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We will take the time to look a little deeper into Habeas Corpus and see what the pros and the cons are today. We will also see if this same policy is used the same way as it was used when Hitler ruled, or has it changed. Habeas Corpus comes from a Latin base meaning “you have the body.” In other words this means that a person has the right to question their incarceration before a judge. However violation of the writ of has not been the most severe of the civil liberties granted. During World War II, Hitler abolished the writ of Habeas Corpus when he signed the Nacht and Nebel. This abolished any kind of Habeas Corpus in anti-Semitic government. This policy refers to the legal precedent which means that a prisoner may not be held in custody without any type of just cause. Lincoln succeeded in having the writ of Habeas Corpus procedure suspended during the Civil War, allowing for the imprisonment of members of the military and prisoners of war.
If we start off by looking at some of the pros we would all agree that this policy does allow for every person to have a fair trial. Now by no means am I saying that this is a great policy to follow but at the same time it has its ups. I think every policy has a flaw in it no matter what the cause maybe. Its how we choose to use the policy at hand is what really matters. Constitutional rights and liberties are mostly needed in times of crisis. We have to step up in times of crisis and look on the positive side, see what we can do to make things better, and use our Constitution and/or liberties to help guide us along the way. We must invoke Conventional Wisdom to use as a guide when we are facing trouble and need security. In times that national security is needed, courts are often fared poorly. During times of crisis, judges want to do something, but are limited to what they can do. “Courts also worry that if they rule against the government on a matter of national security, they may face a potential test of their credibility and legitimacy”. Lastly, judges also worry that if they rule against the government then they must be subsequent to cost all national security. This article also talks about the Supreme Court and how they handle situations during times of crisis. “Federal courts are independent of the political process, and their institutional self-definition turns in significant part on that independence, especially when it comes to the interpretation and enforcement of constitutional rights” In 2002 Lakhdar Boumediene and 5 others were captured all because the U.S. Intelligence suspected that these people were plotting to attack the U.S. Embassy. These people were called enemy combatants and had to be prisoned in Guantanamo Bay. Once this had taken place Boumediene filed a petition for habeas corpus. His reason for doing this was because he felt that his constitutional rights were being violated and he wanted to petition it. The court did grant the motion