# The trial of Omar Khadr. **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 9, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730 "2010-08-09T17:16:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/121 "2015-05-14T03:51:39Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Hey, I’m retired career military and I think it’s ridiculous to call everyone in the military “hero”. The only person mentioning the term ‘hero’ is **CarnalK**. I’ve just asked for some extra respect for those people who put their lives on the line for others. Especially from their government who sends them into unwinnable situations where their deaths mean absolutely nothing. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/122 "2015-05-14T04:12:32Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > Muslims, unfortunately, are subject to a special brand of crazy at the moment. I find it rather difficult to find this comment anything other than prejudicial. Are you sure you thought out that statement before posting it? ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/123 "2015-05-14T05:16:16Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > I find it rather difficult to find this comment anything other than prejudicial. Are you sure you thought out that statement before posting it? That Muslim’s have to jump through hoops to justify their religion’s requirements to kill or subjugate people who don’t agree with them or offend them in some arbitrary way? That most Muslim’s don’t follow these mandatory requirements is to their benefit. Now if they’d only discard the remaining myths, the world would be a much better place. So, yeah, I’ve thought long and hard on the matter. Omar would have been much better off if he hadn’t been indoctrinated into that cult of death. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/124 "2015-05-14T05:29:30Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > The only person mentioning the term ‘hero’ is **CarnalK**. I’ve just asked for some extra respect for those people who put their lives on the line for others. Especially from their government who sends them into unwinnable situations where their deaths mean absolutely nothing. And I am saying they don’t deserve extra respect. Certainly not to the degree that we bend proper legal procedure or craft laws specifically to show how much we love them. I respect anyone who does their job honestly and earnestly. But that’s all that I am offering. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/125 "2015-05-14T06:35:25Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > And I am saying they don’t deserve extra respect. Certainly not to the degree that we bend proper legal procedure or craft laws specifically to show how much we love them. I respect anyone who does their job honestly and earnestly. But that’s all that I am offering. Geezus. You craft the law to ensure that Canadians are breaking the law if they knowingly aid the enemy against other Canadians. Ensuring the law covers more than just conflicts between nation states, but includes insurgents. 158 Canadians died in Afghanistan, sent there by your government to fight for you. Omar, may well have contributed to any of their deaths by his aiding of the enemy. If Treason doesn’t cover it, then there should be something that does. What you owe to them is to ensure that fellow Canadians fighting against them are punished for doing so. I don’t know why that is such a hard concept for people to follow? A miner expects laws to be enforced or created for safety reasons and to punish those found guilty of negligence or deliberate actions. Why should a soldier expect any less? ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/126 "2015-05-14T07:45:00Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > That Muslim’s have to jump through hoops to justify their religion’s requirements to kill or subjugate people who don’t agree with them or offend them in some arbitrary way? Got news for you; you are not the one who decides what is and is not required of someone to be a practicing Muslims. > [@](#): > > That most Muslim’s don’t follow these mandatory requirements is to their benefit. And who told you that what you think is mandatory in the religion of Islam is, in fact, mandatory? What claim do they have to be the arbiter of what is and is not mandatory in that religion? > [@](#): > > Now if they’d only discard the remaining myths, the world would be a much better place. Personally, I think the world would be a much better place without certain bigoted remarks. > [@](#): > > So, yeah, I’ve thought long and hard on the matter. Not long enough and not hard enough, evidently. > [@](#): > > Omar would have been much better off if he hadn’t been indoctrinated into that cult of death. That’s quite the bigoted comment. I was hoping that you realized that not all of Islam is like whatever lunatic it is that convinced Omar to do what he did (assuming that someone else convinced him instead of Omar being a self-starter). But, hey, you apparently don’t care about the facts. Rant on, man; rant on. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/127 "2015-05-14T08:19:59Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Got news for you; you are not the one who decides what is and is not required of someone to be a practicing Muslims. As a Muslim, I think I have the inside track on who is or isn’t a fellow Muslim. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/128 "2015-05-14T10:11:45Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > As a Muslim, I think I have the inside track on who is or isn’t a fellow Muslim. This is enough of this hijack. Your beliefs about the religion are not actually relevant to this discussion and your little editorial asides are turning into a hijack. Drop it. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/129 "2015-05-14T10:27:56Z")
Yeah, religion has nothing to do with this. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/130 "2015-05-14T12:57:54Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > What’s your point? I am not sure how much more explicit it could be, but my point is that _he cannot be tried as an adult_. ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/131 "2015-05-14T13:14:33Z")
I don’t remember saying he had to be. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/132 "2015-05-14T13:25:00Z")
There is a process for a young person to be tried as an adult in Canada, but the criminal charges start in Youth Court. The Crown must persuade the Court that the accused should be tried as an adult. It can be done, but it’s a high standard to transfer a youth to adult court. Sorry if I wasn’t clear on that point earlier; I was just responding to the initial question about a hypothetical 17 year old soldier going on a rampage. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/133 "2015-05-14T13:38:13Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > I don’t remember saying he had to be. I wasn’t responding to your post when I said that. ---
**Author:** ![swampspruce](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampspruce/32/261_2.png) [@swampspruce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampspruce)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/134 "2015-05-14T20:01:31Z")
[Relevant news article](http://globalnews.ca/news/1997749/federal-government-in-court-to-seek-adult-offender-status-for-omar-khadr/). SC strikes down Feds attempt to have Omar Khadr branded as an adult offender. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/135 "2015-05-14T21:41:35Z")
> [@swampspruce](#): > > [Relevant news article](http://globalnews.ca/news/1997749/federal-government-in-court-to-seek-adult-offender-status-for-omar-khadr/). SC strikes down Feds attempt to have Omar Khadr branded as an adult offender. Good. I sure wish the feds would stop wasting millions of dollars pursuing this nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/136 "2015-05-14T23:58:39Z")
Decision from the Bench, reasons to follow. That’s the third time the SCC has ruled in favour of Khadr. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/137 "2015-05-24T06:02:17Z")
For anyone interested, the Supreme Court has now posted the webcast of the court hearing on its web-page: [David Pelham, Warden of the Bowden Institution, et al. v. Omar Ahmed Khadr](http://www.scc-csc.gc.ca/case-dossier/info/webcastview-webdiffusionvue-eng.aspx?cas=36081&urlen=http://www4.insinc.com/ibc/mp/md/open_protected/c/486/1938/201505140500wv150en,001&urlfr=http://www4.insinc.com/ibc/mp/md/open_protected/c/486/1940/201505140500wv150en,001&date=2015-05-14). The Chief Justice’s short oral reasons for dismissing the federal government’s appeal start at the 260 minute mark. ---
**Author:** ![icantdraw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3ec8ea/32.png) [@icantdraw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/icantdraw)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2017, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/138 "2017-07-07T20:02:10Z")
I know, zombie, etc etc. An embarrassing day for the Canadian government. They should have let this actually play out in court rather than settle with this terrorist. Even if it would have eventually cost more than the $10M that the government gave him by settling. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730/139 "2017-07-08T01:44:15Z")
> [@icantdraw](#): > > I know, zombie, etc etc. > > An embarrassing day for the Canadian government. They should have let this actually play out in court rather than settle with this terrorist. Even if it would have eventually cost more than the $10M that the government gave him by settling. Hopefully its only a judgement on paper and Tabitha Speer can take the money with her lawsuit, I think in the end that would be justice. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trial-of-omar-khadr/549730.md?page=6)