At Satellite Courthouses, 9/11 Relatives Will Watch Moussaoui's Sentencing
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Convicted 9/11 conspirator appeals life sentence
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-05/13/content_4541197.htm
WASHINGTON, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Convicted Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui appealed on Friday the life sentence imposed on him earlier this month.
Moussaoui, 37, who was spared the death penalty on May 4, also appealed against the judge's refusal to allow him to change his guilty plea on the six conspiracy charges.
Moussaoui is the only person to have been charged and tried in the United States for the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington on Sept. 11, 2001, which killed nearly 3,000 people.
His court-appointed lawyers said in a one-paragraph notice of appeal that Moussaoui wanted the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review the final judgment and sentence he received last week at a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, and the judge's refusal of his request to withdraw his guilty plea.
On May 8, Moussaoui filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea, saying that he lied when he testified last year that he was involved in the plot even though he knew that was a "complete fabrication."
He said he wanted to withdraw his guilty plea because he now believed he could get a fair trial.
Moussaoui, a Frenchman of Moroccan descent, was arrested in August 2001. He was to serve his life sentence in the federal supermax prison at Florence, Colorado.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-05/13/content_4541197.htm
WASHINGTON, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Convicted Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui appealed on Friday the life sentence imposed on him earlier this month.
Moussaoui, 37, who was spared the death penalty on May 4, also appealed against the judge's refusal to allow him to change his guilty plea on the six conspiracy charges.
Moussaoui is the only person to have been charged and tried in the United States for the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington on Sept. 11, 2001, which killed nearly 3,000 people.
His court-appointed lawyers said in a one-paragraph notice of appeal that Moussaoui wanted the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review the final judgment and sentence he received last week at a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, and the judge's refusal of his request to withdraw his guilty plea.
On May 8, Moussaoui filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea, saying that he lied when he testified last year that he was involved in the plot even though he knew that was a "complete fabrication."
He said he wanted to withdraw his guilty plea because he now believed he could get a fair trial.
Moussaoui, a Frenchman of Moroccan descent, was arrested in August 2001. He was to serve his life sentence in the federal supermax prison at Florence, Colorado.
Rowley Criticized Over Moussaoui Probe
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-5896704,00.html
By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Monday June 19, 2006 3:16 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) - The former FBI whistle-blower who urged the agency to probe terrorism suspect Zacarias Moussaoui in the weeks before the Sept. 11 attacks was criticized Monday in a government report for her own role in the case.
Coleen Rowley, a former lawyer in the FBI's Minneapolis field office who is now running for Congress, received both praise and criticism in the report prepared by the Justice Department's inspector general.
The report credits Rowley overall for blowing the whistle on mistakes at FBI headquarters in its failure to aggressively investigate Moussaoui. "Her complaints resulted in an important reassessment of how the FBI handled this matter," it said.
But the report faults Rowley for failing to pursue investigative avenues, such as a traditional criminal search warrant. Her focus instead was on obtaining a search warrant from a special intelligence court that operates in secret.
"At the outset, she assumed that (the U.S. Attorney's Office) would not support a criminal warrant," the report states. "Contrary to the implication in her letter, which placed the blame for failing to seek a warrant solely on FBI headquarters, she advised the field agents not to seek a criminal warrant."
Rowley, in an interview with The Associated Press, said Monday that she simply advised that seeking a warrant through the intelligence court was a better option. She said agents eventually came up with another idea: deporting Moussaoui, which would have allowed immigration agents to search his belongings.
Moussaoui was already scheduled for deportation when the attacks occurred.
Rowley maintained that, in a pre-9/11 environment, prosecutors demanded an exceedingly high standard before they would ask a judge for a warrant.
"I will stand by that to the day I die," Rowley said.
Moussaoui was arrested in Minnesota on Aug. 15, 2001, on immigration violations after his efforts to obtain flight training drew suspicion. A search warrant of his belongings was not obtained until Sept. 11, after the suicide attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives.
At Moussaoui's trial earlier this year, prosecutors convinced a jury that a full investigation of Moussaoui prior to Sept. 11 could have yielded the investigative clues necessary for federal agents to thwart or at least minimize the attacks.
Rowley said she is proud that her memo resulted in the 450-page inspector general report, which provides in many places a stinging assessment of the FBI's handling of terror investigations prior to 9/11.
Most of the inspector general's report was publicly released last year, but the chapter about Moussaoui was redacted in an effort to protect Moussaoui's right to a fair trial.
Moussaoui was convicted earlier this year of aiding the Sept. 11 plot and sentenced to life in prison. He jurors on the witness stand that he was to have piloted a fifth plane on Sept. 11 and fly it into the White House.
The report singles out other individuals at FBI headquarters for sharper criticism than Rowley, including David Frasca, then head of the FBI's radical fundamentalist unit, and his subordinate, Michael Maltbie. The failure of Frasca and Maltbie to heed the Minneapolis bureau's concerns about Moussaoui were a major issue at Moussaoui's trial.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-5896704,00.html
By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Monday June 19, 2006 3:16 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) - The former FBI whistle-blower who urged the agency to probe terrorism suspect Zacarias Moussaoui in the weeks before the Sept. 11 attacks was criticized Monday in a government report for her own role in the case.
