Civilian trials for 9/11 accused
on Nov 13, 2009 at 11:49 am
Attorney General Eric Holder, Jr., announced Friday that five Guantanamo Bay detainees previously charged with war crimes before military commissions will now be shifted to a federal District Court in New York City for trial under normal civilian court processes. Each of the five, Holder said, will be charged with “the most serious crimes” possible, related to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and the death penalty will be sought upon conviction. The Attorney General said he was confident the cases could safely be tried in a civilian court, and that adequate security measures will be taken to assure the safety of those in the vicinity of the trials.
The Attorney General’s statement is here and the official press release from the Department of Justice is here.
Besides deciding on the civilian court route for those who allegedly took part in the 9/11 attacks, Holder said he and Defense Secretary Robert Gates had decided to revive the stalled and often troubled military commission process, to try five other Guantanamo prisoners. Among them, Holder said, is “the detainee accused of orchestrating the October 2000 attack on the USS Cole, which killed 17 U.S. sailors and injured dozens of others, and a detainee who is accused of participating in an al-Qaeda plot to blow up oil tankers in the Straits of Hormuz.” Congress recently revised the military commission process, which was originally set up in 2006 after the Supreme Court had nullified a commission system crafted by the Executive Branch during the George W. Bush Administration.
