Rebecca S. Snyder: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia
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{{short description|American lawyer}}
[[Image:Rebecca Snyder.jpg|thumb|Rebecca Snyder, while working on Omar Khadr's case.]]
'''Rebecca S. Snyder''' is an [[United States|American]] appellate defense attorney in [[Washington DC]].<ref>BMHM, [http://www.bmhm.com/attorney/Rebecca_S._Snyder,373335.html Rebecca S. Snyder details]</ref>
She is notable for her work, along with Lt. Cmdr. [[William Kuebler]], as [[Counsel|co-counsel]] for [[Omar Khadr]], a [[detainee]] at [[Guantanamo Bay detention camp]], charged with [[murder]] for the death of an American soldier during a skirmish in [[Afghanistan]] on July 27, 2002.<ref name=ReginaLeaderPost20080501>
{{cite news
| url = http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/news/story.html?id=235849cc-db5a-497f-96e8-cad1267d8a70&p=1
| title = Ruling called 'an embarrassment'
| publisher = [[Regina Leader Post]]
| author = [[Steven Edwards (journalist)|Steven Edwards]], [[Juliet O'Neill]]
| date = May 1, 2008
| accessdate = 2008-05-27
|url-status = dead
|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20121104112055/http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/news/story.html?id=235849cc-db5a-497f-96e8-cad1267d8a70&p=1
|archivedate = November 4, 2012
}}</ref><ref name=OmarKhadrSept2007Challenge>
{{cite news
Line 29 ⟶ 34:
}}</ref>
Snyder was commissioned as a [[lieutenant]] in the [[United States Navy]]. She served in the [[Judge Advocate General's Corps|Judge Advocate General]] Corps.
==Early life==
Snyder has [[B.A.]] from [[Princeton University]] (2004) and a [[J.D.]] from the [[New York University School of Law]] (2008).<ref>{{cite web|title=Rachel Snyder|url=http://www.paulhastings.com/professionalDetail.aspx?ProfessionalId=110544|publisher=[[Paul Hastings]]|accessdate=24 November 2011}}</ref>
Snyder has worked in the field of [[Security (finance)|securities exchange]] in her civilian practice at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker.
==Naval career==
Snyder represented [[Omar Khadr]] as a civilian employee of the Department of Defense.<ref name=MiamiHerald20080317>
Snyder was commissioned as a [[lieutenant]] in the [[United States Navy Reserve]]. She served in the [[Judge Advocate General's Corps|Judge Advocate General]] Corp.
{| class="wikitable"
! '''date''' || '''case''' || '''notes'''
|-
| 2004 || '''United States v. Matthew R. Walther''' ||
* Seaman Recruit Matthew R. Walther pleaded guilty, in 2002, to possession of five packets of marijuana, and bringing it on base with the intention of selling it.<ref name=Jag20040826>
{{cite news
| url=http://www.jag.navy.mil/NMCCA/200201526%20UNPUB.doc
| title=United States v. Matthew R. Walther
| publisher=[[United States Navy]]
| date=26 August, 2004
| accessdate=2008-05-27
}}</ref> He was sentenced to 18 months in the [[Military prison|brig]].
* On appeal the presiding judge's sentence was overturned because he erred in allowing certain testimony.<ref name=Jag20040826/> Snyder had objected to the testimony, at the time.
|-
| 2004 || '''United States v. Michael J. Henderson''' ||
* Damage Controlman Fireman Apprentice (DCFA) Michael J. Henderson pleaded guilty to constructing and placing an [[improvised explosive device]] onboard the [[USS Tarawa|USS ''Tarawa'']].<ref name=USVHenderson>
{{cite news
| url=http://www.armfor.uscourts.gov/opinions/2004Term/03-0470.htm
| title=United States v. Michael J. Henderson
| publisher=United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
| author=
| date=March 26, 2004
| accessdate=2008-05-25
| quote=
}}</ref>
* Henderson planned to explode the bomb on board to commit suicide.<ref name=USVHenderson/>
* Henderson had initially pleaded guilty, in a [[Courts-martial_in_the_United_States#Special_Court-Martial|special court martial]], to "negligently hazarding a vessel" -- a non-capital crime.<ref name=USVHenderson/> He could have been charged with a [[Capital punishment|capital offense]], if he had not waived trial before a [[Courts-martial_in_the_United_States#General_Court-Martial|general court martial]]. The appeals court ruled that his jurisdictional appeal was invalid because he had pleaded guilty.