Coleen Rowley, a former lawyer in the FBI's Minneapolis field office who is now running for Congress, received both praise and criticism in the report prepared by the Justice Department's inspector general.
The report credits Rowley overall for blowing the whistle on mistakes at FBI headquarters in its failure to aggressively investigate Moussaoui. "Her complaints resulted in an important reassessment of how the FBI handled this matter," it said.
But the report faults Rowley for failing to pursue investigative avenues, such as a traditional criminal search warrant. Her focus instead was on obtaining a search warrant from a special intelligence court that operates in secret.
"At the outset, she assumed that (the U.S. Attorney's Office) would not support a criminal warrant," the report states. "Contrary to the implication in her letter, which placed the blame for failing to seek a warrant solely on FBI headquarters, she advised the field agents not to seek a criminal warrant."
Rowley, in an interview with The Associated Press, said Monday that she simply advised that seeking a warrant through the intelligence court was a better option. She said agents eventually came up with another idea: deporting Moussaoui, which would have allowed immigration agents to search his belongings.
Moussaoui was already scheduled for deportation when the attacks occurred.
Rowley maintained that, in a pre-9/11 environment, prosecutors demanded an exceedingly high standard before they would ask a judge for a warrant.
"I will stand by that to the day I die," Rowley said.
Moussaoui was arrested in Minnesota on Aug. 15, 2001, on immigration violations after his efforts to obtain flight training drew suspicion. A search warrant of his belongings was not obtained until Sept. 11, after the suicide attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives.
At Moussaoui's trial earlier this year, prosecutors convinced a jury that a full investigation of Moussaoui prior to Sept. 11 could have yielded the investigative clues necessary for federal agents to thwart or at least minimize the attacks.
Rowley said she is proud that her memo resulted in the 450-page inspector general report, which provides in many places a stinging assessment of the FBI's handling of terror investigations prior to 9/11.
Most of the inspector general's report was publicly released last year, but the chapter about Moussaoui was redacted in an effort to protect Moussaoui's right to a fair trial.
Moussaoui was convicted earlier this year of aiding the Sept. 11 plot and sentenced to life in prison. He jurors on the witness stand that he was to have piloted a fifth plane on Sept. 11 and fly it into the White House.
The report singles out other individuals at FBI headquarters for sharper criticism than Rowley, including David Frasca, then head of the FBI's radical fundamentalist unit, and his subordinate, Michael Maltbie. The failure of Frasca and Maltbie to heed the Minneapolis bureau's concerns about Moussaoui were a major issue at Moussaoui's trial.
Y
YouCrazyDiamond
Guest
And why is there physical evidence from the crime scene sitting on Donald Rumsfeld’s desk, looking more like a war trophy than anything else I can think of? Pictures of grieving survivors, etc. on the wall would be a memorial, but baubles on the desk are just ghoulish.Gold9472 said:
And tampering with evidence from a crime scene is criminal, no?
Familes of 9-11 victims seek Moussaoui evidence
http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=5750666&nav=S6aK
11/30/2006
RICHMOND, Va. The Richmond federal appeals court heard arguments today on whether some families of the Nine-Eleven victims should be given evidence from the trial of al-Qaida conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui for civil lawsuits.
District Judge Leonie Brinkema (LAY'-eh-nee BRINK'-eh-mah) of Alexandria has ordered the government to give the plaintiffs non-sensitive information that prosecutors turned over to Moussaoui's attorneys, but which was never used at his trial.
Moussaoui was sentenced to life in prison earlier this year.
Justice Department lawyer Steven Lane urged a three-judge panel of the Fourth U-S Circuit Court of Appeals today to overturn that ruling.
Lane said the case is about the procedures for obtaining the evidence, not whether the victims' families are entitled to it.
Nathan Lewin (LOO'-win), attorney for the plaintiffs, argued that Brinkema was correct in allowing access to the evidence in "an unusual case."
The victims' families are suing parts of the airline industry and those alleged to have financed the terror group that hijacked airplanes and crashed them on September 11th, 2001.
http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=5750666&nav=S6aK
11/30/2006
RICHMOND, Va. The Richmond federal appeals court heard arguments today on whether some families of the Nine-Eleven victims should be given evidence from the trial of al-Qaida conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui for civil lawsuits.
District Judge Leonie Brinkema (LAY'-eh-nee BRINK'-eh-mah) of Alexandria has ordered the government to give the plaintiffs non-sensitive information that prosecutors turned over to Moussaoui's attorneys, but which was never used at his trial.
Moussaoui was sentenced to life in prison earlier this year.
Justice Department lawyer Steven Lane urged a three-judge panel of the Fourth U-S Circuit Court of Appeals today to overturn that ruling.
Lane said the case is about the procedures for obtaining the evidence, not whether the victims' families are entitled to it.
Nathan Lewin (LOO'-win), attorney for the plaintiffs, argued that Brinkema was correct in allowing access to the evidence in "an unusual case."
The victims' families are suing parts of the airline industry and those alleged to have financed the terror group that hijacked airplanes and crashed them on September 11th, 2001.
Court says 9/11 families do not have right to Moussaoui trial evidence
http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?ID=341982&Category=23
6:14 PM, Wednesday, March 14, 2007
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A federal appeals court ruled today that the government does not have to turn over evidence from the trial of Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui to family members of those killed in the terrorist attacks.
