[act-ma] 4/25 (Wed) Habeas Corpus and the Military Commissions Act at Cambridge Forum

[Cambridge Forum]

Cambridge Forum
 3 Church Street ● Cambridge, MA 02138
				

“Habeas Corpus” and the Military Commissions Act
7:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Cambridge Forum
3 Church Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

Free and Open to the Public

Press Release

	What is the impact of the Military Commissions Act on one of America’s most long standing civil liberty, “Habeas Corpus?  Established by the Magna Carta in 1215, Habeas Corpus provides prisoners the right to know the charges against them.  The Military Commissions Act, passed with no public notice in October, 2006, eliminates a prisoner’s right to Habeas Corpus protection in trials by special military commissions.  Currently prisoners being held as enemy combatants at Guantanamo are affected, but many questions remain to be answered.  Could the Military Commissions Act also be applied to American citizens?  How can suspension of Habeas Corpus in military commission trials be permitted under the Constitution?

	These issues will be discussed by Massachusetts’s attorney Jerry Cohen, and Nancy Murray, Education Director, ACLU of Massachusetts at Cambridge Forum on Wednesday, April 25.  The program begins at 7:30 p.m. at First Parish, 3 Church Street, Harvard Square, in Cambridge. 

	Jerry Cohen is a partner in the Boston law firm Burns & Levinson; a long-time advocate for American civil liberties, Cohen is involved in some of the current habeas cases wending their way through the courts.

	Cambridge Forums are open to the public.  Open discussion follows speaker presentation.  Events are taped and edited for public radio broadcast throughout the nation.  Edited CDs are available to the public by contacting 617-495-2727.   Select forums can be viewed in their entirety on demand by visiting our website at www.cambridgeforum.org and clicking on the WGBH Forum Network.

Cambridge Forum
3 Church Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Phone/fax:  617-495-2727
email:  mailto:director at cambridgeforum.org
website:  http://www.cambridgeforum.org

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