Hamden and the Constitution

[endarkenment]

"A conviction means ``now we will have an appeal'' to test the validity of the crime of providing material support to terrorists, which is ``a new made-up offense that didn't exist when he committed it,'' said John Hutson, a former Navy judge advocate general and dean of the Franklin Pierce Law School in Concord, New Hampshire."
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aUIM.TJwVzSU&refer=home

Article 1 Section 9: The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person.
The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.
No bill of attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_One_of_the_United_States_Constitution

Hamden cannot be legally convicted on charges that were not law before he committed them.

However, it is only the constitution, and that matters for not very much these days.

[Jim__]

1. The Constitution? "It's just a goddamned piece of paper" - george w bush

Unfortunately, that's now the truth.