Benjamin G. Davis
Benjamin G. Davis is a law professor at the University of Toledo College of Law, where he teaches international law. He has commented on various aspects of extrajudicial detention policy of the George W. Bush Administration. [1]
Early life
Davis's parents were Foreign Service Officers. He attended Harvard College, Harvard Business School, and Harvard Law School.
Between 1983 and 2000 Davis worked outside the USA in a variety of roles in International Development, International Commerce, and International Law.[2] Davis' first American teaching post was at the Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in 2000. In 2003 he transferred to the University of Toledo.[2]
Davis's comments on Guantanamo detentions
Davis's article raised seven numbered arguments for why captives at Guantanamo detention camp were protected by United States Law.[1] Among the points he raised were that captives were protected from prosecution by the Geneva Conventions, unless their status as lawful combatants was successfully challenged before a tribunal defined by the Third Geneva Convention. He pointed out that American captives are protected by American laws, such as the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act, and that Prisoners of War have been allowed to file writs of habeas corpus in earlier conflicts, such as Hirota v. McArthur.
Davis called for the prosecution of those responsible for the Bush detainee policy: "We also want the high level civilian and military generals who put this in place and permitted the violations of laws of war to be prosecuted – to lay a marker to the world and ourselves that we pay more than lip service to Geneva law - we comply with it." He closed his article with the observation "We have real enemies who want to hurt us. The price of freedom is not only to fight – but also to keep our honor clean."
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Benjamin G. Davis (July 13, 2007). "Keep Our Honor Clean". Toledo Free Press. http://www.toledofreepress.com/?id=5937.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Contributing Authors: Benjamin G. Davis". Transnational Dispute Management. http://www.transnational-dispute-management.com/authors/author_detail.asp?key=782. Retrieved July 14 2007.
