Trump Claims the Power to Summarily Kill Suspected Drug Smugglers

Trump Claims the Power to Summarily Kill Suspected Drug Smugglers - The New York Times

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/04/us/politics/trump-drug-smugglers-military.html


By ordering the U.S. military to summarily kill a group of people aboard what he said was a drug-smuggling boat, President Trump used the military in a way that had no clear legal precedent or basis, according to specialists in the laws of war and executive power.

Mr. Trump is claiming the power to shift maritime counterdrug efforts from law enforcement rules to wartime rules. The police arrest criminal suspects for prosecution and cannot instead simply gun suspects down, except in rare circumstances where they pose an imminent threat to someone.

By contrast, in armed conflicts, troops can lawfully kill enemy combatants on sight.

Because killing people is so extreme — and doing it without due process risks killing the wrong people by mistake — the question of which rules apply is not simply a matter of policy choice. Domestic and international law both set standards constraining when presidents and nations can lawfully use wartime force.