Read the following case scenario:
In the ongoing war on terrorism, the new president has proposed expanding the jurisdiction of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA). FISA is a U.S. federal court established and authorized under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to oversee requests for surveillance warrants against foreign spies inside the United States by federal law. The new president’s proposed Secret Terrorism Trial Bill will expand the jurisdiction of the FISA to hold secret, non-public trials of accused terrorists for any planned or actual acts of terrorism on U.S. soil. The bill will also allow witnesses to testify before the FISA Court by remote video with their identities kept secret from the accused and any defense team. The stated purpose for the secrecy is to allow trials of terrorists without giving them a public platform for their radical ideology and to allow witnesses to testify without fear of reprisals from terrorist groups such as ISIS or Al-Qaeda.
Write a paper addressing the following:
Explain whether the proposed Secret Terrorism Trial Bill violates the Sixth Amendment right to a public trial,
Describe whether the proposed Secret Terrorism Trial Bill violate the Sixth Amendment right to confront the witnesses against you.
Explain whether the government’s overriding need to fight terrorism outweighs the Sixth Amendment rights of the accused.
Identify whether the Sixth Amendment applies to terrorists since the writers of the Constitution could not have envisioned mass shootings and suicide bombers.
Full Answer Section
The proposed Secret Terrorism Trial Bill would violate the Sixth Amendment right to a public trial. The bill would allow for trials to be held in secret, without the public or press allowed to attend. This would make it more difficult for the accused to receive a fair trial and would allow the government to abuse its power.
Does the proposed Secret Terrorism Trial Bill violate the Sixth Amendment right to confront the witnesses against you?
The Sixth Amendment also guarantees the right to confront the witnesses against you. This means that the accused has the right to see and hear the witnesses who testify against them, and to cross-examine those witnesses. The right to confront the witnesses against you is important for a number of reasons. First, it allows the accused to defend themselves against the charges against them. By being able to see and hear the witnesses, the accused can challenge their testimony and present their own evidence. Second, the right to confront the witnesses against you helps to ensure that justice is served. When witnesses are not subject to cross-examination, it is more difficult to ensure that their testimony is accurate and truthful.
The proposed Secret Terrorism Trial Bill would also violate the Sixth Amendment right to confront the witnesses against you. The bill would allow witnesses to testify by remote video with their identities kept secret from the accused and any defense team. This would make it difficult for the accused to defend themselves against the charges against them and would allow witnesses to testify without fear of cross-examination.
Does the government’s overriding need to fight terrorism outweigh the Sixth Amendment rights of the accused?
The government has a legitimate interest in fighting terrorism. However, this interest does not outweigh the Sixth Amendment rights of the accused. The Sixth Amendment rights are fundamental rights that are essential to a fair and just system of justice. The government cannot simply ignore these rights in the name of fighting terrorism.
There are other ways to fight terrorism that do not violate the Sixth Amendment rights of the accused. For example, the government can use surveillance techniques to gather evidence against suspected terrorists. The government can also prosecute suspected terrorists in open court, with the public and press allowed to attend. These measures would allow the government to fight terrorism while still protecting the rights of the accused.
Does the Sixth Amendment apply to terrorists since the writers of the Constitution could not have envisioned mass shootings and suicide bombers?
The Sixth Amendment applies to all criminal trials, including trials of terrorists. The writers of the Constitution could not have envisioned mass shootings and suicide bombers, but they did envision a system of justice that would protect the rights of all accused persons, regardless of the charges against them.
The Sixth Amendment is a fundamental right that is essential to a fair and just system of justice. The government cannot simply ignore these rights in the name of fighting terrorism. The government must find ways to fight terrorism that do not violate the Sixth Amendment rights of the accused.