The detention of suspected terrorists has been a hotly contested topic in the United States for more than a decade. The debate is not only central to the continued detention of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but also implicates other areas, such as criminal justice and immigration. This course will provides an overview of the law surrounding the detention of terrorism suspects. With a focus on relevant authorities from U.S. constitutional, criminal, immigration, and military law. The course examines the U.S. approach against the background of international law, particularly international humanitarian law (the law of war) and international human rights law.
Learning Objectives:
I. Gain an overview of U.S. policy surrounding the detention of terrorism suspects
II. Understand the different bodies of domestic law potentially applicable to the detention of terrorism suspects
III. Examine leading constitutional challenges to terrorism detentions in the courts
IV. Obtain a basic understanding of how international law treats this subject
Professor Jonathan Hafetz focuses his research on constitutional, criminal, and international law. Professor Hafetz is an expert on national security, human rights, and international justice issues. He joined Seton Hall Law School as an Associate Professor in 2010. Professor Hafetz is the author of Habeas Corpus after 9/11: Confronting America’s New Global Detention System (NYU Press 2011), which received the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award for Media and the Arts, Honorable Mention, and the American Society of Legal Writers, Scribes Silver Medal Award. He is the co-editor (with Mark Denbeaux) of The Guantanamo Lawyers: Inside a Prison Outside the Law (NYU Press 2009). Professor Hafetz’s scholarship has appeared in many publications, including the Yale Law Journal, UCLA Law Review, Columbia Law Review Sidebar, Wisconsin Law Review, William & Mary Law Review, International Journal of Human Rights, and Cambridge Journal of Comparative & International Law, and has been cited by numerous courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. He is currently working on a book about international criminal justice, to be published by Cambridge University Press.
Professor Hafetz is also an internationally recognized constitutional and human rights lawyer. Prior to joining Seton Hall, he litigated numerous high-profile cases as a senior attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union, a litigation director at New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice, and a John J. Gibbons Fellow in Public Interest and Constitutional Law at Gibbons, P.C. Representative cases include Al-Marri v. Spagone, 555 U.S. 1220 (2009), Boumediene v. Bush, 553 U.S. 723 (2008), Munaf v. Geren, 553 U.S. 674 (2008), Rasul v. Rumsfeld, 542 U.S. 466 (2004), Meshal v. Higgenbotham, (D.C. Cir. 2015), Salahi v. Obama, 625 F.3d 740 (D.C. Cir. 2010), and Jawad v. Obama (D.D.C. 2009). Mr. Hafetz has also authored or co-authored more than thirty amicus curiae briefs for the U.S. Supreme Court and federal courts of appeals on a range of issues.
Professor Hafetz has lectured widely both in the United States and abroad, including in the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Australia, Israel, Taiwan, Poland, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. From 2014-15, Professor Hafetz was a Visiting Research Scholar in the Program in Law and Public Affairs at Princeton University. Mr. Hafetz has testified before Congress, and frequently provides expert commentary for major media outlets and news programs. His op-eds have appeared in numerous publications including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Boston Review, The Nation, Politico, The American Prospect, and The Guardian. He is a frequent blogger for legal websites in his field. Professor Hafetz currently chairs the New York City Bar Task Force on National Security and the Rule of Law. He has served as a consultant to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Open Society Foundations.
Professor Hafetz earned his J.D. from Yale Law School. He holds an M. Phil in Modern History from Oxford University and a B.A. from Amherst College. He is the recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship from the U.S. Government for study in Mexico. Following law school, Professor Hafetz served as a law clerk to Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and Judge Sandra L. Lynch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.
This was excellent. Very clear and provided helpful information about an area of law that is often confusing.
The speaker's knowledge and delivery were excellent.
Excellent.
Thorough review of the case law on this subject!
An excellent course that reawakened me to constitutional provisions that I have forgotten in my daily practice. Well-paced, informative, and intelligent. Thanks!
Faculty member was exceptionally well informed. Of particular interest was the chronology of events that explained why Guantanamo has yet to be totally resolved and underscores the effect of bureaucracy on speedier adjudication of cases, in this instance, detainees have been held for an inordinate amount of time, in violation of the SC case that limited detention to 6 months.
Instructor was very good!
Good presentation
Comprehensive review of the historical and current state of the law. Very interesting!
Although not an area I will likely practice in, still very interesting and informative.
Enjoyed the course. Very instructive and well presented.
Very interesting topic
Great!
Very well organized and presented.
excellent presentation
Excellent course.
.really interesting and informative.
Very informative. Interesting topic, given the current US border situation.
Great program.
Excellent presentation on an important topic
Important topic covered very well
i thought he was great! i wish he taught other courses.
Great presentation!
Super course!
Great speaker, and terrific materials. Excellent course for anyone interested in the conduct of the war on terrorism, and its legal workings.
Covered a lot of material and managed to keep my interest. Good job!
One of the best courses I have watched!
extremely knowledgeable
Excellent presentation. I learned a great amount about this topic. Thank you.
Comprehenisive presentation
The presentation was interesting and the presenter appeared very well-versed in the subject matter.
good topic