The three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said a Virginia judge lacked authority to order the government to provide the evidence for use in lawsuits against the airline industry and others.
Last April, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria said the families were entitled to nonsensitive information that prosecutors shared with Moussaoui’s attorneys but never introduced at his trial.
The appeals court ruled unanimously that Brinkema had exceeded her authority, saying a federal court in New York has exclusive jurisdiction over civil actions arising from the Sept. 11 attacks.
“We, like the district court, have great sympathy for the victims of September 11 and their families,” Judge Karen Williams wrote. “But regardless of how much respect and compassion this court has, we must ensure that the federal courts in our jurisdiction — no matter how well intentioned — do not exceed their legal power.”
Moussaoui, a confessed al-Qaida conspirator and the only person in the United States charged in the attacks, was sentenced to life in prison in May after a jury found him responsible for at least one death on Sept. 11.
http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?ID=341982&Category=23
6:14 PM, Wednesday, March 14, 2007
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A federal appeals court ruled today that the government does not have to turn over evidence from the trial of Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui to family members of those killed in the terrorist attacks.
The three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said a Virginia judge lacked authority to order the government to provide the evidence for use in lawsuits against the airline industry and others.
Last April, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria said the families were entitled to nonsensitive information that prosecutors shared with Moussaoui’s attorneys but never introduced at his trial.
The appeals court ruled unanimously that Brinkema had exceeded her authority, saying a federal court in New York has exclusive jurisdiction over civil actions arising from the Sept. 11 attacks.
“We, like the district court, have great sympathy for the victims of September 11 and their families,” Judge Karen Williams wrote. “But regardless of how much respect and compassion this court has, we must ensure that the federal courts in our jurisdiction — no matter how well intentioned — do not exceed their legal power.”
Moussaoui, a confessed al-Qaida conspirator and the only person in the United States charged in the attacks, was sentenced to life in prison in May after a jury found him responsible for at least one death on Sept. 11.
Moussaoui judge questions government
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071120/ap_on_re_us/terror_paintball
By MATTHEW BARAKAT, Associated Press Writer Tue Nov 20, 6:55 PM ET
McLEAN, Va. - A federal judge expressed frustration Tuesday that the government provided incorrect information about evidence in the prosecution of Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui and raised the possibility of ordering a new trial in another high-profile terrorism case.
At a post-trial hearing Tuesday for Ali al-Timimi, a Muslim cleric from Virginia sentenced to life in prison in 2004 for soliciting treason, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema said she can no longer trust the CIA and other government agencies on how they represent classified evidence in terror cases.
Attorneys for al-Timimi have been seeking access to documents. They also want to depose government witnesses to determine whether the government improperly failed to disclose the existence of certain evidence.
The prosecutors have asked her to dismiss the defense request. The government has denied the allegations but has done so in secret pleadings to the judge that defense lawyers are not allowed to see. Even the lead prosecutors in the al-Timimi case have not had access to the information; they have relied on the representations of other government lawyers.
After the hearing, the judge issued an order that said she would not rule on the prosecutors' motion until the government grants needed security clearances to al-Timimi's defense lawyer, Jonathan Turley, and the lead trial prosecutor so they can review the secret pleadings.
Brinkema said she no longer feels confident relying on the government briefs, particularly since prosecutors admitted last week that similar representations made in the Moussaoui case were false.
In a letter made public Nov. 13, prosecutors in the Moussaoui case admitted to Brinkema that the CIA had wrongly assured her that no videotapes or audiotapes existed of interrogations of certain high-profile terrorism detainees. In fact, two such videotapes and one audio tape existed.
Moussaoui, who had pleaded guilty to terrorism charges, was sentenced to life in prison last year. Because Moussaoui admitted his guilt, it is unlikely that the disclosures of new evidence would result in his conviction being overturned.
Turley, al-Timimi's defense lawyer, praised Brinkema for taking a skeptical view of the government's assertions in addressing al-Timimi's case.
"We believe a new trial is warranted," he said in a phone interview. "We are entirely confident that there are communications that were not turned over to the defense. These are very serious allegations."
Al-Timimi challenged his conviction in 2005 after revelations that President Bush had authorized the National Security Agency to conduct certain types of domestic surveillance without a search warrant. Turley contends that the program is illegal and that any evidence obtained from such surveillance should have been turned over to defense lawyers.
He is confident that al-Timimi, a prominent U.S. Muslim cleric who was known to keep close ties with radical Saudi clerics would have been a target of the surveillance program.
Brinkema made no rulings during the brief, 20-minute hearing in Alexandria, but her displeasure at the government was apparent. Prosecutors did not have the opportunity to speak during the hearing, except to note their appearance for the record.
Al-Timimi, a born U.S. citizen from Fairfax, was convicted after prosecutors portrayed him as the spiritual leader of a group of young Muslim men from the Washington area who played paintball games in 2000 and 2001 as a means of preparing for holy war around the globe.
After Sept. 11, they said, al-Timimi told his followers that the attacks were a harbinger of a final apocalyptic battle between Muslims and nonbelievers and exhorted them to travel to Afghanistan and join the Taliban to fight U.S. troops.
Several of his followers admitted that they traveled to Pakistan and received training from a militant Pakistani group called Lashkar-e-Taiba, but none actually joined the Taliban.
A spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Alexandria declined to comment Tuesday.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071120/ap_on_re_us/terror_paintball
By MATTHEW BARAKAT, Associated Press Writer Tue Nov 20, 6:55 PM ET
McLEAN, Va. - A federal judge expressed frustration Tuesday that the government provided incorrect information about evidence in the prosecution of Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui and raised the possibility of ordering a new trial in another high-profile terrorism case.
At a post-trial hearing Tuesday for Ali al-Timimi, a Muslim cleric from Virginia sentenced to life in prison in 2004 for soliciting treason, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema said she can no longer trust the CIA and other government agencies on how they represent classified evidence in terror cases.
Attorneys for al-Timimi have been seeking access to documents. They also want to depose government witnesses to determine whether the government improperly failed to disclose the existence of certain evidence.
The prosecutors have asked her to dismiss the defense request. The government has denied the allegations but has done so in secret pleadings to the judge that defense lawyers are not allowed to see. Even the lead prosecutors in the al-Timimi case have not had access to the information; they have relied on the representations of other government lawyers.
After the hearing, the judge issued an order that said she would not rule on the prosecutors' motion until the government grants needed security clearances to al-Timimi's defense lawyer, Jonathan Turley, and the lead trial prosecutor so they can review the secret pleadings.
Brinkema said she no longer feels confident relying on the government briefs, particularly since prosecutors admitted last week that similar representations made in the Moussaoui case were false.
In a letter made public Nov. 13, prosecutors in the Moussaoui case admitted to Brinkema that the CIA had wrongly assured her that no videotapes or audiotapes existed of interrogations of certain high-profile terrorism detainees. In fact, two such videotapes and one audio tape existed.
Moussaoui, who had pleaded guilty to terrorism charges, was sentenced to life in prison last year. Because Moussaoui admitted his guilt, it is unlikely that the disclosures of new evidence would result in his conviction being overturned.
Turley, al-Timimi's defense lawyer, praised Brinkema for taking a skeptical view of the government's assertions in addressing al-Timimi's case.
"We believe a new trial is warranted," he said in a phone interview. "We are entirely confident that there are communications that were not turned over to the defense. These are very serious allegations."
Al-Timimi challenged his conviction in 2005 after revelations that President Bush had authorized the National Security Agency to conduct certain types of domestic surveillance without a search warrant. Turley contends that the program is illegal and that any evidence obtained from such surveillance should have been turned over to defense lawyers.
He is confident that al-Timimi, a prominent U.S. Muslim cleric who was known to keep close ties with radical Saudi clerics would have been a target of the surveillance program.
Brinkema made no rulings during the brief, 20-minute hearing in Alexandria, but her displeasure at the government was apparent. Prosecutors did not have the opportunity to speak during the hearing, except to note their appearance for the record.
Al-Timimi, a born U.S. citizen from Fairfax, was convicted after prosecutors portrayed him as the spiritual leader of a group of young Muslim men from the Washington area who played paintball games in 2000 and 2001 as a means of preparing for holy war around the globe.
After Sept. 11, they said, al-Timimi told his followers that the attacks were a harbinger of a final apocalyptic battle between Muslims and nonbelievers and exhorted them to travel to Afghanistan and join the Taliban to fight U.S. troops.
Several of his followers admitted that they traveled to Pakistan and received training from a militant Pakistani group called Lashkar-e-Taiba, but none actually joined the Taliban.
A spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Alexandria declined to comment Tuesday.
Moussaoui appeals, calling plea invalid
Lawyers claim he pleaded guilty without seeing secret evidence
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/nation/5573527.html
By MATT APUZZO
Associated Press
2/26/2008
WASHINGTON — Lawyers urged Zacarias Moussaoui not to plead guilty to terrorism charges. They just couldn't tell him why.
In newly filed court documents, Moussaoui argues that court-imposed secrecy undermined his ability to present an adequate defense. His new lawyers say Moussaoui's guilty plea should be thrown out and a new trial should be convened for the man who once claimed to have been a part of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist plot.
Moussaoui was not allowed to see the classified evidence against him and was shut out from closed-door hearings in which that evidence was laid out.
Defense lawyers say they were barred from even discussing with Moussaoui evidence that could help prove his innocence. They say Moussaoui faced an unconstitutional choice: plead guilty or go to trial without knowing the evidence.
"Moussaoui appeals because his plea was unknowing, uncounselled and invalid," attorneys Justin Antonipillai and Barbara Hartung wrote.
The documents, filed with the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., raise a fundamental question about whether terrorism suspects like Moussaoui should be given access to all the evidence against them — access that is normally guaranteed in criminal cases.
The Bush administration has sought to avoid such conflicts by keeping most terrorism cases out of civilian courts. Instead, officials plan to try several cases before special military commissions at the Guantanamo Bay naval base, where judges have broad authority to limit what evidence detainees can see.
Because Moussaoui's appeal deals solely with civilian law, it won't directly affect the military commissions, even if he wins. But lawyers say the Bush administration increasingly cites national security concerns to justify keeping evidence from defendants in criminal cases and they see that as a flaw that persists at Guantanamo Bay.
