Bringing the 9/11 Terrorists Back to New York

The President is not incapable of making a decision. From USA Today:

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-proclaimed mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, and four other alleged accomplices will be moved from the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay to New York City so they can stand trial just blocks away from the scene of the deadliest terrorist assaults in American history.

Attorney General Eric Holder said Friday that he plans to seek the death penalty against all five men. He said it is important that the alleged 9/11 planners be brought to justice near the scene of the crime and in U.S. civilian courts that would be "open to the public and open to the world."

That's a decision. It's hard to see what sense it makes. KSM is the highest profile terrorist we have yet captured. We waterboarded him, and he gave up his cronies, some of whom we have since nabbed. That fact looks to make a civil prosecution rather difficult. Nothing that KSM said under duress is likely to make it into evidence. By the "fruit of the poisonous tree" doctrine, nothing that we learned as a consequence of what he said can be used in Court. Nonetheless, Attorney General Eric Holder is confident that he can get a conviction.

The Administration is justifying this move on the grounds that the American justice system is the best in the world and that this will demonstrate our rectitude to the world. Well, okay. But I see a couple of problems.

One is that a civil trial will give KSM and his legal team the opportunity to make a circus of the trial. They won't be worried about the outcome. KSM and his henchpersons are more than ready to die. Indeed, they are rather looking forward to it. They will try to use the trial to paint a picture of demonic torturers victimizing heroes of the true faith. The press in every Islamic state will publicize and exaggerate every tidbit. All the instruments of American Constitutional Law will be at their disposal.

They will also try to force the exposure of our security apparatus, in the sure knowledge that their counterparts out there are taking notes. Since President Obama has put us in the position that we must have a conviction, it will be hard to withhold information that might damage national security if it got out.

A second problem is that, in a civil trial, we cannot guarantee a conviction. Att. Gen. Holder reassures us on this score, but does that really help the argument that our system is fair? Doesn't fairness mean there is a chance that these bad guys will get off?

What if they do manage to escape conviction? I agree it is not likely. But if it happens, we will be faced with a very uncomfortable choice. We could let KSM and his cronies go. That would be unthinkable. Or we could arrest them again on some pretense and put them back in Gitmo or wherever. What would that do for the image of our justice system?

This is nuts. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is not a gangster, he is a war criminal. He violated the international laws of war by intentionally murdering thousands of innocent civilians. He is a mortal enemy of the United States. The way to deal with this monster is to put him before a military tribunal and then kill him.

That is how the Nuremberg Trials dealt with the surviving leaders of the Third Reich. The point wasn't to protect their rights. They had forfeited that protection. The point was to let the world know what they did and then to make sure they would not live to do it again. Another point was to let the leaders of all nations know what would happen if they behave like Nazis and end up in our custody.

The President has made a decision. He decided to risk the security of the United States and the very laws of war on the outcome of a civil trial. He had better be as lucky as he is shallow.

Comments

[James]

I still can't believe they're going back to NY. What a shame.

http://bit.ly/39oJo

[George Mason]

What better venue than NYC. There KSM and his ACLU lawyers can create the type
of circus that KSM craves and the ACLU is so expert at providing. They will have the opportunity, with the blessing of the Obama administration, to unravel our
intelligence and security apparatus. When will Obama, Holder et al., realize that
KSM and company declared war on us. We sought war with no one but they visited
war on us and that is the why they should be left at Guantanamo Bay until the war is over.

[William]

I'm afraid that George Mason is correct. I fail to see what advantage, other than "playing to the left" of his political base, Obama (thru his proxy Holder) sees in proceeding with a criminal trial, rather than the military system that's already approved.

Criminal rules of evidence and civil rights are not, and emphatically should not, be a concern on the battlefield and enemy combatants are not common criminals.

I'm afraid Obama fails to appreciate the danger our nation faces and the difference between armed warfare and police work.

This is perhaps the most troubling exhibit of his "9-10" mentality we've seen since he's taken office.

[Nikhil]

very denger