GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba — The first day of court for the 9/11 proceedings at Guantanamo Bay in more than 500 days was cut short on Tuesday when the U.S. Court of Military Commission Review, which oversees the island war court, handed down a ruling that shot down defense claims the Pentagon had unlawfully influenced decisions on which judge should preside over the case.

Air Force Col. Matthew McCall took over as a judge on Tuesday, making him the fourth judge to preside over hearings in this iteration of the 9/11 case. At issue was a saga stemming from last year, when McCall served a short stint as a judge before he was removed for not having two years of military experience on the bench at the time. McCall now has that experience.