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New York Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
New Judge Assigned to 9/11 Case Ahead of 24th Anniversary of Attacks
An Air Force judge who was in college at the time of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks has been named as the new judge in the long-running terrorism case at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Lt. Col. Michael Schrama is the fifth judge in the case against five men who are accused of conspiring in the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. The case has been stuck in pretrial hearings since 2012. Prosecutors made a deal last summer with three of the defendants, including the man accused of being the mastermind of the plot, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, to plead guilty in exchange for life sentences. That would have averted their death-penalty the agreement has been revoked twice, including this month by an appeals court in Washington, potentially returning the case to the question of whether the defendants' torture from 2002 to 2006 while they were in C.I.A. detention has rendered their confessions inadmissible. Colonel Schrama was assigned to the case on Wednesday. Prosecutors have indicated that they would like to see him on the bench the week of Sept. 1 for an examination of his qualifications. If no disqualifying conflicts emerge, it will be Colonel Schrama's job to manage the pretrial proceedings at a time when the case has splintered into three parts. Mr. Mohammed and two other defendants who had the plea deal are in one camp. The previous judge, Col. Matthew N. McCall, had ruled that their pretrial agreements were valid contracts before he retired in May. Their lawyers are preparing an appeal to seek the deals' reinstatement, and have shunned any case-moving litigation at the Guantánamo court as a potential breach of the contract. Another defendant, Ramzi bin al-Shibh, was found mentally incompetent to go to trial and his case was severed. Prosecutors have asked the court to revisit that fifth defendant, Ammar al Baluchi, was litigating on a separate track. The last judge wrapped up his four years on the case by suppressing Mr. Baluchi's interrogations by the F.B.I. at Guantánamo in 2007 as having been obtained through his C.I.A. torture. Prosecutors are seeking to reinstate his confessions. Colonel Schrama, who is in his 40s, graduated from Roger Williams University School of Law in 2008, around the time the defendants were first brought to court. He then joined in the Air Force and has served as a military prosecutor and defense counsel on appeal cases. This is his second stint as a military judge. He handled court-martial cases at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia from 2021 to 2023, and returned to the bench last month. Colonel Schrama was an English student at Georgetown University and a starting defensive end on the school's football team at the time of the attacks. Before he went to law school, he taught high school English in New online personal and professional biography said he suffered a 'season-ending injury' in his third year at Georgetown. According to his Air Force biography, he has specialized in environmental law while serving in the military. He also earned a Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, possibly from a nine-month stint as the staff attorney for an air wing in Kuwait in 2019.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Carmody wins Dem nod, Dennis-Bovani takes GOP spot in Magisterial District 11-2-01
May 21—WILKES-BARRE — Three candidates cross-filed in Magisterial District Judge 11-2-01 and two of them will advance to the Nov. 4 General Election. According to unofficial results, Matthew J. Carmody won the Democratic nomination and Laura Dennis-Bovani captured the Republican nod. The other candidate, former Wyoming Borough Mayor Robert J. Boyer, finished a distant third on both sides of the ballot. The unofficial vote totals are: Democrat —Carmody, 1,019 —Dennis-Bovani, 841 —Boyer, 166 Republican —Dennis-Bovani, 849 —Carmody, 762 —Boyer, 174 The Magisterial District 11-2-01 covers the municipalities of Exeter Borough, Exeter Township, West Pittston, West Wyoming Borough and Wyoming Borough. It just about covers the entire Wyoming Area School District with the exception of Harding and Falls. "I'm grateful and humbled for the support we received and to the voters who came out and voted for me," Carmody said. "I'm looking forward to the November election and we will continue to work hard until Nov. 4." "I am honored to have a nomination and I am extremely thankful for the support I've received," Dennis-Bovani said. "I am looking forward to reaching out to every voter in the district and I also look forward to the November General Election." Carmody is seeking to assume the seat his father, Attorney Joe Carmody, has held over the last 22 years. Carmody, 43, is a graduate of Wyoming Area (2000), University of Pittsburgh (2004), Roger Williams University School of Law (2007) and was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 2007. He spent his early days in law as a law clerk in Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas before returning to Wyoming Valley. After working for a Wilkes-Barre law firm for several years, he and two colleagues went out on their own creating the law firm of Joyce, Carmody & Moran, P.C. in 2015. In addition, Carmody is the solicitor for the Pittston Township Sewer Authority and the Assistant Solicitor to the Luzerne Co. Transportation Authority. "I am running because I love this community, and I want to continue to keep it safe for my family and all families who live here," Carmody said when he announced his candidacy. "After graduating from law school, I returned home where I met my wife, Amanda, and we decided there is nowhere else we would want to raise our family. I am proud to say that my kids — seven-year-old daughter Caroline and our eight-year-old son