John Walker Lindh, the American accused of fighting alongside the Taleban, has been formally indicted on 10 charges of conspiring to kill fellow Americans. The US is a country of laws, not of men… Walker Lindh only recognised the law of brute force US Attorney General John Ashcroft The indictment, which was handed down by a grand jury in eastern Virginia, formalised the six charges filed against him last month and added four more. The 10-count charge sheet represents the next step in the case against the 20-year-old Californian Muslim. He faces multiple life sentences if convicted. Asked at a press conference whether the government would ask the grand jury to charge Mr Walker with treason, US Attorney Paul J McNulty said: ‘As far as other charges, we have the opportunity or right to have a superseding indictment if the evidence justifies that.’ ‘Trained terrorist’ Announcing the indictment at the US Justice Department, Attorney General John Ashcroft said it described Mr Walker as ‘an al-Qaeda-trained terrorist who conspired with the Taleban to kill his fellow citizens.’ He said the indictment was based in part on voluntary statements made Mr Walker.
The new charges are: Conspiracy to contribute services to al-Qaeda Contributing services to the network Conspiracy to supply services to the Taleban Using and carrying firearms and destructive devices during crimes of violence Mr Walker had already been charged with: Conspiracy to murder US citizens or US nationals Two counts of conspiracy to provide material support and resources to designated foreign terrorist organisations Two counts of providing material support and resources to terrorist organisations Supplying services to the Taleban Mr Ashcroft said the indictment presented a timeline of Mr Walker’s involvement with terrorism. The charge sheet said that in early summer 2001, Mr Walker was in an al-Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan. Later, as the network made their alleged preparation for the attacks of 11 September, Mr Walker was ‘forging ever deeper bonds’ with al-Qaeda and met America’s foremost suspect, Osama Bin Laden, Mr Ashcroft said. Mr Ashcroft said that on the day of 11 September, Mr Walker was fighting alongside the Taleban in Afghanistan, and in the weeks after the attack he remained with his fighting camp, despite knowing about the suicide attacks and being aware that additional attacks were planned. Walker’s father is standing by his son As the US launched its war against terrorism in Afghanistan, Mr Walker remained ‘shoulder to shoulder’ with the Taleban, Mr Ashcroft reported. ‘The US is a country of laws, not of men…
The Essay on Attorney General Ashcroft John Act
These two articles, one, an address by Attorney General John Ashcroft to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, and the other, an article written by David Cole that appeared on the Amnesty International web site, deal with the ethics and Constitutionality of the United Stated Patriot Act. David Cole, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center, argues that the Patriot Act violates citizen's ...
Walker Lindh only recognised the law of brute force’, the US attorney-general said. He added that Mr Walker had, by his own statements, been treated very well. On Wednesday, Judge W Curtis Sewell must decide whether Mr Walker, who was captured in Afghanistan and sent back to the United States to face the charges, should be imprisoned while awaiting trial.
