Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed |
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said today federal courts previously have handled trials for defendants who could be classified as an "enemy combatant."
He cited shoe bomber Richard Reid and suspected 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui, but also said he wasn't sure of their status.
The response came to a question from Les Kinsolving, WND's correspondent at the White House, who asked: "When before in U.S. history has an enemy combatant been tried in a civilian court?"
"It wasn't – I don't know what Moussaoui or some of these – or I know both Zacarias Moussaoui and Richard Reid were both tried in federal courts. I don't know if their status was enemy combatant," he said.
The question was raised because of Attorney General Eric Holder's announcement that several of the key suspects alleged to have organized the 9/11 attack will be brought to New York City and given civilian trials, even though they were apprehended by the military and have been held in military detention for years.
One of the suspects being brought to New York is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
Reid, a British citizen, was arrested in 2001 for trying to use explosives he packed into his shoe to blow up American Airlines Flight 63 enroute from Paris to Miami.
Passengers smelled smoke – he apparently was lighting matches trying to ignite a fuse – and he was tackled by other passengers after he attacked a flight attendant who tried to get him to stop.
Reid grew up in South London and was involved in street crime such as graffiti during his youth. He pleaded guilty and during a sentencing hearing declared himself an enemy of the U.S.
Moussaoui, a French citizen, was accused of being a potential participant in the 9/11 attacks and was convicted of conspiring to kill U.S. citizens. He's serving life without parole at the federal Supermax prison in Florence, Colo.
He was arrested before the 9/11 terror attacks because he raised suspicion by asking a flight school to teach him how to fly a Boeing 747.
Reid was arrested by civilian authorities when his plane was diverted and landed in Boston.
Neither was taken into custody by the U.S. military.
In a second question, Kinsolving asked, "Regarding Sen. [Dick] Durbin's hope that we can house Guantanamo inmates in an underutilized Illinois state prison, does the White House agree that this would bring badly needed jobs to the area, and that this prison could also be used for illegal aliens?"
"On the latter part I don't know the answer to that," Gibbs said. "Obviously on the first part, this was a facility that was built under the auspices of housing prisoners in a town that is in need of economic development. I think there's no doubt that housing prisoners at Thomson would create jobs and I think it would also help in a big way in closing down Guantanamo. No final decisions on any of that have been made, obviously."
Lurita Doan reported at BigGovernment.com that lawmakers in Illinois see the possible detention of terrorists there as "an opportunity for economic growth."
"Durbin eagerly offered Illinois as the ideal location to house the remaining prisoners from Guantanamo, and tap the taxpayers for the $1 billion in federal money that it will require," the column said.
"State and local government budgets across the nation are strained, but surely there are better business opportunities to help spur development than using terrorists as an economic engine?"
Special offers:
Apocalypse and the End Times (DVD)
BIN LADEN - The Man Who Declared War on America (book)
Â