Ricardo M. Urbina
Encyclopedia
Ricardo M. Urbina is a United States District Court
judge in Washington, DC. He has taken senior status
.
Urbina earned a B.A.
from Georgetown University
in 1967. He received his law degree from the Law Center
at Georgetown University
in 1970. He began his legal career as a public defender
. He worked for D.C. Public Defender Service from 1970 to 1972. He was on the faculty of Howard University Law School from 1974 to 1981. In 1981 he became Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia
, and in 1994 President Bill Clinton
appointed him to the United States district court
.
petitions submitted on behalf of prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.
In October 2008, he ordered the release of a small group of Uighur
detainees from Guantanamo into the United States because they are no longer regarded as enemy combatant
s.
According to Carol Rosenberg
, writing in the Miami Herald Urbina's release order was sealed, and it "brought the so-called habeas corpus scorecard to 32 losses and nine victories by the Pentagon of detainee challenges from Guantánamo Bay, Cuba."
Dean Boyd, a Department of Justice spokesman, told Rosenberg the Government was reviewing its options in how to react to the ruling.
Blackwater Baghdad shootings
On December 31, 2009--a month before five Blackwater Worldwide
security guards implicated in the September, 2007, Nisour Square, Baghdad, shooting incident were to go on trial--Urbina dismissed the case. Urbina said that the prosecutors improperly relied upon statements the guards gave to State Department investigators. The guards were required to make the statements if they wanted to keep their jobs--thus making them inadmissible under the Fifth Amendment
. The immunity issue was a problem that lawyers for the government anticipated as long as a year ago when they briefed Congress on the matter. Judge Urbina dismissed the indictment of the five men who pleaded not guilty to voluntary manslaughter and firearms violations: Paul Slough, Evan Liberty, Dustin Heard, Donald Ball and Nicholas Slatten.
Dozens of Iraqis, including the estates of some of the victims allegedly killed by Blackwater employees, filed a separate lawsuit last year alleging that Blackwater employees engaged in indiscriminate killings and beatings. The civil case is still before a Virginia court. Blackwater contractors had been hired to guard US diplomats in Iraq. The guards said insurgents ambushed them in a traffic circle. Prosecutors said the men unleashed an unprovoked attack on civilians using machine guns and grenades. The shooting led to the unraveling of the North Carolina-based company, which since has replaced its management and changed its name to Xe Services.
, Dick Anthony Heller filed suit against the District of Columbia challenging the constitutionality of its laws regulating gun registration and gun restriction
. Urbina dismissed Heller v. District of Columbia on 26 Mar 2010.
has taken several thousand images of individuals passing through the Full Body Scanner to demonstrate its effectiveness to TSA employees. The EPIC
sued the DHS for the release of the images. Urbina sided with the TSA, arguing that a release of the images would threaten national security.
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
judge in Washington, DC. He has taken senior status
Senior status
Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges, and judges in some state court systems. After federal judges have reached a certain combination of age and years of service on the federal courts, they are allowed to assume senior status...
.
Urbina earned a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
in 1967. He received his law degree from the Law Center
Georgetown University Law Center
Georgetown University Law Center is the law school of Georgetown University, located in Washington, D.C.. Established in 1870, the Law Center offers J.D., LL.M., and S.J.D. degrees in law...
at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
in 1970. He began his legal career as a public defender
Public defender
The term public defender is primarily used to refer to a criminal defense lawyer appointed to represent people charged with a crime but who cannot afford to hire an attorney in the United States and Brazil. The term is also applied to some ombudsman offices, for example in Jamaica, and is one way...
. He worked for D.C. Public Defender Service from 1970 to 1972. He was on the faculty of Howard University Law School from 1974 to 1981. In 1981 he became Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia
Superior Court of the District of Columbia
The Superior Court of the District of Columbia is the local trial court for the District of Columbia. It hears cases involving criminal and civil law. The court also handles specialized cases in the following areas: family court, landlord and tenant, probate, tax, and traffic offenses...
, and in 1994 President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
appointed him to the United States district court
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
.
Guantanamo Bay detainees
Urbina presided over a number of habeas corpusHabeas corpus
is a writ, or legal action, through which a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. The remedy can be sought by the prisoner or by another person coming to his aid. Habeas corpus originated in the English legal system, but it is now available in many nations...
petitions submitted on behalf of prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.
