After mentioning several of the justice-related provisions of the Constitution (the right to face one's accuser, no self-incrimination, speedy trial, habeus corpus), Dahlia says:
We sometimes forget that the purpose of these and other constitutional protections is not only to let guilty guys roam free (attractive though that prospect may seem), the purpose is also to protect the quality of the evidence used in criminal trials. A conviction based on a tortured confession isn't justice. It's theater.
It's hard to see what the Administration wants to gain from the revelation that their case against Padilla is based on illegally-acquired evidence. Apparently, they think that we are all pathetically stupid enough to believe that whatever they say is true, without even the appearance of proof. (I remind you of the Ivory Madonna's rule-of-thumb: Absolutely everything the Bush Administration says is a lie.)
Maybe they think that the Supreme Court will agree with them. And maybe it will. Having severed its connection with truth and reality in December, 2000, the Supreme Court may still be off in La-la Land.
I hear the weather is awfully nice in Toronto this time of year. Perhaps it's time to think about moving....
Manwhile, Dahlia Lithwick's article is well worth reading.
M.
The Ivory Madonna's story is told in Dance for the Ivory Madonna by Don Sakers.
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