Joseph — are the fourth generation of Carmodys to call the Wyoming Area home." Carmody believes he would make a fair and impartial judge while treating everyone that comes through his courtroom with dignity and respect. Carmody said, "I've done a great deal of civil rights defense for municipalities over the years, including 14 years serving as a court appointed criminal defense attorney in Federal Court and that allowed me to work with the U.S. Attorney's office, the FBI, DEA and various Federal agencies, including the IRS. I've also been specializing in Labor Laws over the last 10 years." Dennis-Bovani, 51, a lifelong resident of the district, is a 1991 Wyoming Area graduate, she has been practicing privately for more than 25-years and has represented clients in criminal and civil litigation, wills and estates, believing her experience covers the legal issues a District Judge handles on a daily basis. She is an Assistant Solicitor in the Luzerne County Office of Law, the Solicitor for Wyoming Borough, and a volunteer solicitor for the Wyoming Free Library and the Wyoming Area Foundation Board. Dennis-Bovani serves on the Luzerne County Arbitration Board, the Executive Board of the Wilkes-Barre Law and Library Association and previously served as a divorce mediator. Dennis-Bovani said she is running for magistrate to bring her years of courtroom experience to the bench, where she says she will be a fair and impartial judge. She pledges to work to ensure that "in each case everyone can be heard, treated fairly and with respect." "I feel like it's a way for me to bring my legal experience to the bench to be involved and invested in the community as a judge," Dennis-Bovani said. "It's a way to bring all my experience as a lawyer to be able to have the people of our community to have a place where they know they are going to in front of a judge that is knowledgeable in the law and that prides herself in giving everyone a fair opportunity in the courtroom." Once elected, Dennis-Bovani said she would vacate her positions with Luzerne County, the Solicitor with Wyoming Borough as well as all criminal cases. Dennis-Bovani is married to Dante J. Bovani, a third-generation owner of his family's towing and service business, located on Exeter Avenue in West Pittston. The Dennis-Bovani's are the parents of Dante and Mia Bovani. Other Magisterial Judge races District 11-1-05 (4-year term) Democrat —Joshua Moses, 841 —Write-in votes, 348 Republican —Joshua Moses 625 —Write-in votes, 236 In Magisterial District 11-1-04, Alexandra Kokura-Kravitz was unopposed on both sides of the ballot, as was Michael G. Dotzel in Magisterial District 11-3-07. Reach Bill O'Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.
Boston Globe
19-03-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Deported R.I. doctor was in ‘precarious position' arriving at Logan, expert says
Although she could have refused to let immigration authorities access her cellphone, that could have given authorities grounds to deny her admission to the country, said Deborah S. Gonzalez, director of the Immigration Law Clinic at the Roger Williams University School of Law. Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up 'She was in a precarious position, no question about that,' said Gonzalez, a clinical professor of law who is not involved in Alawieh's case. Advertisement On Monday, federal authorities 'Arriving aliens bear the burden of establishing admissibility to the United States,' said Hilton Beckham, assistant public affairs commissioner for US Customs and Border Protection. Immigration officers 'adhere to strict protocols to identify and stop threats,' she said. 'CBP is committed to protecting the United States from national security threats.' Gonzalez said she knows of no other high-profile cases where immigration authorities have deported someone because of photos found on their phone or attendance at a funeral. 'But we are living in a different world now,' Gonzalez said as the Trump administration She said immigration officials will look at social media posts and seek access to phones. 'I can only imagine the memes I have on my phone of Donald Trump that could lead someone to think that I believe in the political ideology of Donald Trump, which I absolutely do not,' Gonzalez said. Advertisement She said American citizens are protected by the Constitution, which includes the First Amendment's protection of freedom of speech, while non-citizens do not have that protection. But she also noted that earlier this month immigration agents 'I am worried about our First Amendment rights,' Gonzalez said. 'We will see if I get arrested for my comments on the Donald Trump memes.' On Sunday, after Alawieh was deported, 'Potential changes in travel restrictions and travel bans, visa procedures and processing, re-entry requirements, and other travel-related delays may affect travelers' ability to return to the U.S. as planned,' Russell C. Carey, Brown's executive vice president for planning and policy, wrote in an email. Gonzalez said she agrees with Brown University's guidance. 'My advice to anyone who is here on a non-immigrant visa: Don't travel, don't leave,' she said. With an Although H-1B visas allow a person such as Alawieh to work in the United States, 'every time that person goes out of the country, that admission needs to happen yet again,' Gonzalez said. Advertisement Under the Last week, lawyers from a Washington, D.C., law firm became involved in Alawieh's case, representing her cousin Yara Chehab. But they withdrew from the case on Monday, and said that 'due to the expedited nature of the proceedings counsel had not completed diligence.' Gonzalez said she does not know why those lawyers withdrew. But, she said, 'When someone is removed under expedited removal, there is really no appeal. That is not judicially reviewable.' Stephanie Marzouk, an immigration lawyer who is still representing Alawieh's cousin, told the Globe on Tuesday, 'I can't comment right now.' Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at
