Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009

Senate rejects bill aimed at Sept. 11 terrorists

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Democratic-controlled Senate has blocked a GOP-led effort to prevent Sept. 11 terrorists from being prosecuted in civilian federal courts.

Instead, senators voted 54-45 on Thursday to support an administration request to give officials the flexibility to prosecute Sept. 11 terrorists in either federal court or by military commission.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina says it's simply wrong to treat the Sept. 11 attacks as a criminal act instead of a war crime. Graham says the Sept. 11 terrorists don't deserve the same rights as U.S. citizens.

Others say U.S. courts have processed far more terrorists than military courts and that the Pentagon and Justice departments should determine the best venue to prosecute them.

2009-11-05     23:37:32 GMT

Copyright 2009. The Associated Press All Rights Reserved.
The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Ads by FindLaw

Legal News