Summary Execution is Not Due Process: Stop the Maritime Murders

The U.S. military launched another strike on an alleged drug boat in the eastern Pacific, killing one person and leaving two survivors clinging to the wreckage. Instead of conducting a rescue or processing them legally, a follow-up strike killed the survivors under the guise of “self-defense” to destroy the vessel. This brings the administration's maritime death toll to at least 208 lives taken without a shred of judicial process. Let’s be clear: this administration isn't waging a serious war on narcotics. While the White House drops bombs on low-level targets at sea without offering any public evidence of illicit cargo, the executive branch simultaneously pardons and releases actual convicted narco-lords. Blowing up survivors in international waters bypasses the foundational pillar of our legal system: the right to due process. Everyone, regardless of the allegations against them, deserves their day in court—not a summary execution by drone. I urge you to take immediate legislative action to halt these unauthorized, illegal strikes. Demand an independent investigation, enforce strict oversight over Southern Command, and hold the perpetrators of these extrajudicial killings fully accountable for their illegal orders.

First sent on June 17 by People Who Value Science