|-
| 2004-<br>2007 || '''United States of America v. David Matthew Hicks''' ||
* Lieutenant Commander Snyder was assigned to help defend Guantanamo detainee [[David Hicks]].<ref name=StanfordLawReview2008February>
{{cite news
| url=http://lsr.nellco.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1054&context=georgetown/fwps
| title=Lawfare and legal ethics in Guantánamo
| publisher=[[Stanford Law Review]]
| volume=60
| issue=6
| author=[[David Luban]]
| date=February 2008
| accessdate=2008-05-28
| quote=
}}</ref><ref name=ThePost20070404>
{{cite news
| url=http://www.thepost.com.pk/Previuos.aspx?dtlid=90348&src=Amy%20Goodman&date=04/04/2007
| title=US kangaroo court’s first victim
| publisher=[[The Post (Pakistani newspaper)|The Post]]
| author=[[Amy Goodman]]
| date=April 4, 2007
| accessdate=2008-05-29
| quote=
}}</ref>
* According to an article in the [[Stanford Law Review]], after three years of preparation the [[Presiding Officer (Guantanamo Military Commissions)|Presiding Officer]] unexpectedly barred Snyder from participating in Hicks's trial.
:{|
|
:"...Instead, bizarrely, he tossed Hicks’s other two lawyers out of the hearing. [[Ralph H. Kohlmann|Col. Kohlmann]] ruled that Rebecca Snyder was not qualified as military counsel because she was not on active duty status, despite being appointed to [[Guantanamo military commission|Office of Military Commissions]] — a decision that [[Joshua L. Dratel|Dratel]] believes was entirely [[ultra vires]]."
|}
|-
| 2006 || '''United States v. Raymond Olafson''' ||
*Wherein Cpt. Olafson was found guilty of rape, indecent liberties with a female under the age of 16, and two specifications of indecent assault in violation of Articles 120 and 134, Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 U.S.C. §§ 920 and 934. He was sentenced to a dismissal, confinement for three years in the brig, and total forfeiture of all pay and allowances.<ref name=UnitedStatesVRaymondOlafson>
{{cite news
| url=http://www.jag.navy.mil/NMCCA/OLAFSON%20R.%20200001034%20UNPUB.doc
| title=United States v. Raymond Olafson
| publisher=U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals
| date= June 8, 2006
| accessdate=2008-05-25
| quote=
}}</ref>
|}
==Civilian practice==
{{wikisource|Rebecca Snyder email on USA v. Khadr -- date redacted -- 1}}
{{wikisource|Rebecca Snyder email on USA v. Khadr -- date redacted -- 2}}
Snyder has worked in the field of [[Security (finance)|securities exchange]] in her civilian practice at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker.<ref name=PaulHastingsSECBroker>
{{cite news
| url=http://www.paulhastings.com/PublicationDetail.aspx?PublicationId=37
| title=SEC Broker-Dealer Record Retention Requirements
| publisher=[[Paul Hastings]]
| author=[[Kirby D. Behre]], [[Jeremy Evans]], [[Edward Griffin]], [[Rebecca Snyder]]
| date=April 20, 2005
| accessdate=2008-05-29
| quote=
}}</ref>
Snyder has also continued to work on behalf of Guantanamo captives in her civilian practice, assisting [[Omar Khadr]].<ref name=MiamiHerald20080317>
{{cite news
| url=http://blogs.georgetown.edu/?id=31962
Line 131 ⟶ 50:
| quote=
}}</ref>
In press reports of her efforts on his behalf she is referred to as a civilian.
