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GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA–With just two months left before Omar Khadr goes to trial for alleged war crimes, his lawyers continue to fight to have the case thrown out or delayed until he can have an independent psychiatric evaluation.
At a pre-trial hearing yesterday at the U.S. naval base here, Khadr's lawyers asked an army judge to allow the 21-year-old Canadian to meet with an independent psychiatrist and psychologist with expertise in issues relating to juveniles, torture and combat injuries.
Prosecutors countered there was no need for such an evaluation – which would cost U.S. taxpayers $60,000 – when there are American military doctors capable of assessing Khadr.
But Khadr's U.S. military lawyer, navy Lt.-Cmdr. Bill Kuebler, objected to military doctors doing the evaluation since physicians here participated in previous interrogations of the Toronto native that allegedly involved sleep deprivation, threats and physical abuse.
"(Khadr's) going to have a natural skepticism and reluctance to be mentally poked and prodded by yet more uniformed psychologists and psychiatrists," Kuebler told reporters following the hearing.
The issue revives the debate concerning the medical ethics of doctors working with inmates at this prison on Cuba's southeast shore.
An international outcry followed the revelation that military doctors aided interrogators in developing programs for questioning terrorism suspects in order to increase their stress and exploit their fears.
The medical community accused the doctors of violating the ethical and moral obligations of their profession.
Assessing Khadr's mental state during these interrogations is important to determine the reliability of the statements he made.
Prosecutor U.S. Marine Maj. Jeff Groharing told the court that while Khadr had made incriminating statements, the Pentagon could prove his guilt through eyewitnesses and physical evidence and would not have to rely solely on what he told his interrogators.
Army Col. Patrick Parrish, the judge presiding over Khadr's case, has not yet ruled on whether the independent doctors would be given access to Khadr. If the request is granted, it's likely to delay the start of Khadr's trial past Oct. 8.
Khadr is charged with five war crimes, including murder for the death of Sgt. Christopher Speer.
Speer was fatally wounded in a July 27, 2002 battle in Afghanistan where U.S. soldiers shot and captured Khadr, who was 15 at the time.
During yesterday's day-long hearing, Khadr sat quietly reading, or writing beside his Canadian lawyer, Dennis Edney.
"I told him it looks likely he's going to trial and I also told him it's very likely he'll be found guilty," Edney said yesterday after meeting Khadr.
Khadr's legal team contends the Guantanamo trials are fundamentally unfair and designed to produce convictions.
Kuebler also argued yesterday that charges against Khadr should be thrown out due to unlawful political influence.
