Historic Ruling Made by Supreme Court in Gitmo Case

The Supreme Court ruled today that the detainees in Guantanamo Bay do indeed have rights, ruling against the stance that the Bush administration has taken.

The specifics of the ruling are that the detainees have the constitutional right to challenge their detentions in federal court. The Supreme Court also said that the government has not provided a legitimate substitute for such a hearing.

The ruling makes parts of the Military Commissions Act of 2006, specifically which created military hearings for the detainees, illegitimate.

The decision was 5-4, with Justice Anthony Kennedy going against the Bush administration and siding with the four liberals on the court. Writing the majority opinion, Kennedy wrote: "The laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times."

What this means is that 270 of the detainees currently being held in Guantanamo Bay will get their day in court, meaning that they will gain access to almost all of the evidence that was used to throw them into Gitmo.

Justice Antonin Scalia dissented the ruling because of national security concerns, writing, "the game of bait-and-switch that today's opinion plays upon the nation's commander in chief will make the war harder on us. It will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed."