3 vs. 319
Today's Washington Post tells us that advisors to President Obama are telling him to reverse Attorney General Eric Holder's decision to send the 9/11 defendants to federal criminal court, and send them back to the military commissions system.
There are only two numbers you need to know in this debate over where the 9/11 defendants should be tried: three and 319.
Three is the number of people who have been convicted in the military commissions system. Two of the men convicted in the military commission system are free today.
Compare that to the more than 300 who have been convicted on terrorism-related charges in our federal criminal courts and are incarcerated in federal prisons.
President Obama promised during his campaign to bring those behind the 9/11 attacks to justice, and to restore the rule of law. Send him a message now, telling him to support his attorney general's decision to try the 9/11 suspects in federal court.
Mar 5th, 2010 at 4:16pm
I have a couple questions regarding this:
1) What is 319 in reference to? Military tribunals, international war crimes courts, or the only means America has of trying terrorists outside of our federal courts?
2) What is the time-line of this? In the past year? Fifteen years? Since the inception of America?
Thanks!
Mar 5th, 2010 at 8:28pm
There have been 319 terrorism-related convictions in federal criminal courts since 9/11 (http://blogs.usdoj.gov /blog/archives/541) and just 3 convictions in the military commissions system since 9/11.
-- ACLU
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