PUBLICATIONS BY Charles Stimson
Commentary
Research
Media Appearances
2009 Commentary
September 28, 2009
Punting National Security to the Judiciary
By Charles "Cully" Stimson
The president won't release detainees; he'll sit back and let the courts to do it for him. In a stunning display of political cowardice, the Obama administration has decided not to seek specific congressional authorization for a prolonged detention statute for Guantanamo Bay detainees deemed too dangerous to set free.
July 08, 2009
No easy answers
By Charles Stimson
The Obama administration waited until 5:45 p.m. on a Friday in late June to float the idea that it is considering an executive order authorizing prolonged detention of captured enemy combatants.
June 13, 2009
First -- and perhaps last -- Gitmo Inmate Brought to America
By Charles Stimson
Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani (aka Haytham al-Kini to his al-Qaeda "brothers") got a one-way ticket from Guantanamo Bay to Manhattan this week. He is the first high-value Gitmo detainee to enter the United States to face justice.
June 05, 2009
Obama Backpedals on the Uighurs
By Charles Stimson
There's an old saying among trial lawyers: "When you go into the woods and find a turtle high up on a tree stump, you know he didn't get there by himself." In other words, sometimes there is no innocent explanation for why someone is where they were when they were caught.
2008 Commentary
September 20, 2008
Congress Must Act Now to Stop Sex Offenders
By Charles D. Stimson and Andrew M. Grossman
Members of Congress often justify their actions as being "for the children." So why is it proving so difficult to get them to fully fund the sex offender registry and notification system they created two years ago under the Adam Walsh Act?
June 30, 2008
Should Terrorist Detainees Have More Rights Than Americans?
By Charles D. Stimson and Andrew M. Grossman
Last week the Supreme Court ruled that terrorist detainees held by the U.S. military in Guantanamo Bay can challenge their detention in federal court.
June 13, 2008
Gitmo Inmates' Constitutional 'Rights'
By Charles Stimson
In a sweeping decision that will have myriad consequences -- foreseen and unforeseen --the Supreme Court found that the right of habeas corpus under the U.S. Constitution applies to terrorist detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
April 26, 2008
Drug policy, from scratch
By Charles Stimson
What would the ideal U.S. drug policy be? What would you keep and reject from current laws?
April 25, 2008
Blood weed
By Charles Stimson
Would softening drug laws alleviate or worsen drug violence in the U.S. and Mexico? Charles "Cully" Stimson and Jacob Sullum debate.
April 24, 2008
Gateway to Washington
By Charles Stimson
The last two presidents and two of the current candidates have either used illegal substances or have had substance abuse problems. Does this show that winners don't always refuse to use drugs? Jacob Sullum and Charles "Cully" Stimson debate.
April 23, 2008
Raiding states' rights?
By Charles Stimson
Do federal raids of legal local marijuana dispensaries violate state sovereignty? Charles 'Cully' Stimson and Jacob Sullum debate.
April 22, 2008
America on drugs
By Charles Stimson
What's the difference between drug legalization and decriminalization? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? All week, Reason magazine's Jacob Sullum and attorney Charles 'Cully' Stimson
April 07, 2008
Keep Track of Crack Facts
By Andrew M. Grossman
A new federal law is letting thousands of federal convicts out of prison early, and no one is tracking who these felons are or what they do as they return to the streets. A belated April Fool's joke? No, it's true, and it's no joke.
March 03, 2008
A Crack-Job on Jail Sentences
By Charles Stimson
Unless Congress acts quickly, on March 3 thousands of convicted felons will be allowed to petition federal judges to get out of jail early.
February 09, 2008
Heritage Foundation: Don't Burn the Byrne Grants
By Cully Stimson
Americans have a love-hate relationship with crime. We’re fascinated with it — as long as we’re not the victims. We love watching "Law & Order" and "Court TV" or reading the latest crime novel, but we hate it when criminals actually target us or our neighborhoods.
January 04, 2008
San Diego Prosecutors Devise Welfare Fraud Strategy
By Charles Stimson
Imagine a government welfare program that is efficient, helps the needy by giving them money within 10 days of their application for benefits, and eliminates waste, fraud and abuse.
2007 Commentary
November 21, 2007
Fingerprints unsmudged
By Charles Stimson
A Maryland trial judge recently ruled the prosecution couldn't use fingerprint evidence in a murder trial. Why? Because, she said, fingerprint evidence isn't reliable. Never mind that the defendant's fingerprints were found on the car of the person who was shot. Does this ruling make sense?
October 22, 2007
A License to Fight Crime More Efficiently
By Charles Stimson
A California man charged recently with kidnapping and assaulting a 12-year-old girl was caught, in part, by license-plate recognition software — software that some privacy activists would ban.
2009 Research
August 17, 2009
Adult Time for Adult Crimes: Life Without Parole for Juvenile Killers and Violent Teens
By Charles Stimson and Andrew Grossman
(Special Report #65)
Adult Time for Adult Crimes: Life Without Parole for Juvenile Killers and Violent Teens by Charles D. Stimson and Andrew Grossman looks at the continued viability of the life without parole punishment for the very worst juvenile offenders
February 19, 2009
Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and U.S. Detainee Policy
By David Rivkin, Lee Casey, and Charles Stimson
(WebMemo #2303)
President Barack Obama ordered the secretary of defense to conduct an immediate 30-day review of the conditions of detention in Guantanamo to "ensure full compliance" with CA3. What exactly such compliance requires is open to debate.
January 23, 2009
Holding Terrorists Accountable: A Lawful Detainment Framework for the Long War
By Charles D. Stimson
(Legal Memorandum #35)
Military detention is a necessary and lawful tool with a long history of use, and whatever President Obama does, he is extremely unlikely to end detention altogether. But he does have the opportunity and the obligation to put U.S. detention policy on a firmer footing by crafting a durable legal framework for detention that meets our security needs as well as our values.
2008 Research
May 16, 2008
No-Match Immigration Enforcement: Time for Action
By Charles D. Stimson and Andrew M. Grossman
(Legal Memorandum #25)
The next Administration is unlikely to take workplace immigration enforcement seriously. Now is the time to put employers on notice that they cannot bury their heads in the sand when they receive no-match letters. Congress should do its part by putting a quick end to anti-enforcement lawsuits and clarifying the legal authorities for the sharing of Social Security no-match data.
April 04, 2008
Keep Track of Crack Cocaine Facts
By Charles D. Stimson and Andrew M. Grossman
(WebMemo #1882)
The Department of Justice should collect and regularly publish facts on the effect of new guidelines granting retroactive application of lower prison sentences.
April 04, 2008
All Aboard: Fifty States Now Compliant with Real ID
By James Jay Carafano, Ph.D., Charles Stimson, Diem Nguyen
(WebMemo #1886)
This past week, the state of Maine agreed to comply with Real ID regulations. Maine was the last state to agree to comply with Real ID, making this a remarkable cornerstone for the program. All 56 U.S. jurisdictions and states have either complied with the law to implement Real ID security standards by May 11, 2008, or have applied for an extension of the deadline for security improvements.
March 14, 2008
National Security Letters: Three Important Facts
By Charles D. Stimson and Andrew M. Grossman
(WebMemo #1853)
National security letters are an indispensable tool in national security investigations.
November 20, 2009
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