Since being sentenced to life in prison, Moussaoui has said he lied when testifying that he was to hijack a fifth jetliner on Sept. 11. He has returned to claiming that he had nothing to do with the suicide hijackings.
Lawyers claim he pleaded guilty without seeing secret evidence
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/nation/5573527.html
By MATT APUZZO
Associated Press
2/26/2008
WASHINGTON — Lawyers urged Zacarias Moussaoui not to plead guilty to terrorism charges. They just couldn't tell him why.
In newly filed court documents, Moussaoui argues that court-imposed secrecy undermined his ability to present an adequate defense. His new lawyers say Moussaoui's guilty plea should be thrown out and a new trial should be convened for the man who once claimed to have been a part of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist plot.
Moussaoui was not allowed to see the classified evidence against him and was shut out from closed-door hearings in which that evidence was laid out.
Defense lawyers say they were barred from even discussing with Moussaoui evidence that could help prove his innocence. They say Moussaoui faced an unconstitutional choice: plead guilty or go to trial without knowing the evidence.
"Moussaoui appeals because his plea was unknowing, uncounselled and invalid," attorneys Justin Antonipillai and Barbara Hartung wrote.
The documents, filed with the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., raise a fundamental question about whether terrorism suspects like Moussaoui should be given access to all the evidence against them — access that is normally guaranteed in criminal cases.
The Bush administration has sought to avoid such conflicts by keeping most terrorism cases out of civilian courts. Instead, officials plan to try several cases before special military commissions at the Guantanamo Bay naval base, where judges have broad authority to limit what evidence detainees can see.
Because Moussaoui's appeal deals solely with civilian law, it won't directly affect the military commissions, even if he wins. But lawyers say the Bush administration increasingly cites national security concerns to justify keeping evidence from defendants in criminal cases and they see that as a flaw that persists at Guantanamo Bay.
Since being sentenced to life in prison, Moussaoui has said he lied when testifying that he was to hijack a fifth jetliner on Sept. 11. He has returned to claiming that he had nothing to do with the suicide hijackings.
Court hears 9/11 conspirator's appeal in Va.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5giHuPtn0SwUPW7v1GMXHVicTlFiQD95V1F8OH
By LARRY O'DELL – 17 hours ago
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Zacarias Moussaoui's guilty plea in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks was invalid because the government failed to turn over evidence that could have helped his defense, his attorney told a federal appeals court Monday.
Justin Antonipillai urged a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to throw out the plea and order a new trial for Moussaoui, who once claimed to be part of the 2001 conspiracy but has since changed his story. Moussaoui was sentenced to life in prison.
U.S. Justice Department attorney Kevin Gingras argued that Moussaoui, the only person to stand trial in a U.S. court in the 9/11 attacks, knew the trial judge was considering ways to get the favorable evidence to him but decided to plead guilty anyway.
"It was his choice to pull the plug on the process," said Gingras. The prosecutor said U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema "bent over backward" to ensure that Moussaoui understood what he was doing and the consequences.
The panel peppered both attorneys with questions for 90 minutes before closing the hearing for about an hour to consider matters involving classified information.
The court usually takes several weeks, or even months, to issue a decision.
In open court, Chief Judge Karen J. Williams sounded skeptical of Antonipillai's claim that Moussaoui's trial preparations were impaired by government secrecy that some of his constitutional rights were violated.
Williams wondered aloud how the court could conclude that the government would have continued to conceal the evidence had the case gone to trial. She also noted Moussaoui testified that he was supposed to hijack a fifth plane and crash it into the White House.
Antonipillai said Moussaoui had "delusions of grandeur," and his confession was contradicted by alleged 9/11 ringleader Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who said Moussaoui was training for a different operation and had nothing to do with the terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.
"This evidence was absolutely critical to the defense," Antonipillai said.
The prosecutor said Moussaoui knew the gist of the evidence that was being withheld and pleaded guilty against the advice of his lawyers.
Antonipillai said defense lawyers were not able to explain the reasons for their advice. He also argued that Moussaoui should not have been eligible for the capital punishment because he was not directly responsible for the Sept. 11 deaths. Although the jury spared Moussaoui the death penalty, Antonipillai said his eligibility left life in prison as the only alternative.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5giHuPtn0SwUPW7v1GMXHVicTlFiQD95V1F8OH
By LARRY O'DELL – 17 hours ago
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Zacarias Moussaoui's guilty plea in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks was invalid because the government failed to turn over evidence that could have helped his defense, his attorney told a federal appeals court Monday.
Justin Antonipillai urged a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to throw out the plea and order a new trial for Moussaoui, who once claimed to be part of the 2001 conspiracy but has since changed his story. Moussaoui was sentenced to life in prison.
U.S. Justice Department attorney Kevin Gingras argued that Moussaoui, the only person to stand trial in a U.S. court in the 9/11 attacks, knew the trial judge was considering ways to get the favorable evidence to him but decided to plead guilty anyway.
"It was his choice to pull the plug on the process," said Gingras. The prosecutor said U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema "bent over backward" to ensure that Moussaoui understood what he was doing and the consequences.
The panel peppered both attorneys with questions for 90 minutes before closing the hearing for about an hour to consider matters involving classified information.
The court usually takes several weeks, or even months, to issue a decision.
