What About 5 & 6?

I am back on my soap box. I keep hearing about the constitution and the second amendment right to keep and bear firearms. A week ago today an idiot pair of brothers set off two bombs killing three people and wounding around 200. It was a senseless act of violence against people who were just out to enjoy one of America's iconic sporting events. The brothers were foreign born and apparently Muslims. The older brother was killed in a shoot out with police. The younger brother is a naturalized United States of America citizen.

I said that to say this, Senator Graham and Senator McCain have gone on record that the younger brother should be declared an "enemy combatant". This would mean he could be held indefinitely without charges and when charges were brought he could be tried by a military tribunal.

They killed and maimed with bombs made from items available at a hardware store and placed in a pressure cooker. I didn't take the time to check but it seems to me that the movie theater shooting in Colorado resulted in about 20 deaths. The shooting of Congresswoman Giffords in Arizona resulted in several deaths and injuries. Both acts were committed by white males that one would reasonably assume to be Christian using guns. I don't recall in either case a demand from a United States Senator that either subject be declared an "enemy combatant". The crimes were as senseless, carried out in a public venue and in one case was a deliberate attack on a government official.

Would the Boston Marathon attack be viewed differently if it had been carried out with guns? The brothers had plenty of those and no one seems to be making an issue out of that. I'm not either. My concern is that the younger brother is a United States citizen. He is entitled to notice of charges, a right to confront his accusers, a trial by a jury of his peers, representation by an attorney. The constitution I read and follow does not stop at the second amendment. When you talk about what to do with this kid, and he is a kid, he is entitled to the rights granted in the constitution. Being foreign born or Muslim does not void those rights. He is an American citizen who committed a crime on American soil. If he is treated as anything other than a citizen, if his fifth and sixth amendment rights are violated, we are all in some manner diminished.

Grant him representation by an attorney, present the charges, try him before a jury of his peers. Let our magnificent justice system work. Show the world that the process works and let justice be done. He is innocent until proven guilty, as are we all.