National Solutions To An International Scourge: Prosecuting Piracy Domestically As A Viable Alternative To International Tribunals

This article will assess both the problems and potential solutions to contemporary seaborne threats of piracy, robbery, and terrorism, and discuss challenges and opportunities for the domestic and international forums prosecuting the crimes that constitute piracy and * Kevin H. Govern, J.D., LL.M., is an Associate Professor of Law at the Ave Maria School of Law and an Instructor of Legal Studies at the California University of Pennsylvania. He has also served as an Assistant Professor of Law at the United States Military Academy. The author gratefully acknowledges the cooperation of, and past collaborations with, his colleague Professor John I. Winn of Shenandoah University, on this and other subjects, and the assistance of Mmes. Melinda Alico, Class of 2012, and Katherine Herrmann, Class of 2011, Ave Maria School of Law in the preparation of this article. Any errors or omissions are solely the responsibility of the author. U. MIAMI INT'L & COMP. L. REv. maritime terrorism. In particular it will begin with a discussion of the (d)evolution of events in the late 20th Century, which has transformed the old problem of piracy into a modern scourge. Piratical tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP) gave rise to a distinctly different threat from that faced in the past. Accompanying this discussion is a survey of present-day piracy, followed by an analysis of why piratical activities are more susceptible now than ever before to the long arm of the law, especially, but not exclusively, domestic prosecution, as well as anti-piracy policies. The article will advance reasons for why domestic, rather than international, prosecution will be the prevailing remedy of choice when dealing with captured pirates. Concluding comments will note why it is likely that present and emergent anti-piracy activities will continue to expand across the spectrum of operations, and summarize the challenges and opportunities for the domestic and international forces preventing piracy, those capturing pirates, and the fora prosecuting the crimes that constitute piracy and maritime terrorism. I. NEW TIMES, OLD PROBLEMS: THE MODERN ERA OF MARITIME PIRACY IPirates] are peculiarly obnoxious because they maraud upon the open seas, the great highway of all maritime nations. So heinous is the offence considered, so difficult are such offenders to apprehend, and so universal is the interest in their prompt arrest and punishment, that they have long been regarded as outlaws and the enemies of all mankind.' Piracy is only one of many elements of what I call trans-national criminal activity because if [you are] using the seaways for piracy, [they are] probably being used for drug trafficking, human smuggling, Edwin D. Dickinson, Is the Crime of Piracy Obsolete?, 38 HARv. L. REV. 334, 338 (1925). 2 V. 19 2011 NATIONAL SOLUTIONS TO AN INTERNATIONAL SCOURGE and arms smuggling. So, the way countries come together and solve this is important.2 For thousands of years, piracy, or "robbery of the high seas," has caused conflict in international waters. Increasingly, piracy has become part of a multifaceted criminal or terrorist enterprise, especially in certain flashpoint locations around the globe. Contemporary "attacks appear to be escalating in frequency, sophistication and severity"in comparison to even the 200h Century's blight of piratical activity.3 Piracy has thus become a highly organized business with "professional" pirates, threatening the stability of the seas and their surrounding nations. The increase in frequency of pirate attacks and maritime conflicts causes a need for reassessment of the countermeasures that have been implemented throughout history to combat this problem. Typically, many countries who remain involved in combating and preventing piracy tend to promote military solutions and amendment to international laws. However, placing emphasis on the domestication of criminalizing piracy will eliminate many of the problems that arise out of conflicting laws, sovereignty over criminals, and international boundaries. The author Keith Johnson, in his 2010 work IWho's a Pirate?,mused on how it "may seem strange there should be doubt about an offense as old as this one."4 "Piracy was the world's first crime with universal jurisdiction, meaning that any country had the right to apprehend pirates on the high seas." This jurisdiction was first exercised by the Romans, who, in Johnson's estimation, took piracy "so seriously [that] they overrode a cautious Senate and gave neardictatorial powers to an up-and-coming general named Pompey, who soon swept away piracy in the Mediterranean." 61n the realm of one's employment status bearing on legal status, history has been replete 2 United States Navy Quotes About Maritime Strategy, NAVY.MIL, http://www.navy. mil/navydata/leadership/quotes.asp?q=253&c=6 (last visited Mar. 3, 2012). Frederick Chew, Piracy, Maritime Terrorism and Regional Interests, GEDDES PAPERS 73, 73 (Austl. Command and Staff Coll. 2005), http://www.defence.gov.au/adc/ docs/publications20l0/PublcnsGeddes2005 310310 PiracyMaritime.pdf. 4 Keith Johnson, Who's a Pirate? US. Court Sees Duel Over Definition, WALL ST. J., Aug. 14, 2010, at Al. Id.