Designated Civilian Official - Announcement

Announcement

Gordon R. England, whose primary job was then to serve as United States Secretary of the Navy, was appointed to be the first Designated Civilian Official.

During the June 23, 2004 press conference where he described his new position, England was asked about how he would handle the additional responsibilities of this position, and how independent he would be. He repeated that his decisions would not be influenced by the Secretary of Defense, or other more senior officials. England said human rights groups, like the International Committee of the Red Cross, and other agencies of the United States Government, had been consulted in as the Review process was being designed.

The Center for Constitution Rights published an analysis of the DCO's role on May 19, 2004. "The entire review procedure is inadequate and illegal," stated Rachel Meeropol, an attorney at CCR. According to Michael Ratner:

...The DCO can order continued detention based on his or her opinion that the detainee 'remains a threat to the United States' or 'if there is any other reason that it is in the interest of the United States and its allies' for the detainee to remain in detention'.