In open court, Chief Judge Karen J. Williams sounded skeptical of Antonipillai's claim that Moussaoui's trial preparations were impaired by government secrecy that some of his constitutional rights were violated.
Williams wondered aloud how the court could conclude that the government would have continued to conceal the evidence had the case gone to trial. She also noted Moussaoui testified that he was supposed to hijack a fifth plane and crash it into the White House.
Antonipillai said Moussaoui had "delusions of grandeur," and his confession was contradicted by alleged 9/11 ringleader Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who said Moussaoui was training for a different operation and had nothing to do with the terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.
"This evidence was absolutely critical to the defense," Antonipillai said.
The prosecutor said Moussaoui knew the gist of the evidence that was being withheld and pleaded guilty against the advice of his lawyers.
Antonipillai said defense lawyers were not able to explain the reasons for their advice. He also argued that Moussaoui should not have been eligible for the capital punishment because he was not directly responsible for the Sept. 11 deaths. Although the jury spared Moussaoui the death penalty, Antonipillai said his eligibility left life in prison as the only alternative.
New arguments ordered in 9/11 conspirator's case
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090714/ap_on_re_us/us_moussaoui_appeal_2
7/13/2009
RICHMOND, Va. – A federal appeals court ordered new arguments Tuesday in the case of Sept. 11 conspirator Zacharias Moussaoui, the only person to stand trial for the terrorist attacks in a U.S. court.
A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in the Moussaoui case in January. But one of those judges, Karen J. Williams, retired last week — effectively immediately — after being diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease.
Williams' departure prompted the court to schedule a rehearing, court clerk Patricia Connor said. She said the court may have to order new arguments in some other pending cases heard by Williams. However, none will have a higher profile than the Moussaoui case.
Moussaoui is serving a life sentence after pleading guilty to helping plan the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. His lawyer, Justin Antonipillai, declined to comment on Tuesday's court order.
In January, Antonipillai argued that Moussaoui's guilty plea was invalid because the government failed to turn over evidence that could have helped his defense. He asked for a new trial for Moussaoui, who once claimed to be part of the 2001 conspiracy but has since changed his story.
U.S. Justice Department attorney Kevin Gingras argued that Moussaoui knew the trial judge was considering ways to get the favorable evidence to him but decided to plead guilty anyway.
Williams sounded skeptical of Moussaoui's claims then, asking how the court could conclude that the government would have continued to conceal the evidence had the case gone to trial.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090714/ap_on_re_us/us_moussaoui_appeal_2
7/13/2009
RICHMOND, Va. – A federal appeals court ordered new arguments Tuesday in the case of Sept. 11 conspirator Zacharias Moussaoui, the only person to stand trial for the terrorist attacks in a U.S. court.
A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in the Moussaoui case in January. But one of those judges, Karen J. Williams, retired last week — effectively immediately — after being diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease.
Williams' departure prompted the court to schedule a rehearing, court clerk Patricia Connor said. She said the court may have to order new arguments in some other pending cases heard by Williams. However, none will have a higher profile than the Moussaoui case.
Moussaoui is serving a life sentence after pleading guilty to helping plan the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. His lawyer, Justin Antonipillai, declined to comment on Tuesday's court order.
In January, Antonipillai argued that Moussaoui's guilty plea was invalid because the government failed to turn over evidence that could have helped his defense. He asked for a new trial for Moussaoui, who once claimed to be part of the 2001 conspiracy but has since changed his story.
U.S. Justice Department attorney Kevin Gingras argued that Moussaoui knew the trial judge was considering ways to get the favorable evidence to him but decided to plead guilty anyway.
Williams sounded skeptical of Moussaoui's claims then, asking how the court could conclude that the government would have continued to conceal the evidence had the case gone to trial.
Why a 9/11 "Plotter" Deserves a Re-Trial
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1911560,00.html?xid=newsletter-daily
By BRUCE CRUMLEY
7/18/2009
It isn't easy to have sympathy for Frenchman Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in connection with the September 11 terror attacks. During his trial, Moussaoui pledged his allegiance to Osama bin Laden and prayed that al-Qaeda succeeds in its violent jihad against the U.S; he also mocked the families of 9/11 victims and dared the court to inflict the harshest punishment for the crimes which, after veering erratically between denial and advocacy, he finally took responsibility for. In May 2006, a jury decided against the death penalty but sent Moussaoui, now 41, to life imprisonment and near total isolation in Colorado's ADX Supermax prison.
Now Moussaoui says he regrets pleading guilty. But, he has a problem: U.S. law does not allow those who have taken that route to appeal their cases. His only shot at winning a lighter sentence is the July 14 decision by a federal appeals court in Virginia to re-hear arguments that the government had failed to turn over key evidence to Moussaoui and his lawyer that might have helped in his defense. As politically untenable as it may seem, President Barack Obama should support Moussaoui's efforts to win another trial.
Why? Because justice and sympathy are different issues. Moussaoui's courtroom antics and declarations were outrageous but the prosecution of his trial was a farce nonetheless. Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema repeatedly criticized certain aspects of the prosecutors' efforts to win a guilty verdict as both underhanded and illegal. At one point in the trial, Brinkema rebuked prosecutors for illegally coaching a witness from a federal agency. She called that tampering "an egregious" and a "significant error by the government affecting the... integrity of the criminal justice system of the United States."
