Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

James L. Pohl is an American

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

and officer in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. He is notable for having been appointed as a judge on a

Guantanamo military commission The Guantanamo military commissions were established by President George W. Bush through a military order on November 13, 2001, to try certain non-citizen terrorism suspects at the Guantanamo Bay prison. To date, there have been a total of eight ...

. He is presiding over the commission of Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, Walid bin Attash,

Ramzi bin al-Shibh Ramzi Mohammed Abdullah bin al-Shibh (; born May 1, 1972) is a Yemenis, Yemeni Terrorism, terrorist who served as al-Qaeda's communications officer. He has been detained by the United States in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp (NSGB) since 200 ...

, Ammar al-Baluchi, and

Mustafa al-Hawsawi Mustafa Ahmed Adam al-Hawsawi (; born August 5, 1968) is a Saudi Arabian citizen. He is alleged to have acted as a key financial facilitator for the September 11 attacks in the United States. Mustafa al-Hawsawi was captured in Pakistan by Pakist ...

. From November 2011 to July 2014, Pohl also presided over the military commission of Abd el-Rahim al-Nashiri. He is notable for serving as the judge of several of the GIs in the

Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse During the early stages of the Iraq War, members of the United States Army and the Central Intelligence Agency were accused of a series of human rights violations and war crimes against detainees in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. These abuses ...

cases, and barring the demolition of

Abu Ghraib prison Abu Ghraib prison (, ''Sijn Abū Ghurayb'') was a prison complex in Abu Ghraib, Iraq, located west of Baghdad. Abu Ghraib prison was opened in the 1960s and served as a maximum-security prison. From the 1970s, the prison was used by Saddam Hus ...

because he had ruled it a crime scene. In December 2008, Pohl was appointed to replace

Ralph Kohlmann Ralph Harold Kohlmann is an American lawyer and retired United States Marine Corps officer. Education Raised in Wyckoff, New Jersey, Kohlmann is a 1976 graduate of Ramapo High School (New Jersey), Ramapo High School. Military career For his f ...

as the chief presiding officer for the military commissions. Pohl received his J.D. from

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...

in 1978.

Suspension of Guantanamo Hearings

On January 29, 2009, Pohl denied the request of the

Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...

to delay proceeding for 120 days in the case of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri. Pohl argued that tribunal rules give the judges sole authority to delay cases and that postponing proceedings against Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri was not reasonable and "does not serve the interest of justice". According to Carol Rosenberg, writing in the ''

Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...

'', Pohl's ruling stated: : According to Guantanamo spokesman

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

Jeffrey Gordon: "The Department of Defense is currently reviewing Judge Pohl's ruling. We will be in compliance with the president's orders regarding Guantánamo." According to ''

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

'', Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said that Pohl would be directed to comply with Obama's executive order. On February 5, 2009, the charges were dismissed without prejudice by the convening authority.

Assigned to investigate the Fort Hood shootings

Pohl was assigned to serve as the investigating officer for the

article 32 hearing An Article 32 hearing is a proceeding under the United States Uniform Code of Military Justice, similar to that of a preliminary hearing in civilian law. Its name is derived from UCMJ section VII ("Trial Procedure") Articl32(10 U.S.C. § 832), ...

for

Nidal Hasan Nidal Malik Hasan (born September 8, 1970) is an American former United States Army major, physician, and mass murderer convicted of killing 13 people and injuring 32 others in the Fort Hood mass shooting on November 5, 2009. Hasan, an Army Me ...

, the perpetrator of the

2009 Fort Hood shooting On November 5, 2009, a mass shooting took place at Fort Hood (now Fort Cavazos), near Killeen, Texas, United States. Nidal Hasan, a Major (United States), U.S. Army major and psychiatrist, fatally shot 13 people and injured more than 30 other ...

Assigned to Brigadier General Sinclair Court-Martial

Pohl was assigned to preside over the court martial of Brigadier General Jeffrey A. Sinclair, a former deputy commander of the

82nd Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an Airborne forces, airborne infantry division (military), division of the United States Army specializing in Paratrooper, parachute assault operations into hostile areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops ...

, charged with

sodomy Sodomy (), also called buggery in British English, principally refers to either anal sex (but occasionally also oral sex) between people, or any Human sexual activity, sexual activity between a human and another animal (Zoophilia, bestiality). I ...

. Following acceptance of Sinclair's guilty pleas on some (but not all) of the charges he faced (including adultery with three different women, violating a general order by possessing pornography in the Afghan theater of operations, and conduct unbecoming an officer), Pohl sentenced Sinclair to a reprimand and forfeiture of five thousand dollars a month for four months ($20,000 total).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pohl, James L. Guantanamo Military Commission members Living people American military lawyers United States Army colonels Pepperdine University alumni Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American lawyers