As part of her efforts on Khadr's behalf Snyder appeared before the [[Human Rights]] [[subcommittee]] of the [[Parliament of Canada]].<ref name=GlobeAndMail20080429>
{{cite news
| url = http://www.angusreidstrategies.com/uploads/pages/pdfs/Globe_Khadr.pdf
| title = Khadr lawyer takes case to Parliament Hill
| page =
| pages =
|work publisher= [[The Globe and Mail]]
| author = [[Omar El Akkab]]
| date = April 29, 2008
| accessdate = 2008-05-27
| quote =
}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name=HumanRightsRebeccaSnyder20080429>
{{cite news
| url = http://cmte.parl.gc.ca/cmte/CommitteePublication.aspx?COM=13463&SourceId=236744&SwitchLanguage=1
| title = MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS
| publisher = The Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development
| date = April 29, 2008
| accessdate = 2008-05-25
|url-status = live
| quote=
|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20120614023838/http://cmte.parl.gc.ca/cmte/CommitteePublication.aspx?COM=13463&SourceId=236744&SwitchLanguage=1
|archivedate = June 14, 2012
}}
[http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fcmte.parl.gc.ca%2Fcmte%2FCommitteePublication.aspx%3FCOM%3D13463%26SourceId%3D236744%26SwitchLanguage%3D1&date=2008-05-27 mirror]
</ref>
The next day Snyder and Keubler[[Kuebler]] met with [[Stéphane Dion]], leader of the Opposition.<ref name=Liberal20080530>
{{cite news
| url = http://www.liberal.ca/story_13916_e.aspx
| title = Khadr Must Be Repatriated to Receive Just Treatment
| publisher = [[Liberal Party of Canada]]
| date = April 30, 2008
| accessdate = 2008-05-29
|url-status = dead
| quote=
|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20080611214519/http://www.liberal.ca/story_13916_e.aspx
|archivedate = June 11, 2008
}}</ref>
On February 4, 2008 Snyder argued that even if Khadr had killed an American soldier during the invasion of Afghanistan, it was not a [[war crime]] since killing soldiers was "part of what war is about". However, the U.S. position that Khadr should be tried at the military tribunal as he operated without a uniform and quartered himself amongst civilians contra to the [[Laws of war|Laws of Land Warfare]] was summed up by Marine Corps Maj. Jeffrey Groharing, who said "The accused and the terrorists he was working with did not belong to a legitimate army. They belonged to al-Qaeda,":<ref name=Cbc20080204>
{{cite news
| url =http https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2008/02/04/lawyers-for-khadr-want-charges-dropped-1.html753613
| title = Lawyers for Khadr want charges dropped
| publisher = [[CBC News]]
| date = February 4, 2008
|access-date accessdate= 2008-05-27
|url-status = live
| quote=
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080610183029/http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/02/04/khadr-charges.html
|archive-date = June 10, 2008
}}
[http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cbc.ca%2Fworld%2Fstory%2F2008%2F02%2F04%2Fkhadr-charges.html&date=2008-05-27 mirror]
</ref>:
</ref>
On January 13, 2009, Snyder was quoted predicting that charges against Khadr would be dropped, when [[Barack Obama]] became President.<ref name=NationalPost2009-01-13>
On January 13, 2009, Snyder was quoted predicting that charges against Khadr would be dropped, when [[Barack Obama]] became president.<ref name=NationalPost2009-01-13>
{{cite news
| url =http https://www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/story.html?id=1170075
| title = Khadr charges will be dropped, lawyer predicts
| publisher = [[National Post]]
| author =
| date = 2009-01-13
| accessdate = 2009-01-13
| quote =
}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
}}
</ref>
According to the ''[[National Post]]'' she said:
:{| class="wikitable" border="1"
{| class="wikitable" border="1"
|
:"<blockquote>We can't imagine that the new president will move to close the camps without also addressing the military commissions. Otherwise, it may seem that he may end up giving [Mohammed] {{sic}} a fairer trial than Omar Khadr, a former child soldier."</blockquote>
|}
== References ==
{{refsreflist|2}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
| NAME = Snyder, Rebecca S.
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH =
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Snyder, Rebecca S.}}
[[Category:Guantanamo Bay attorneys]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Princeton University alumni]]
[[Category:New York University School of Law alumni]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Female United States Navy officers]]
[[Category:21st-century American women lawyers]]
[[Category:21st-century American lawyers]]