On one occasion Brinkema backed Moussaoui's call to cite testimony from Guantanamo prisoners and 9/11 masterminds Khaled Sheikh Mohammed and Ramzi Binalshibh for his defense. Prosecutors resisted that demand, claiming the information was classified. (Moussaoui would win the right to use parts of statements by the 9/11 puppet masters, who described the Frenchman as too erratic and unreliable to be let in on the plot.)
However, Moussaoui continued to make himself the ever-ready scapegoat in the pursuit of 9/11 justice that seemed to provide no other perpetrators to prosecute. He was, indeed, a dream come true for the prosecution. First, he fired his defense team, zigged and zagged between pleading innocent and guilty, and ranted in ways that had some observers questioning his sanity. And the circumstantial evidence against him didn't make Moussaoui look any better: he was arrested in August, 2001 while attending a Minnesota flight school. When investigators took a closer look at him after 9/11, they discovered jihadist literature and plane flying information on his computer. Further inquiry led to the discovery that Binalshibh had wired him $14,000 from Germany; a check with French officials showed that he'd long been under watch as a suspected jihadist who'd made the de rigeur trip to al-Qaeda's Afghan haven.
But Moussaoui had been in jail nearly a month when the attack occurred, meaning he couldn't have been directly responsible for it. Moussaoui was also a lousy student who flunked out of several flight schools. And, most importantly, the statements by Sheikh Mohammed and Binalshibh confirmed what anyone watching his trial already knew: Moussaoui was too big a loud-mouth and hot-head to let anywhere near a plot like 9/11. In the end, Moussaoui's conviction relied almost entirely on his own guilty plea and inconsistent admissions to having wanted to carry out terror attacks in the U.S.
His mother Aicha el-Wafi, told TIME that Moussaoui informed her that he pleaded guilty in the fatalistic belief the process had to be rigged, that no American court would ever give a sworn enemy a fair chance. American values include respecting the rights of even those who attack them. That's been a key consideration in Obama's moves to roll back many Bush administration policies in the war on terror. During a recent speech in Cairo, the U.S. President explained his decision to close the notorious Guantanamo Bay prison as part of a wider push to reverse extra-legal Bush administration security measures that stomped on long-standing principles of American civil liberty. Seeking to defend fundamental American ideas from attack in that way, Obama noted, "led us to act contrary to our ideals."
Thanks to the Virginia appeals court ruling, Obama has an opportunity to demonstrate his commitment to those ideals, as unpalatable as Moussaoui may be. The Frenchman should be re-tried for what he actually did, rather than what he says.
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1911560,00.html?xid=newsletter-daily
By BRUCE CRUMLEY
7/18/2009
It isn't easy to have sympathy for Frenchman Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in connection with the September 11 terror attacks. During his trial, Moussaoui pledged his allegiance to Osama bin Laden and prayed that al-Qaeda succeeds in its violent jihad against the U.S; he also mocked the families of 9/11 victims and dared the court to inflict the harshest punishment for the crimes which, after veering erratically between denial and advocacy, he finally took responsibility for. In May 2006, a jury decided against the death penalty but sent Moussaoui, now 41, to life imprisonment and near total isolation in Colorado's ADX Supermax prison.
Now Moussaoui says he regrets pleading guilty. But, he has a problem: U.S. law does not allow those who have taken that route to appeal their cases. His only shot at winning a lighter sentence is the July 14 decision by a federal appeals court in Virginia to re-hear arguments that the government had failed to turn over key evidence to Moussaoui and his lawyer that might have helped in his defense. As politically untenable as it may seem, President Barack Obama should support Moussaoui's efforts to win another trial.
Why? Because justice and sympathy are different issues. Moussaoui's courtroom antics and declarations were outrageous but the prosecution of his trial was a farce nonetheless. Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema repeatedly criticized certain aspects of the prosecutors' efforts to win a guilty verdict as both underhanded and illegal. At one point in the trial, Brinkema rebuked prosecutors for illegally coaching a witness from a federal agency. She called that tampering "an egregious" and a "significant error by the government affecting the... integrity of the criminal justice system of the United States."
On one occasion Brinkema backed Moussaoui's call to cite testimony from Guantanamo prisoners and 9/11 masterminds Khaled Sheikh Mohammed and Ramzi Binalshibh for his defense. Prosecutors resisted that demand, claiming the information was classified. (Moussaoui would win the right to use parts of statements by the 9/11 puppet masters, who described the Frenchman as too erratic and unreliable to be let in on the plot.)
However, Moussaoui continued to make himself the ever-ready scapegoat in the pursuit of 9/11 justice that seemed to provide no other perpetrators to prosecute. He was, indeed, a dream come true for the prosecution. First, he fired his defense team, zigged and zagged between pleading innocent and guilty, and ranted in ways that had some observers questioning his sanity. And the circumstantial evidence against him didn't make Moussaoui look any better: he was arrested in August, 2001 while attending a Minnesota flight school. When investigators took a closer look at him after 9/11, they discovered jihadist literature and plane flying information on his computer. Further inquiry led to the discovery that Binalshibh had wired him $14,000 from Germany; a check with French officials showed that he'd long been under watch as a suspected jihadist who'd made the de rigeur trip to al-Qaeda's Afghan haven.
