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Mixed Reaction To 9/11 Plotters' New York City Trial
By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 14, 2009
Modified Nov 14, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 14, 2009
Modified Nov 14, 2009
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After U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that five of the plotters behind the September 11 attacks—including mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed—would be tried in federal court in lower Manhattan, the reaction has ranged from the outraged and upset to the relieved. Retired deputy fire chief Jim Riches, whose firefighter son while responding to the World Trade Center's fires, told the NY Times, "Let them come to New York. Let them get on trial. Let’s do it the right way, for all the world to see what they’re like. Let’s go. It’s been too long. Let’s get some justice."
However, Judea Pearl, father of kidnapped and brutally murdered Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, had a different reaction; he told the Post that he was "sick to the stomach" about the decision, "I don't want to hear every morning in the papers what KSM did. Danny was killed once. Now he will be killed 10 times a day. Leave him alone... The 21st century saw three shocks. The first was 9/11. The second was the killing of my son. And the third was the shock today."
Lawmakers were also split: Rep. Peter King (R-Long Island) said, “We should not be increasing the danger of another terrorist strike against Americans at home and abroad," but Rep. Jerrold Nadler (R-NYC) emphasized, "New York is not afraid of terrorists. Any suggestion that our prosecutors and our law enforcement personnel are not up to the task of safely holding and successfully prosecuting terrorists on American soil is insulting and untrue."
Whenever the trial does begin, there will be a lot of security downtown: The Daily News reports:
"Rooftop snipers, armored vehicles and lock-down zones around the Pearl Street courthouse are part of the plan to insure safety during the trial of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and his cohorts. Security will include 24-hour fixed canine posts and a counterassault team car - an unmarked bulletproof SUV in the area.
The NYPD's heavily armed Hercules teams will lock down and sweep the area before suspects are moved from the federal lockup to the courtroom via a not-so-secret underground tunnel."
And Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said, "It's highly appropriate that those accused in the deaths of nearly 3,000 human beings in New York City be tried here, and the NYPD is prepared for the security required."
Tagged
9/11
9/11 attacks
9/11 trial
khalid sheikh mohammed
September 11 attacks
trial
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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