Lawrence Morris

Colonel Lawrence J. Morris is a lawyer and an officer in the United States Army.cite news
url=https://www.jagcnet.army.mil/laawsxxi/jagcprofile.nsf/(JAGCNetDocID)/Leadership-TDS-HQ
title=Chief, United States Army Trial Defense Service The Judge Advocate General's Corps U.S. Army Colonel Lawrence J. Morris
publisher=The Judge Advocate General]
date=11 March 2008
accessdate=2008-03-01
quote=] cite news
url=http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/301031
title=Case against Khadr still strong: prosecutor
publisher=Toronto Star
author=Michelle Shephard
date=February 6 2008
accessdate=2008-02-06] cite news
url=http://www.jtfgtmo.southcom.mil/storyarchive/2007/07decstories/121107-2-commissions.html
title=Bin Laden’s driver accused of active terrorist involvement
publisher=JTF Guantanamo Public Affairs
author=Shanita Simmons
date=December 11, 2007
accessdate=2008-02-06
quote=Military Commissions Chief Prosecutor Army Col. Lawrence Morris, said he was pleased with the presentation of evidence by the government, as well as by Hamdan’s counsel. He stated that a favorable ruling for the prosecution in this case will resolve a major legal issue that could otherwise impede the military commissions’ process. “Our best hope and expectation is to find lawful jurisdiction in this case. This will also open the path to trials in other cases,” said Morris.] cite news
url=https://www.jagcnet3.army.mil/JAGCNETINTERNET/HOMEPAGES/AC/ARMYLAWYER.NSF/c82df279f9445da185256e5b005244ee/9796b45f8df7729285256e5b0054ecde/$FILE/GRA.pdf
title=THE JUDGE ADVOCATE GENERAL’S SCHOOL RESERVE COMPONENT (ON-SITE) CONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION TRAINING SCHEDULE 1997-1998 ACADEMIC YEAR
publisher=The Army Lawyer
date=August 1997
accessdate=2008-02-06] cite news
url=http://www.andyworthington.co.uk/?cat=12
title=Guantánamo trials: the king is dead, long live the king
publisher=Andyworthington.co.uk
author=Andy Worthington
date=Tuesday, October 16, 2007
accessdate=2008-02-06]

Academic career

Morris graduated from Marquette University's law school in 1982.cite news
url=http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=734543
title=Marquette grad to prosecute at Guantanamo
publisher=Milwalkee Journal Sentinel
author=John Diedrich
date=April 1, 2008
accessdate=2008-04-02
quote=] Morris had previously earned a double major at Marquette in Political Science and Journalism.

Morris also studied at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, where he earned a Masters of Science in
National Security Strategy.

Military career

In 1997 Lieutenant Colonel Morris served as the head of the Criminal Law department of the Judge Advocate General Corps School, which has full American Bar Association accreditation for its post-juris-doctoral graduate course that confers a Master of Laws degree (or LLM) to its graduates.

In early 2007 Morris was the Chief of Army Trial Defense Services, where he was responsible for the work and professional training of all uniformed Army defense attorneys as they represented soldiers accused of crimes under the UCMJ.He also served as a co-founder of the Law and Order Task Force in Iraq and received a Bronze Star for his service.

In the fall of 2007 Colonel Morris replaced Colonel Morris Davis as Chief Prosecutor of the Guantanamo military commissions. Davis resigned after a public disagreement with Brigadier General Thomas Hartmann, the Chief Legal Advisor to the Convening Authority for the Office of Military Commissions. Davis had publicly called for Hartmann to resign.

In 2002, Morris was the head of the Army’s criminal law branch and was tasked with planning the first prosecution of suspected 9/11 terrorists. According to the Wall Street Journal, back in 2002 “he proposed a high-profile public trial that would lay bare the scope of al Qaeda’s alleged conspiracy while burnishing the ideals of American justice.” His legal advice was disregarded by the Bush administration, which decided to interrogate terrorists in secret -- perhaps to gain critical intelligence necessary -- to prevent further attacks, rather than seek justice through high profile trials. Ironically, Morris has now been asked to finally conduct the trials. cite news
url=http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2008/02/11/us-seeks-death-penalty-for-gitmo-six/
title=U.S. Seeks Death Penalty for Gitmo Six
publisher=Wall Street Journal
author=Dan Slater
date= February 11, 2008
accessdate=2008-04-02
quote=]

Morris [has compared] the planned military trial of Mohammed and the five other defendants to the post-World War II Nuremberg trials, where Nazi war criminals were prosecuted. Morris said that the tribunals would focus on laying out a comprehensive view of the suspect's connections to terrorism, demonstrating the "sophistication of the Al Qaeda operation" around the world.

Morris had been assigned by the Army to oversee plans for military commissions following President George W. Bush's November 2001 announcement that the U.S. would try suspected terrorists in special tribunals. Morris said he had clashed with administration officials who wanted to restrict the legal rights given to detainees, including the right to defense counsel, the right to confront prosecution witnesses and the right to attend all trial proceedings.

Morris had also written an August 2002 memo arguing that the government should open its prosecution of detainees with a group trial of senior Al Qaeda operatives. He said that doing so would expose the full extent of Al Qaeda's crimes and help explain to the world why the military commission system was necessary.

Comments on the testimony of the witness known as "OC-1"

The "Toronto Star" identified Morris as the Chief Prosecutor of the Guantanamo military commissions.
Michelle Shephard of the Star quoted Morris's comments about the accidental release of unredacted testimony from a witness known as OC-1, prior to a hearing where the legality of Omar Khadr combatant status was to be considered.

Excerpts from OC-1's secret testimony seemed to contradict the Prosecution's earlier account that Khadr had been the sole survivor of an aerial bombardment that mortally wounded Green Beret Sergeant Christopher Speer.Morris commented:

Accusations of violation of legal ethics

On March 17 2008 lawyers for four Kuwaitis went to court to bar prosecutors from contacting their clients, and accused them of "violating legal ethics".cite news
url=http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jsTPE2z5A7XvY-g21LzFtJucf6fA
title=Guantanamo lawyers ask court to keep prosecutors from contacting prisoners
publisher=The Canadian Press
date=March 17, 2008
accessdate=2008-04-02
quote=] cite news
url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23681293/
title=Lawyers take Gitmo prosecutors to court
publisher=MSNBC
date=March 17, 2008
accessdate=2008-04-02
quote=] cite news
url=http://www.miamiherald.com/guantanamo/story/460242.html
title=Lawyer protests Gitmo prosecutor's e-mail
publisher=Miami Herald
author=Michael Melia
date=March 17, 2008
accessdate=2008-04-02
quote=] "MSNBC" reported that Morris claimed he did not need the captive's attorneys permission, because they weren't yet officially the captive's attorneys for charges before the Guantanamo military commissions, because they hadn't yet been charged."MSNBC" reported that the Kuwaitis' attorneys had filed a petition claimingProsecution lawyers had met with their clients, and had warned them that their lawyers were jewish."MSNBC" quoted Matthew MacLean: quotation
"Are these prosecutors bound by the rules that are binding on all prosecutors everywhere? Or are these prosecutors going to be allowed to be cowboys, doing whatever they want?"

References