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Executive Power & National Security
Hamdi v. Rumsfeld
Decided: 2004
In brief
Held that U.S. citizens detained as enemy combatants have a due-process right to challenge their detention.
The Court's ruling in depth
Yaser Hamdi, a U.S. citizen captured in Afghanistan and held indefinitely without charge, sought habeas relief. Justice O'Connor's controlling opinion held that a citizen held as an enemy combatant must receive notice of the factual basis for the classification and a meaningful opportunity to contest it before a neutral decisionmaker. 'A state of war is not a blank check for the President.' Hamdi is a foundational post-9/11 check on executive-detention power.