Quote: Presumption of Innocence

I would merely note that the presumption of innocence is a right accorded to American citizens accused of crimes, and extended to aliens residing in the U.S. as a matter of policy. Bin Laden and his confederates, who on the most charitable construction have waged war against the U.S., are no more entitled to a presumption of innocence than an S.S. officer who was blown away during the Battle of the Bulge.

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…combatants in a war–even a legitimate war, conducted under the age-old rules pertaining thereto, let alone a war of terrorism–are not “arrested and tried.” Where possible, they are shot. Did Germany arrest French soldiers and send them back to the Reich for “trial” when they swept across France in 1940? Um, no. They shot or captured them. Likewise, when the Allies swept across France and into Germany in 1944, were they arresting every Wehrmacht soldier they came across, and sending him to the U.S. for “trial?” Of course not. Prisoners were taken, of course, but they weren’t “arrested,” they were simply detained until the hostilities were at an end. That doesn’t even get to the fact that terrorists and pirates have historically been shot or hanged without ceremony, according to the rules of war.

–John H. Hinderaker