Yesterday, a federal judge issued a decision in our free speech case on behalf of a former Gitmo prosecutor that was, well, good and bad.
Earlier this month the 老澳门开奖结果 filed a lawsuit on behalf of former Guant谩namo chief prosecutor Col. Morris Davis, charging the Library of Congress violated his rights when it fired him from his job at the Library鈥檚 Congressional Research Service (CRS) because of opinion pieces he wrote 鈥� in his personal capacity 鈥� about the Guant谩namo military commissions system. After the pieces ran in the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, Davis was removed from his position as the Assistant Director of the Foreign Affairs, Defense and Trade Division at CRS and installed in a temporary, 30-day position, which expired yesterday.
In anticipation of that date, the 老澳门开奖结果 asked Judge Reggie B. Walton of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to issue an immediate injunction to compel the Library to reinstate Davis to his former job and to block it from hiring a permanent replacement for that position in the interim. Judge Walton鈥檚 decision was disappointing, but not all bad.
Importantly, the judge seemed to agree with what we鈥檝e been saying all along 鈥� that the Library of Congress likely violated Davis鈥檚 rights when it fired him. That鈥檚 good. It gives us hope that things will be made right in the future.
However, the judge denied Davis鈥檚 request for an immediate injunction, finding that Davis had not demonstrated the irreparable injury necessary for an injunction. That鈥檚 bad. Col. Davis is now without a job.
According to Aden Fine, lead lawyer on the case:
鈥淲hile we鈥檙e disappointed that the court missed a chance to immediately right this wrong, the court鈥檚 ruling makes clear that the facts presented to it show that the Library likely violated Col. Davis鈥檚 rights when it fired him for exercising free speech. We look forward to the day when Col. Davis鈥檚 rights are restored.鈥�
Col. Davis said:
鈥淲hile I鈥檓 disappointed that the Court didn鈥檛 immediately take the necessary steps to right this wrong and stop the Library from firing me, I am hopeful the ultimate outcome of this case will recognize my right to free expression. I will continue the fight to get my job at CRS back, although it鈥檚 a fight I never should have had to undertake.鈥�
The lawsuit is ongoing. Stay tuned!
