Court Says 'Enemy Combatants' Must Be Charged

Since June 2003 Ali Saleh Kahlah al Marri has been considered an "enemy combatant" and imprisoned by the military inCharleston, S.C. He wasn't charged with a crime but was suspected to have al Qaeda ties.

Constitutional?

Not so, ruled an appeals court today, giving another judicial blow to the Bush administration's controversial policies on dealing with suspected terrorists.

The court ruled that al Marri must either be charged with a crime in civilian court or be set free.

Al Marri, a legal U.S. resident and citizen of Qatar, was the last of three terror suspects imprisoned at the Charleston brig. The cases of the other two--Yaser Esam Hamdi and Jose Padilla--were outlined in a 2004 U.S. News story. The Supreme Court decided in Hamdi's case that U.S. citizens deserve an impartial trial. Padilla was charged with less severe crimes and was moved to a prison in Miami.

Al Marri's case, too, is expected to reach the Supreme Court.

By Nikki Schwab