Litigation

NYC Bombing Attempt Nets Life Sentence

By Peter Hardin

Faisal Shahzad, who had pleaded guilty to multiple charges in the attempted car bombing of New York City’s Times Square, was sentenced by a federal judge today to life in prison.

“The defeat of the U.S. is imminent, inshallah,” Shahzad said during his sentencing by U.S. District Judge Miriam Cedarbaum, according to a CNN  report.

His arrest sparked a renewed debate about the rights of accused terrorists (see Gavel Grab). But at least one analyst concluded today that the handling of Shahzad in federal courts was successful. Wrote Ben Smith in Politico:

“The swift conviction and life sentence for the attempted Times Square bomber Faisal Shazad looks, on its face, like a triumph for the civilian legal system’s ability to try terrorists. Shahzad was arrested, read his rights, tried, convicted, and sentenced, while other terror suspects languish in the troubled military commission system.  And opponents of military commissions certainly see it that way.”

Full post as published by The Gavel on October 05, 2010 (boomark / email).