In October 2008, he ordered the release of a small group of Uighur
Uyghur people
The Uyghur are a Turkic ethnic group living in Eastern and Central Asia. Today, Uyghurs live primarily in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China...
detainees from Guantanamo into the United States because they are no longer regarded as enemy combatant
Enemy combatant
Enemy combatant is a term historically referring to members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. Prior to 2008, the definition was: "Any person in an armed conflict who could be properly detained under the laws and customs of war." In the case of a civil war or an...
s.
Saeed Hatim v. Barack Obama
On December 16, 2009 Urbina ordered Guantanamo captive "Saeed Hatim" to be released.According to Carol Rosenberg
Carol Rosenberg
Carol Rosenberg is a senior journalist, currently with the McClatchy News Service.Rosenberg works at the Miami Herald, which has provided extensive coverage of the operation of the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.-Biography:...
, writing in the Miami Herald Urbina's release order was sealed, and it "brought the so-called habeas corpus scorecard to 32 losses and nine victories by the Pentagon of detainee challenges from Guantánamo Bay, Cuba."
Dean Boyd, a Department of Justice spokesman, told Rosenberg the Government was reviewing its options in how to react to the ruling.
Blackwater Baghdad shootingsBlackwater Baghdad shootingsOn September 16, 2007, Blackwater military contractors allegedly shot and killed 17 Iraqi civilians in Nisour Square, Baghdad. The fatalities occurred while a Blackwater Personal Security Detail was clearing the way for a convoy of US State Department vehicles en route to a meeting in western...
prosecution
On December 31, 2009--a month before five Blackwater WorldwideBlackwater Worldwide
Xe Services LLC, better known by its former names, Blackwater USA and Blackwater Worldwide, is a private military company founded in 1997 by Erik Prince and Al Clark.. Xe is currently the largest of the U.S. State Department's three private security contractors...
security guards implicated in the September, 2007, Nisour Square, Baghdad, shooting incident were to go on trial--Urbina dismissed the case. Urbina said that the prosecutors improperly relied upon statements the guards gave to State Department investigators. The guards were required to make the statements if they wanted to keep their jobs--thus making them inadmissible under the Fifth Amendment
Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, protects against abuse of government authority in a legal procedure. Its guarantees stem from English common law which traces back to the Magna Carta in 1215...
. The immunity issue was a problem that lawyers for the government anticipated as long as a year ago when they briefed Congress on the matter. Judge Urbina dismissed the indictment of the five men who pleaded not guilty to voluntary manslaughter and firearms violations: Paul Slough, Evan Liberty, Dustin Heard, Donald Ball and Nicholas Slatten.
Dozens of Iraqis, including the estates of some of the victims allegedly killed by Blackwater employees, filed a separate lawsuit last year alleging that Blackwater employees engaged in indiscriminate killings and beatings. The civil case is still before a Virginia court. Blackwater contractors had been hired to guard US diplomats in Iraq. The guards said insurgents ambushed them in a traffic circle. Prosecutors said the men unleashed an unprovoked attack on civilians using machine guns and grenades. The shooting led to the unraveling of the North Carolina-based company, which since has replaced its management and changed its name to Xe Services.
Heller v. District of Columbia
In the wake of District of Columbia v. HellerDistrict of Columbia v. Heller
District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 , was a landmark case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for traditionally lawful purposes in federal enclaves, such as...
, Dick Anthony Heller filed suit against the District of Columbia challenging the constitutionality of its laws regulating gun registration and gun restriction
Gun control
Gun control is any law, policy, practice, or proposal designed to restrict or limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of guns or other firearms by private citizens...
. Urbina dismissed Heller v. District of Columbia on 26 Mar 2010.
Electronic Privacy Information Center v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security
The Transportation Security AdministrationTransportation Security Administration
The Transportation Security Administration is an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that exercises authority over the safety and security of the traveling public in the United States....
has taken several thousand images of individuals passing through the Full Body Scanner to demonstrate its effectiveness to TSA employees. The EPIC
Electronic Privacy Information Center
Electronic Privacy Information Center is a public interest research group in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1994 to focus public attention on emerging civil liberties issues and to protect privacy, the First Amendment, and constitutional values in the information age...
sued the DHS for the release of the images. Urbina sided with the TSA, arguing that a release of the images would threaten national security.