Moussauoi

Like a lot of people, I’m sure, I was surprised the Virginia jury didn’t sentence Moussauoi to death for his role – a very limited role, to be sure – in the 9/11 attacks. But when the thing dragged on, the writing seemed to be on the wall. Usually, a jury will give a day or two so a death verdict doesn’t look rushed. But the longer they go, the less likely they are to come back with a death sentence.

Anybody who reads this blog knows I oppose the death penalty. Life without possibility of parole ain’t a walk in the park either, and I hope he lives out the rest of his life very anonymously.

Making a martyr out of him isn’t real smart, though he and his supporters will claim he’s a political prisoner. Still he wanted to be a martyr, but he ain’t gonna get what he wants. That’s good.

I’ve also viewed death cases as window into the workings of our criminal justice system and how it reflects the values of this society. Often, the case is a reflection of us just as much as it is about the bad guy. And I’m talking about the worst of the bad guys.

One thing that sticks out in the Moussauoi case is that the Bush conservatives wanted to hand out the death penalty for lying. But the real bottom line is they wanted the death penalty for somebody who refused to incriminate himself during interrogation. That’s a slippery slope. You have the right against self-incrimination in this country. At least for now.

And, if the issue is lying that results in the loss of American life, then I can think of somebody else who should be held to account for his actions.

But the Moussaoui case was really a show trial. Virtually everyone from all viewpoints on the political spectrum admit he was a minor player. For the terrorists, he was an unreliable fringe player in the whole 9/11 tragedy.

You want a death penalty case? Put Kahlid Shiek Muhammad(spelling?), the mastermind of 9/11, on trial. He’s in the American gulag somewhere (I say “American” because an uncomfortably large number of people, by their silence, is endorsing an overseas secret prison system). Rather than put the 9/11 families through hell for a fringe actor, put the mastermind on trial.

Of course, he’s been tortured, and the Bush boys – not men – boys don’t want that coming out at trial. Nothing would be admitted into evidence anyway.

What a bright bunch of boys they are. I’d say they all should be forced to look themselves in the mirror. That would be their torture. But on second thought, I doubt there would be a reflection in the mirror.

What a sad bunch, from the shamed Oval Office on down.

--Drzal