Thoughts on Hentif [REDACTED]

I promised last week to give some thoughts on Judge Henry Kennedy's recent opinion in Hentif as soon as I had a chance to read it. I was busy running some events over the past few days and only just got to the opinion this morning--and unfortunately, I can't offer any thoughts of consequence because the opinion is so heavily redacted that evaluation is not really possible. Not only are key facts, passages, and pages redacted throughout the opinion, but the final evaluation of the evidence itself is largely obscured. The first two of the four findings of fact (see pp. 39-40) are, uh, not to be found. All I can really say is that Hentif does not appear to break much new ground. It's the case of another Yemeni said to have gone to Afghanistan for jihad, hung out in guesthouses and been caught with bad guys--and with the wrong kind of watch. Judge Kennedy was clearly persuaded that the evidence of these claims was adequate, under D.C. Circuit law, to affirm the detention. That's about the best I can do. Maybe more will come out on appeal.