Boston Globe
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Censorship harms those we should be trying to protect
Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up According to Advertisement Book bans also frequently target books with LGBTQ+ characters, according to Pen America. Advertisement Pen America also states that books that depict rape or sexual violence were banned in a quarter of the more than 3,000 books targeted from June 2022 to July 2023. Silencing stories of rape and sexual violence silences survivors of rape and sexual violence. Banning books by and about the survival of rape and sexual assault perpetuates harm on those who have suffered the most. Authors can find power in telling their stories, factually or through fiction. Readers can find solace and community in these same stories. We are harming them by removing their stories from libraries. The My question is: Who are we protecting? If not our LGBTQIA teens, our BIPOC children, our public library staff, our school librarians, our children's book authors, our survivors of sexual assault, then who? And why? The bills that have been put forward do not mandate that any child, adolescent, student, or parent be required to read any book. The bills don't mandate libraries purchase any book or type of book. They don't require that authors and illustrators write or draw or create any specific book or type of book. In fact, they make clear that reconsideration requests made by those with a vested interest in the public library or school library can still continue. And library staff will be protected by not just the Advertisement Let Rhode Island continue to grow and change in the direction of Nicole P. Dyszlewski is one of the leaders of the Rhode Island Freedom to Read Coalition, and a professor and assistant dean at Roger Williams University School of Law in Bristol, R.I.
Boston Globe
23-02-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Federal Judge Bruce Selya, widely respected R.I. jurist known for his vocabulary, dies at 90
Advertisement Reed described Judge Selya as 'a man of great wisdom, integrity, modesty, wit, and high ethical standards.' Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up RI has lost a legal legend, Judge Bruce Selya, 90, whose outstanding contributions to the community & people of RI go well beyond his four decades of remarkable service on the federal bench. — Senator Jack Reed (@SenJackReed) 'As a judge, Bruce Selya was nationally renowned and respected and set a high bar that many others in his profession admire and aspire to reach,' Reed said. 'As a man, he will be remembered for his exemplary devotion to the law and uplifting others, particularly those in his beloved hometown of Providence.' In her new memoir, US Supreme Court Justice 'A bespectacled man then in his mid-60s with graying swept-back hair, he had an old-world courtliness about him, and an erudite way of expressing himself that extended to his decisions,' she wrote. Judge Selya — once dubbed the ' Jackson recalled that Judge Selya would insert 'arcane terms' into draft opinions, sending her and other clerks 'scurrying for Old English dictionaries.' She recalled learning words such as asseverate (to declare or affirm a thing), gallimaufry (a confusing hodgepodge of elements, legal or otherwise), and velivolant (being in full sail). She also recalled Selya pausing to consider whether to insert a comma in an opinion. Advertisement 'He prided himself on opinions that would be flawless in their grammar, reasoning, distinctive use of language, and presentation,' Jackson wrote, calling Selya 'brilliant, meticulous, and scholarly.' She said she emerged from the clerkship not only with an expanded vocabulary but with a higher 'level of fastidiousness in drafting opinions.' Judge Selya, who Professor Michael J. Yelnosky, former dean of the Roger Williams University School of Law, described Selya as 'a Rhode Island institution.' 'Just a giant,' Yelnosky said. 'I think it's fair to call him the greatest jurist in Rhode Island history. He had a real national reputation. This is not just a Rhode Island guy.' He said Selya was well-respected by his colleagues on the First US Circuit Court of Appeals and had friends on the US Supreme Court. 'He was well-regarded both for the intellectual quality of his work and his rhetorical flourishes,' Yelnosky said. 'And just as gracious and generous as a human being could be.' Born and raised in Providence, Judge Selya received an undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1955 and a law degree from Harvard Law School in 1958. He served as law clerk to Judge Edward W. Day of the US District Court for the District of Rhode Island from 1958 to 1960. He worked in private practice in Providence from 1960 to 1982, and served as a judge on the Lincoln, R.I., Probate Court from 1965 to 1972. Advertisement In 1982, he was nominated to US District Court by President Ronald Reagan and he was elevated to the 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals in 1986. In 2000, US Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist appointed Selya to the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, a position Judge Selya held until 2004. In 2005, US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts appointed Judge Selya to the US Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, and in 2008 he was appointed to the chief judgeship of the Court of Review. Judge Selya contributed his time and talents to many community causes and public service endeavors. He taught law school students and received honorary degrees from Bryant University, Roger Williams University, and Brandeis University. In 2017, the Roger Williams University School of Law dedicated the In 2023, the City of Providence designated Fulton Street as Judge Selya Way. Information on funeral and memorial services were not immediately available. Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at
