A federal appeals court has delayed Friday’s scheduled military court hearing where suspected 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two co-conspirators were expected to plead guilty as part of a deal negotiated with prosecutors.
The pause, though welcomed by the many who opposed the plea deals, prolongs a decades-long crusade for justice by the victims’ families.
The plea deals, which would have three 9/11 terrorists avoid the death penalty and face life in prison, have drawn sharp outcry from the public and even prompted a dispute within the Biden administration to undo them.
On New Year’s Eve, a military appeals court shot down Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin‘s effort to block the deal between military prosecutors and defense lawyers, saying Austin did not have the power to cancel plea agreements.
Then, on Wednesday, the Department of Justice appealed that ruling.
Specifically, the court opinion said the plea deals reached by military prosecutors and defense attorneys were valid and enforceable and that Austin exceeded his authority when he later tried to nullify them.
The defense now has until Jan. 17 to offer a full response to the Department of Justice’s request to have the plea deals thrown out. Government prosecutors then have until Jan. 22 for a rebuttal, with possible oral arguments on the issue to follow.
The plea deals, offered to Mohammed and two co-conspirators, were meant as a way to wrap up the quest for justice to those who have been waiting more than two decades to see the terrorists that killed their loved ones convicted. They would allow prosecutors to avoid going to trial.
But why did the government settle for a plea deal after 23 years of building a case in the first place?
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“I haven’t spoken to a single person who thinks these plea deals were a good idea. Most people are horrified,” said Brett Eagleson, president of 9/11 Justice.
Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the…
