Jose Padilla, a United States citizen, was incarcerated for four years without trial for an alleged 2002 "dirty bomb" plot and has been trying to sue U.S. officials for his mistreatment while detained in a military brig in South Carolina.
Despite Padilla receiving direct support by the ACLU, he has been unsuccessful at attempting to hold accountable those who have been responsible for his horrendous treatment. Padilla's case has come to represent the overall demand by Guantanamo detainees that their cases be objectively considered.
Yesterday, June 11, all cases filed by detainees were rejected by the United States Supreme Court, leaving little doubt as to the path this country is heading toward with its conclusion that American citizen or not, your rights end where the U.S. government says they end, regardless of Constitutional principles or legal review.
Jose Padilla has been dealt legal blow after legal blow; first having Atlanta's 11 Circuit Court of Appeals rule against U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke in September 2011, who noted that Padilla had been confined under harsh conditions and had not injured anyone, among other considerations. The majority issued their opinion in vague language that alluded to "an impermissible comparison to sentences imposed in other terrorism cases, and was based in part on inappropriate factors," as well as his suspected Al Qaeda training. (Source)
In January of this year, Padilla was then denied by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Virgina as having any right to even file suit for his claims of illegal detention and torture.