Lindh Wants Reduced Sentence
John Walker Lindh, the infamous "American Taliban," has requested a lighter sentence, a la Australian David Hicks, according to Captain Ed:
The lawyer and parents of American-born Taliban soldier John Walker Lindh asked President Bush to commute his 20-year prison term, citing the case of an Australian man who was sentenced to less than a year for aiding terrorism.
Lindh, 26, was captured in Afghanistan in November 2001 by American forces sent to topple the Taliban after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. He was charged with conspiring to kill Americans and support terrorists but pleaded guilty to lesser offenses, including carrying explosives for the now-defunct Taliban government.
Lindh's lawyer and father said the lighter sentence given to Australian David Hicks should be reflected in Lindh's case.
"It is a question of proportionality. It is a question of fairness, and it is a question of the religious experience John Walker Lindh had," attorney James Brosnahan said. "And it was not in any way directed at the United States."
Lindh converted to Islam and went to Afghanistan to fight for the Taliban against the Northern Alliance, which received U.S. backing.
On Saturday, Hicks pleaded guilty to supporting terrorism and acknowledged aiding al-Qaida during the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan. He was sentenced to nine months in prison. After spending five years at the U.S. naval base in Cuba, the 31-year-old former kangaroo skinner is likely to be transferred to a prison in Australia within weeks.
Brosnahan brokered Lindh's plea deal and said it was the best he could do in the political climate immediately after the 2001 attacks.
"In the atmosphere of the time, the best John could get was a plea bargain and a 20-year sentence," said Lindh's father, Frank Lindh. "We love our son very much. He was wrongly accused when he was found in Afghanistan."
The White House referred telephone calls to the Justice Department, which declined to comment because it had not received Lindh's petition.
The comment by Lindh's father, that he was "wrongly accused" is simply idiotic. He was found among Taliban forces in Afghanistan, and when he was brough back to the West, he admitted to being an operative in the service of al-Qaeda. That means he was working with our direct enemy, and their partners.
As for the plea deal arranged by his lawyer, indeed, it was the best that could be done at the time. Let us not forget that we are not too happy with finding Americans amidst our enemies, and believe me when I say we have found a couple. Ever heard the names Yaser Hamdi, or Jose Padilla? You should have. Both of them are US citizens. Both of them have been caught in the service of the enemy. And both have challenged their detentions to the Supreme Court. The very fact that they sided with our enemy during a time of war makes them traitors to their nation. Adam Gadahn, should we ever catch him, will also fall into this category, and he has an indictment for treason awaiting him here.
While I sympathize with his family, I refuse to let that get in the way of cold, hard logic. John Lindh was fighting our troops in Afghanistan. He was trying to kill American soldiers, in a combat zone, in the service of al-Qaeda. He is lucky he received the plea deal he was handed. We could have put him on trial for treason, and shot him.
If he suddenly has second thoughts about the deal, too darn bad. He should have thought about that then. He has faced trial, and has been sentenced. There are no do-overs. You deal with the consequences of your actions, and those consequences have handed him a twenty-year sentence. Shut up already, and take your punishment like a man.
Marcie
The lawyer and parents of American-born Taliban soldier John Walker Lindh asked President Bush to commute his 20-year prison term, citing the case of an Australian man who was sentenced to less than a year for aiding terrorism.
Lindh, 26, was captured in Afghanistan in November 2001 by American forces sent to topple the Taliban after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. He was charged with conspiring to kill Americans and support terrorists but pleaded guilty to lesser offenses, including carrying explosives for the now-defunct Taliban government.
Lindh's lawyer and father said the lighter sentence given to Australian David Hicks should be reflected in Lindh's case.
"It is a question of proportionality. It is a question of fairness, and it is a question of the religious experience John Walker Lindh had," attorney James Brosnahan said. "And it was not in any way directed at the United States."
Lindh converted to Islam and went to Afghanistan to fight for the Taliban against the Northern Alliance, which received U.S. backing.
On Saturday, Hicks pleaded guilty to supporting terrorism and acknowledged aiding al-Qaida during the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan. He was sentenced to nine months in prison. After spending five years at the U.S. naval base in Cuba, the 31-year-old former kangaroo skinner is likely to be transferred to a prison in Australia within weeks.
Brosnahan brokered Lindh's plea deal and said it was the best he could do in the political climate immediately after the 2001 attacks.
"In the atmosphere of the time, the best John could get was a plea bargain and a 20-year sentence," said Lindh's father, Frank Lindh. "We love our son very much. He was wrongly accused when he was found in Afghanistan."
The White House referred telephone calls to the Justice Department, which declined to comment because it had not received Lindh's petition.
The comment by Lindh's father, that he was "wrongly accused" is simply idiotic. He was found among Taliban forces in Afghanistan, and when he was brough back to the West, he admitted to being an operative in the service of al-Qaeda. That means he was working with our direct enemy, and their partners.
As for the plea deal arranged by his lawyer, indeed, it was the best that could be done at the time. Let us not forget that we are not too happy with finding Americans amidst our enemies, and believe me when I say we have found a couple. Ever heard the names Yaser Hamdi, or Jose Padilla? You should have. Both of them are US citizens. Both of them have been caught in the service of the enemy. And both have challenged their detentions to the Supreme Court. The very fact that they sided with our enemy during a time of war makes them traitors to their nation. Adam Gadahn, should we ever catch him, will also fall into this category, and he has an indictment for treason awaiting him here.
While I sympathize with his family, I refuse to let that get in the way of cold, hard logic. John Lindh was fighting our troops in Afghanistan. He was trying to kill American soldiers, in a combat zone, in the service of al-Qaeda. He is lucky he received the plea deal he was handed. We could have put him on trial for treason, and shot him.
If he suddenly has second thoughts about the deal, too darn bad. He should have thought about that then. He has faced trial, and has been sentenced. There are no do-overs. You deal with the consequences of your actions, and those consequences have handed him a twenty-year sentence. Shut up already, and take your punishment like a man.
Marcie
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 8:55 AM
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