In the aftermath of the ISIS terror attack, President Trump called for “quick” and “strong” justice. He maligned the criminal justice system as “a laughingstock.” He also suggested that the attacker be sent to Guantanamo Bay and subjected to torture, noting that “torture works.”
Yet, two days later, when a military tribunal ordered a dishonorable discharge, with no prison time, for Bowe Bergdahl, President Trump called the military judge’s ruling “a complete and total disgrace.”
That takes us to the Star Chamber Court. This was a special English court that sat at the Palace of Westminster. The word “star” likely came from Hebrew (“shetar” means “document,” but more broadly meant “obligation”).
This term was widely used around the time that the Star Chamber was formed (around 1300) —and by the way, the same time that Jews were expelled from England (1290).
The Star Chamber developed a reputation for cruelty and caprice. A common complaint was that the court punished actions judged to be morally reprehensible but not in violation of any law.
The Star Chamber was also notorious for admitting testimony and other evidence that resulted from torture. That sounds like something that President Trump advocated this week (and in the past).
Our Constitution’s prohibition against self-incrimination—found in the Fifth Amendment—traces to the torture methods used to extract confessions in the Star Chamber.
Here’s hoping that Paul Manafort, Rick Gates and anyone else indicted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller gets the benefit of a presumption of innocence and a full panoply of constitutional protections.
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