Brian Hauck, a deputy assistant attorney general lawyer who argued the case for the government Friday, noted that President Barack Obama, in a speech in May to the National Defense University, said he didn't think it was constitutional for the government to target and kill any U.S. citizen without due process.
"Where was the due process in this case?" asked Collyer, an appointee of Republican President George W. Bush.
Hauck said there were checks in place, including reviews done by the executive branch.
"No, no, no, no, no," Collyer retorted. "The executive is not an effective check on the executive" when it comes to protecting constitutional rights.
Hauck said Congress is also briefed on drone attacks. He added that U.S. officials should be allowed to do their jobs without the threat of litigation hanging over their actions.
"You're saying there is no courthouse door where this goes through," Collyer said later. She repeatedly pressed Hauck to say what checks and balances the president faces, at one point saying in exasperation, "There's a man who won't be taken off message."
When Hauck mentioned the constitutional structure as one such constraint, Collyer replied that the Constitution sets out three branches of government, including the judiciary "the one that's usually yelled at and not given any money."
She added: "I consider us a nation of laws, and everybody from the president down to homeless people have to follow the law."
Pardiss Kebriaei, a lawyer for the Center for Constitutional Rights which is representing the relatives along with the American Civil Liberties Union called the government's arguments "not just wrong; they're dangerous." She said the government can kill a 16-year-old U.S. citizen (al-Awlaki's son) without any explanation. Attorney General Eric Holder wrote in a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy this year that the teen was not "specifically targeted" by the U.S.
The lawsuit was filed by Nasser al-Awlaki Anwar's father and the teen's grandfather and by Sarah Khan, Samir Khan's mother. In a New York Times op-ed piece this week, Nasser al-Awlaki wrote that two years after his grandson's death, the government still hasn't explained why he was killed. He wrote that the boy was born in Denver and came to live with him when he was seven, and left home in 2011 in search of his father.
"The government has killed a 16-year-old American boy," he wrote. "Shouldn't it at least have to explain why?"
The high-profile case attracted a rare fully-packed courtroom. When Collyer walked into the room, she said, "Holy cow! This is a really serious matter, so I shouldn't say holy cow, but holy cow!"
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