McCarthy Lies About Civilian Trials Again

March 14, 2013 by 7 Comments

The DOJ has arraigned Osama Bin Laden’s son in law in federal court in New York and, naturally, the right wing media is throwing a hissy fit about it. And Andrew McCarthy is throwing fuel on the paranoid fire and telling ridiculous lies about it as well.

McCarthy admitted that he and fellow prosecutors have amassed a strong conviction record against terrorist suspects, but possible exoneration is not his biggest concern. He said trials in civilian court always trigger intelligence flows that make our nation more vulnerable.

“You have to turn over discovery, meaning all of our intelligence files under the due process rules. You’re also, in effect, rewarding the worst actors,” McCarthy said. “Basically, we’re taking the insane position that if you’re a foreign or even an American enemy combatant, and we happen to catch you in Yemen, we can take you out with a drone strike with no due process, no anything, even if you haven’t actually carried out a terrorist attack yet. But if you hit the jihadist jackpot and manage to get to the United States and kill 3,000 Americans, we’ll bring you into Manhattan and give you the bells-and-whistles civilian trial. That’s a pretty perverse set of incentives to give our enemy.”

Yeah, I’m sure all of the terrorists locked up in the Florence Supermax prison are just thrilled with how they were “rewarded” for their crimes by being tried in civilian court. And it’s simply a lie to claim that you have to turn over everything in discovery in such a case. McCarthy knows damn well about the Classified Information Procedures Act, though when he was a prosecutor in one high profile case he failed to use its procedures to protect information. He now uses that minor release of information that he failed to protect as the example — the only example — of a civilian trial of a terrorist ever resulting in the release of information.

Andrew McCarthy is a fraud selling lies and his own incompetence to a credulous right wing media.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, Terrorism 7 Comments

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About Ed Brayton

After spending several years touring the country as a stand up comedian, Ed Brayton tired of explaining his jokes to small groups of dazed illiterates and turned to writing as the most common outlet for the voices in his head. He has appeared on the Rachel Maddow Show and the Thom Hartmann Show, and is almost certain that he is the only person ever to make fun of Chuck Norris on C-SPAN.

  • tubi

    Basically, we’re taking the insane position that if you’re a foreign or even an American enemy combatant, and we happen to catch you in Yemen, we can take you out with a drone strike with no due process, no anything, even if you haven’t actually carried out a terrorist attack yet.

    Actually, some of us have been saying for a while now that you should NOT be able to do that.

    And here’s something I don’t get. Why is it such a concern that we would have to turn over information during discovery? It’s not like the defendant can just tweet it out to the world. Is it much of a “reward” for the defendant to find out a bunch of stuff about us and then go sit in his cell in solitary and think about it for a while? And only be able to discuss it with his attorney? Am I missing something?

  • eric

    Why is it such a concern that we would have to turn over information during discovery?

    Well, the defendent probably isn’t the realistic concern because they are mostly locked away in solitary. But their lawyer isn’t locked away – the lawyer leaking classified info is the more realistic concern.

  • eric

    Addendum, there is also the concern that if the defendent actually wins, they will then be set free and could then reveal/use all that classified info. Bob knowing you have a base in south podunkistan while he’s in jail is no big deal. Bob knowing that when he gets released and goes back to the south podunkistan revolutionaries, is.

  • baal

    ‘Leaks’ aren’t necessarily always a problem and courts can and do seal information that’s used in the proceedings. Woe unto the defense council who leaks it, they will be talking to the FBI shortly there after. Really, this is a problem but it is a technical one with fixes and harm abatement sitting on the shelf.

    What’s missing from McCarthy is a recognition that due process and a robust court proceeding (with the chance for acquittals) helps bolster the image of the U.S. as a coutry of laws and not just another tin horn empire with a corrupt regime.

  • http://en.uncyclopedia.co/wiki/User:Modusoperandi Modusoperandi

    xxxxxx xxxxxxxx is a fraud selling lies and his own incompetence to a credulous right wing media.

    There. Now we can just copy ‘n’ paste that in, add a name, and it covers so many people. It’s a real time saver. You can thank me later.

  • http://www.facebook.com/den.wilson d.c.wilson

    You’d think someone who torched his career by mishandling classified materials would have some understanding of the rules he broke.

  • kantalope

    I can’t believe I’m having a nostalgic moment for the cold war. Remember when we used to criticize other countries for not having due process? When Kangaroo Courts were a bad thing. When bombings and assassinations and torture were things done by BAD countries or people?

    Oh such simple times, when justifying nuclear armageddon made republicans at least pretend to be better people than they really were.

    Hey Modus – can you make that into some kind of keystroke shortcuty thing? That would save Ed hours of typing time…probably per week.


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