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Sources: Feds moving enemy combatant to Ill. court
Devlin Barrett The Associated Press
Issue date: 2/27/09 Section: News
WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal prosecutors plan to move an alleged al-Qaida sleeper agent out of a Navy brig in South Carolina and send him to federal court in Illinois to face trial.
Two people familiar with the case of Qatar native Ali al-Marri said Thursday the government plans to transfer him to the civilian court system. The two people spoke on condition of anonymity because it's a pending criminal case.
The transfer could avert a Supreme Court hearing in April and a subsequent ruling that would govern other cases against accused terrorists. To justify holding al-Marri, the Bush administration claimed the president has the wartime authority to send the military into any U.S. neighborhood, capture a citizen and hold him in prison without charge, indefinitely.
One of the people familiar with the al-Marri case said prosecutors plan to charge al-Marri with providing material support to terrorists, a charge similar to what he would have faced if tried by a military tribunal.
Putting al-Marri into the federal court system follows a similar move made by the Bush administration with another enemy combatant, Jose Padilla. Padilla, once held at the same brig as al-Marri, was eventually convicted of terror-related charges in federal court in Florida.
The decision on al-Marri was reported separately Thursday by the Web sites of The Washington Post and The New Yorker magazine.
Al-Marri was the subject of one of President Barack Obama's first official acts, signing an executive order for "a prompt and thorough" review of al-Marri's continued detention.
Now, according to those familiar with the case, that review has resulted in a decision to put him back into the civilian court system.
Justice Dept. spokesman Dean Boyd declined to comment on the plans for al-Marri.
"If this is true, it's an important step," said Jonathan Hafetz, one of al-Marri's lawyers. "This is what should have happened seven years ago. Indefinite military detention, without charge, of people with legal residence in America is illegal."
Two people familiar with the case of Qatar native Ali al-Marri said Thursday the government plans to transfer him to the civilian court system. The two people spoke on condition of anonymity because it's a pending criminal case.
The transfer could avert a Supreme Court hearing in April and a subsequent ruling that would govern other cases against accused terrorists. To justify holding al-Marri, the Bush administration claimed the president has the wartime authority to send the military into any U.S. neighborhood, capture a citizen and hold him in prison without charge, indefinitely.
One of the people familiar with the al-Marri case said prosecutors plan to charge al-Marri with providing material support to terrorists, a charge similar to what he would have faced if tried by a military tribunal.
Putting al-Marri into the federal court system follows a similar move made by the Bush administration with another enemy combatant, Jose Padilla. Padilla, once held at the same brig as al-Marri, was eventually convicted of terror-related charges in federal court in Florida.
The decision on al-Marri was reported separately Thursday by the Web sites of The Washington Post and The New Yorker magazine.
Al-Marri was the subject of one of President Barack Obama's first official acts, signing an executive order for "a prompt and thorough" review of al-Marri's continued detention.
Now, according to those familiar with the case, that review has resulted in a decision to put him back into the civilian court system.
Justice Dept. spokesman Dean Boyd declined to comment on the plans for al-Marri.
"If this is true, it's an important step," said Jonathan Hafetz, one of al-Marri's lawyers. "This is what should have happened seven years ago. Indefinite military detention, without charge, of people with legal residence in America is illegal."
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