Holder: I made decision on prosecuting airline bomb-attack suspect

[WhiteTara]

Source: Seattle Times

WASHINGTON — In his first public defense of the arrest of the suspected Christmas airplane bomber, Attorney General Eric Holder said Wednesday he made the decision to prosecute Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab and no one in the federal intelligence community objected that the al-Qaida operative should instead be turned over to military interrogators as a prisoner of war.

Holder also praised the work of FBI agents in Detroit, specifically those who spoke with the Nigerian and who have been criticized for reading him his Miranda rights against self-incrimination. Abdulmutallab, 23, initially stopped talking but since then, after meeting with his family while in custody, has begun to cooperate again.

Holder and the Justice Department declined to discuss whether the discussions may lead to a plea bargain for Abdulmutallab, who reportedly trained under an al-Qaida branch in Yemen.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Wednesday that while "Abdulmutallab has not been offered anything, the Department of Justice (would) take his cooperation into consideration."

Holder, in a response to Republican calls for his testimony on Capitol Hill, took personal responsibility for deciding to prosecute Abdulmutallab.

Read more: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2010975679_holder04.html

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this is not right.

[Frank Booth]

1. This sounds good to me.

Am I missing something?

[WhiteTara]

9. I read this in the middle of the night and

thought it said he was sending him to military court. Oops, my bad. He is going to fed court? Am I reading this correctly now?

[laconicsax]

2. What's wrong about it?

The Attorney General made the decision to try Abdulmutallab in a civilian court and no one objected. I don't see anything wrong with prosecuting an 'alleged' criminal in our court system instead of the kangaroo court that * set up. If anything, it's a good thing that terrorism suspects aren't seen as prisoners of war for the simple reason that it is a step back towards respecting the rule of law.

[WhiteTara]

10. I thought he caved and was sending him

to the military court...my bad...I almost didn't post this because I was unsure of what I was reading. Middle of the night posting.

[earcandle]

3. Smells like justice!

[classysassy]

4. Attempted murder vs murder

When will Mr Holder complete the job.? ( sir, there are murderers at large,round them up and ship them off to gitmo)Oh by the way Mr.AG they are easy to find.

[EFerrari]

6. The unwritten rule is that criminals in the oligarchy never are prosecuted.

[EFerrari]

5. Good job, Mr. Holder.

[JDPriestly]

7. The Attorney General made the right decision.

He was really wise. The entire world is watching and what they see is fairness and the rule of law. The underpants bomber is cooperating. Everybody wins. Attorney General Holder should be thanked for showing good judgment and making the right decision under the Constitution.

[unblock]

8. this whole debate is another point of insanity

how extreme the self-proclaimed party of "law and order" has become that actual law and order is not good enough for the republican party. they now insist that anything that isolation and torture is the only thing appropriate for anyone a republican president accuses of being evil, and the only debate they think is legitimate is whether or not they even a MILITARY tribunal is appropriate.

i know it's a debate-losing tactic to compare your opponent to nazis, but unfortunately that leaves you without a weapon when they act just like nazis.