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Lindh Ordered To Remain In Custody Pending Trial
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| Attorney James Brosnahan suggested the U.S. government was targeting Lindh unfairly because of frustration over failure to capture Bin Laden. |
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - A U.S. federal judge ordered John Walker Lindh held in custody pending his trial on charges of aiding the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and conspiring to kill Americans in Afghanistan.
Lindh's attorneys had asked that their client be released to his parents on bail.
"While it has been stated . . . that the defendant is a loyal American, the evidence before the court belies that," U.S. Magistrate W. Curtis Sewell told a packed Arlington, Virginia, courtroom. "If released, he would probably disappear. He poses a danger for the community."
In a brief hearing, federal prosecutors described the 20-year-old Lindh as a "dangerous terrorist."
"Lindh is a committed terrorist who not only talked the talk but walked the walk," Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy I. Bellows told the courtroom. "He carried grenades. He carried shoulder weapons. He fought on the front lines with what he called his Al-Qaeda brothers. He can only be viewed as the most dangerous sort of person."
Earlier this week, a grand jury returned a 10-count indictment against Lindh, who was captured in Afghanistan by U.S.-led forces in November 2001. If convicted, Lindh could be sentenced to several life terms.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul McNulty told the court that Lindh committed one of the "gravest crimes," citing a succession of e-mails the defendant sent to his parents stating that he would "never come back to the United States."
The 11-page filing quoted from e-mails that Lindh sent to his parents while abroad. In one, he allegedly referred to George W. Bush as "your new president. . . . I'm glad he's not mine." In another, he urged his mother to move to England, saying, "I really don't know what your big attachment to America is all about. What has America ever done for anybody?"
And in a letter to his mother, Lindh suggested that the 1998 embassy bombings in East Africa "seem far more likely to have been carried out by the American government than by any Muslims."
Prosecutors also alleged that when Lindh was questioned about the bombing of the destroyer USS Cole in Yemen and the September 11 attacks, "he stated that incidents like these happen in war [and] . . . that the Pentagon was a good target."
Lindh's lead attorney, James Brosnahan, argued that evidence against Walker was based on statements he allegedly made while in detention at Camp Rhino near Kandahar, Afghanistan.
After the hearing, Brosnahan suggested the government was targeting Lindh unfairly because of frustration over knowledge that Osama bin Laden, the Saudi-born fugitive alleged to head the al-Qaeda network, remains a fugitive.
"In my view, they have brought out the cannon to shoot the mouse," Brosnahan said.
He sent a brief to the court supporting contentions that for three days before his extensive questioning by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Lindh was kept naked, blindfolded and bound in a metal cage, despite biting cold.
"When he was captured, he was fighting with the Taliban against the Northern Alliance," which is comprised of former enemies of the United States, Brosnahan told the court. "He never fought with Al-Qaeda. He never had anything to do with terrorist activity."
In their court filings, federal prosecutors disputed that Lindh was treated poorly. He said the prisoner received antibiotics, painkillers and a tetanus shot, and military records show he was provided three meals a day.
Lindh, who was escorted into the courtroom by federal marshals, was dressed in green prison overalls and appeared pale and clean-shaven. He sat quietly during the proceedings, occasionally glancing over at Brosnahan.
The Muslim convert did not try to contact his parents, Frank Lindh and Marilyn Walker, who were in court to bolster their request that their son be released to their custody. The divorced couple kept their eyes downcast in the courtroom and were unable to even look at the son with whom they had had very limited contact since February 2000, when he arrived in Afghanistan.
Brosnahan also criticized U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft for his comments Tuesday when he announced Lindh's indictment. Ashcroft "violated the usual decorum employed by prosecutors across the country," Brosnahan said.
Ashcroft said Tuesday, among other things, that "Americans who love their country do not dedicate themselves to killing Americans."
Ashcroft’s comments came following statements Frank Lindh made after his son's initial court appearance in January 2002, in which he said his son "loves his country."
Asked at a news conference whether his remarks prejudiced a fair trial, Ashcroft said: "No! No! No!'' He otherwise did not respond to the lawyer's criticism but pronounced himself "very pleased with the judge's ruling."
Lindh is scheduled to be arraigned Monday before U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III, who will take charge of the case. Lindh is expected to plead innocent.
With additional reporting by S.M. Khalid
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