Groharing told reporters in the courtroom that he had been prohibited from talking about the case by the Pentagon's legal advisor to the commissions administration, Air Force Brig. Gen. Thomas Hartmann.
A spokesman for the Office of Military Commissions, Lt. Col. Rick Helmer, said at a news conference that the prosecutors had conveyed to him that they wouldn't discuss the case because "they're going to do their talking in the courtroom."
Khadr's arraignment was suspended until at least late January after the charges were read. Brownback allowed Khadr to put off entering a plea to allow lawyers to work out disputes about defense access to prosecution witnesses and evidence.
Brownback also conceded it would be unwise to push ahead with a combatant status hearing when the federal appeals court had yet to rule on the commissions' jurisdiction over Guantanamo detainees.
It was believed to be the first time a judge in the beleaguered military commission process acknowledged that a civilian court would have the ultimate power to determine the legality of the tribunals and their rules.
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carol.williams@latimes.com