But Moussaoui had been in jail nearly a month when the attack occurred, meaning he couldn't have been directly responsible for it. Moussaoui was also a lousy student who flunked out of several flight schools. And, most importantly, the statements by Sheikh Mohammed and Binalshibh confirmed what anyone watching his trial already knew: Moussaoui was too big a loud-mouth and hot-head to let anywhere near a plot like 9/11. In the end, Moussaoui's conviction relied almost entirely on his own guilty plea and inconsistent admissions to having wanted to carry out terror attacks in the U.S.
His mother Aicha el-Wafi, told TIME that Moussaoui informed her that he pleaded guilty in the fatalistic belief the process had to be rigged, that no American court would ever give a sworn enemy a fair chance. American values include respecting the rights of even those who attack them. That's been a key consideration in Obama's moves to roll back many Bush administration policies in the war on terror. During a recent speech in Cairo, the U.S. President explained his decision to close the notorious Guantanamo Bay prison as part of a wider push to reverse extra-legal Bush administration security measures that stomped on long-standing principles of American civil liberty. Seeking to defend fundamental American ideas from attack in that way, Obama noted, "led us to act contrary to our ideals."
Thanks to the Virginia appeals court ruling, Obama has an opportunity to demonstrate his commitment to those ideals, as unpalatable as Moussaoui may be. The Frenchman should be re-tried for what he actually did, rather than what he says.
US appeals court upholds Moussaoui conviction for 9/11
Zacarias Moussaoui had challenged the validity of his original guilty plea
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8440495.stm
1/4/2010
A US appeals court has upheld the conviction and sentence of 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui.
The only person charged in the US over the attacks, Moussaoui had originally pleaded guilty to conspiracy.
In 2006 he was sentenced to life in prison for his role in planning the attacks that killed nearly 3,000.
The appeals court in Virginia rejected his claim his conviction was invalid as the government had failed to provide evidence he could have used in defence.
'Awareness'
"Moussaoui challenges the validity of his guilty plea and his sentences" on the various counts, the three-judge panel said in its ruling.
"We affirm Moussaoui's convictions and sentences in their entirety."
The appeals court also brushed aside Moussaoui's lawyers' claims that his guilty plea was invalid.
"The finality of the guilty plea, entered knowingly, intelligently, and with sufficient awareness of the relevant circumstances and likely consequences, stands," the court said in its statement.
During his original trial in 2005, he had testified that his role was to hijack a fifth plane and crash it into the White House.
After the verdict, Moussaoui changed his stance and denied any involvement in the attacks.
But lawyers from the US justice department told the appeal court that Moussaoui had wanted to plead guilty, even though this was against the advice of his lawyers.
Spared death
At his appeal, his lawyers also argued that his preparations for the trial had been damaged because he was not aware of classified evidence held by the government that might have helped his case.
These claims were also thrown out by the appeals court, which said Moussaoui was both aware of his rights and knew the gist of the classified evidence in question.
Moussaoui is currently serving his life sentence in a super-maximum federal security prison in Colorado.
During his original trial, the jury in Alexandria, Virginia, ruled that Moussaoui's lies to US investigators after he was arrested led directly to at least one death on 9/11.
He was convicted of several counts of conspiracy - including to commit acts of terrorism and destroy aircraft - which carry the death penalty.
Though the prosecution had requested it, he was spared death because of a single vote against the penalty by an anonymous juror.
Zacarias Moussaoui had challenged the validity of his original guilty plea
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8440495.stm
1/4/2010
A US appeals court has upheld the conviction and sentence of 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui.
The only person charged in the US over the attacks, Moussaoui had originally pleaded guilty to conspiracy.
In 2006 he was sentenced to life in prison for his role in planning the attacks that killed nearly 3,000.
The appeals court in Virginia rejected his claim his conviction was invalid as the government had failed to provide evidence he could have used in defence.
'Awareness'
"Moussaoui challenges the validity of his guilty plea and his sentences" on the various counts, the three-judge panel said in its ruling.
"We affirm Moussaoui's convictions and sentences in their entirety."
The appeals court also brushed aside Moussaoui's lawyers' claims that his guilty plea was invalid.
"The finality of the guilty plea, entered knowingly, intelligently, and with sufficient awareness of the relevant circumstances and likely consequences, stands," the court said in its statement.
During his original trial in 2005, he had testified that his role was to hijack a fifth plane and crash it into the White House.
After the verdict, Moussaoui changed his stance and denied any involvement in the attacks.
But lawyers from the US justice department told the appeal court that Moussaoui had wanted to plead guilty, even though this was against the advice of his lawyers.
Spared death
At his appeal, his lawyers also argued that his preparations for the trial had been damaged because he was not aware of classified evidence held by the government that might have helped his case.
These claims were also thrown out by the appeals court, which said Moussaoui was both aware of his rights and knew the gist of the classified evidence in question.
Moussaoui is currently serving his life sentence in a super-maximum federal security prison in Colorado.
During his original trial, the jury in Alexandria, Virginia, ruled that Moussaoui's lies to US investigators after he was arrested led directly to at least one death on 9/11.
He was convicted of several counts of conspiracy - including to commit acts of terrorism and destroy aircraft - which carry the death penalty.
Though the prosecution had requested it, he was spared death because of a single vote against the penalty by an anonymous juror.