This Note analyzes instances of U.S. detention of suspected terrorists while at sea as an alternative to Guantánamo, and how this at-sea detention fits in the interplay of U.S. statutory law, procedural law, and applicable international law. Of particular interest is the dual use of military and civilian legal regimes to create a procedural-protection-free zone on board U.S. warships during a detainee’s transfer from their place of capture to the U.S. court system. The Note concludes that U.S. Army Regulation 190–8 contains language of which the purpose and intent may be analogized to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure requirements of presentment. The language of Army Regulation 190–8 has not been analyzed by scholars or courts in this context. This Note’s analysis provides a check against extended detentions at sea by shortening the amount of time detainees spend in a procedural-protection-free zone while still allowing the government to obtain information crucial to national security.
