Not really. But if you act alone, you're probably in the clear
Gary Faulkner, the American man detained in Pakistan while trying to kill Osama bin Laden, will be released this week without charges, according to his family. The 52-year-old Colorado construction worker was arrested last week in northwest Pakistan for carrying weapons -- including a pistol and 40-inch sword -- without a permit. Questions of practicality (and sanity) aside, had Faulkner succeeded, could he have been charged with murder?
Probably not. Faulkner probably couldn't be charged with murder if he killed bin Laden and then returned to the United States, since the murder would have happened abroad where U.S. courts have no say. "Universal jurisdiction" for crimes against humanity is an increasingly popular notion in human rights law, and one that's been gaining some traction in the United States -- a U.S. citizen was convicted of committing torture abroad for the first time last year -- but a simple murder, particularly when the victim is the world's most infamous terrorist, probably wouldn't qualify.
Of course, bin Laden's killer could still be charged with murder in Pakistan, or wherever the assassination took place. The United States has an extradition treaty with Pakistan, but it's hard to imagine any U.S. government handing bin Laden's killer over to Islamabad.
That being said, projects like Faulkner's aren't the sort of thing the United States is about to encourage. Authorities generally frown upon vigilantism, even directed against the worst criminals. The U.S. State Department is offering a reward of up to $25 million for "information leading directly to the apprehension or conviction," but that's not a license to kill.
The murky legal framework of the war on terror complicates things somewhat. While the U.S. government would never condone the extrajudicial killing of a most-wanted fugitive like Boston mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger, the United States maintains that senior members of al Qaeda are "enemy combatants" and therefore not subject to civilian due process. Some vehemently disagree with this interpretation, but if a CIA drone pilot had bin Laden in his sights, it's unlikely that his first call would be to a lawyer.
