Case 1:04-cv-01194-UNA Document 1106 Filed 10/11/17 Page 1 of 4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA IN RE: GUANTANAMO BAY DETAINEE LITIGATION Misc. No. 08-442 (TFH) Civil Action Nos. 04-CV-1194, 04-CV-1254, 04-CV-2022, 05-CV-0023, 05-CV-0764, 05-CV-1048, 05-CV-1506, 05-CV-1592, 05-CV-1607, 05-CV-1971, 05-CV-1983, 05-CV-2104, 05-CV-2223, 05-CV-2348, 05-CV-2371, 05-CV-2380, 05-CV-2386, 06-CV-1690, 06-CV-1725, 07-CV-2337, 08-CV-1207, 08-CV-1236, 08-CV-1360, 08-CV-1440, 08-CV-1645, 08-CV-2083, 09-CV-0031, 09-CV-0745, 09-CV-0873, 09-CV-1385, 09-CV-1462, 10-CV-0407, 10-CV-1020, 11-CV-0923, 15-CV-0681, 15-CV-1257, 16-CV-1462, 16-CV-2358; 17-CV-1928 NOTICE REGARDING CAMP FIVE ECHO BLOCK Respondents respectfully notify the Court that the Department of Defense intends to demolish Camp Five Echo Block, a former detention building at the Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and repurpose the site as a facility for detainees to conduct private meetings and phone calls with their attorneys and other authorized personnel. 1 As explained in the attached declaration of Rear Admiral Edward Cashman, Commander of Joint Task Force-Guantanamo (JTF-GTMO), Camp Five is a maximum security detention facility built in April 2004. See Cashman Decl. 5 (Exhibit 1). Camp Five Echo Block is a relatively small detached structure that lies within the perimeter fence of Camp Five. Id. 6. Camp Five Echo Block consists of two rows of individual cells that were used to temporarily 1 There are currently 41 detainees at Guantanamo Bay, 39 of whom have filed petitions for writ of habeas corpus in this Court. This notice is being submitted in all Guantanamo Bay habeas cases in which at least one petitioner is currently held at Guantanamo Bay, whether the case remains pending or not. 1
Case 1:04-cv-01194-UNA Document 1106 Filed 10/11/17 Page 2 of 4 house highly non-compliant detainees. Id. It has not housed any detainees since October 2014. Id. JTF-GTMO currently facilitates a variety of private meetings between detainees and other authorized personnel. These meetings include privileged meetings and phone calls between detainees and their attorneys in habeas corpus and military commission cases. Id. 3. Additionally, JTF-GTMO arranges administrative meetings between detainees and their personal representatives in the Periodic Review Board process as well as delegates from the International Committee of the Red Cross. Id. All such meetings for non-high Value Detainees take place in designated locations within Camp Delta and Camp Echo I. Id. These locations are physically separate from the detainees living facilities and, therefore, require a guard force team to transport a detainee to and from the meeting locations. Id. 4. The transportation process requires guards to move a detainee from his living area to a transport van; secure the detainee inside the van; drive to the meeting location; remove the detainee from the van; and escort him into the meeting area. See id. Each segment of this process is repeated in reverse on the return trip. Id. These movements are time-consuming and resource-intensive, and they increase the risk to safety and security of both the detainees and the guard force. Id. The location of Camp Five Echo Block is ideal for conducting private meetings for non- High Value Detainees because it would not require any detainee movements outside of the complex that houses Camps Five and Six. Id. 7. Camp Five Echo Block is located approximately 150 yards from Camp Six, the facility that currently houses most of the non-high Value Detainees. Id. Camps Five and Six share a perimeter fence, thus movements between those camps would not require external transportation. As a result, movements to a new meeting facility in Camp Five would be significantly less-resource intensive than movements to Camp 2
Case 1:04-cv-01194-UNA Document 1106 Filed 10/11/17 Page 3 of 4 Delta or Camp Echo I. See id. The movements would also be quicker and less disruptive for the detainees. Id. Despite its ideal location, the current layout of Camp Five Echo Block does not lend itself to easy renovation for private meeting spaces. Id. Accordingly, JTF-GTMO intends to demolish the existing Camp Five Echo Block building and replace it with a purpose-built facility designed to allow multiple private meetings and phone calls. Id. 8. Demolition of Camp 5 Echo Block will begin no sooner than October 25, 2017. Id. 10. Respondents have taken steps to preserve data about Camp 5 Echo Block. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted a site survey of Camp Five Echo Block in 2017 to collect various types of data and recordings about the building. Id. 9. The FBI s data could be used, if necessary, to create a fair and accurate representation of the facility to include a threedimensional model that shows all areas of the building where detainees were held. Id. This data will be preserved. Id. Respondents recognize the public interest in the Guantanamo Bay habeas cases and, in the interest of transparency, hereby inform the Court and Petitioners counsel of the Department of Defense s plan to demolish Camp Five Echo Block. Dated: October 11, 2017 Respectfully submitted, CHAD A. READLER Acting Assistant Attorney General TERRY M. HENRY Assistant Branch Director /s/ Andrew I. Warden Senior Trial Counsel United States Department of Justice Civil Division, Federal Programs Branch 20 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. 3
Case 1:04-cv-01194-UNA Document 1106 Filed 10/11/17 Page 4 of 4 Washington, D.C. 20530 Tel: (202) 616-5084 Email: Andrew.Warden@usdoj.gov 4
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