted by military officers who seemed to have lost their moral compass, could defile our Constitution and misuse the rule of law.”
