WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court Monday refused to put the case of an alleged former bodyguard of Osama bin Laden on the fast-track.
The justices could take up the case later, but refused to consider it on an expedited basis.
A federal judge has ruled the administration cannot bypass the Geneva Convention by holding military commissions to try the suspect and presumably others at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Lawyers for Salim Ahmed Hamdan had filed suit challenging the Defense Department's plan to try him "for alleged war crimes before a military commission convened under special orders issued by the president of the United States, rather than before a court-martial convened under the Uniform Code of Military Justice."
The judge ruled unless a "competent tribunal" determines Hamdan is not entitled to prisoner-of-war status, he may only be tried by a court-martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which provides him some rights.
The high court could still hear the case before the appeals court, but refused to consider it on an expedited basis.
