A military judge has ruled that plea agreements struck by alleged Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two co-defendants are valid.
WASHINGTON - A military judge has ruled that plea agreements struck by alleged Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two co-defendants are valid, voiding an order by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to throw out the deals, a government official said Wednesday.
The plea agreements would spare Mohammed and two co-defendants, Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi, the risk of the death penalty in exchange for the guilty pleas. Within days, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a brief order saying he was nullifying them. Plea bargains in possible death penalty cases tied to one of the gravest crimes ever carried out on U.S. soil were a momentous step that should only be decided by the defense secretary, Austin said at the time.
The ruling also calls the timing of Austin’s move “fatal,” coming after Guantanamo’s top official already had approved the deals, according to the blog, called Lawdragon.
Sept. 11 Terrorism Plea Deals Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin Guantanamo Bay Al-Qaida Attack Pentagon
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