Chicago Tribune P 1 - 16 July, 2002 -------------------- Lindh pleads guilty -------------------- American Taliban fighter agrees to serve 20 years By Michael Kilian Washington Bureau July 16, 2002 ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- In a surprise plea bargain, American Taliban John Walker Lindh avoided a possible life sentence Monday by pleading guilty to two counts of his original 10-count indictment: assisting the Taliban and being armed with explosives. The 21-year-old Californian, who was captured by U.S. forces late last year in Afghanistan, agreed to serve 20 years without parole, the maximum allowed for the two felony offenses. He also agreed to cooperate with the U.S. government and intelligence in the future and cannot profit from writings or other use of his story. Had Lindh stood trial and been convicted on all 10 counts of the original indictment--including conspiracy to kill Americans and aiding terrorists--he would have faced three consecutive life sentences plus 90 years, according to James Brosnahan, his chief attorney. Much of the public was captivated by the saga of Lindh, who grew up in an upper-middle-class suburb in Marin County, Calif., converted to Islam in high school and traveled to Central Asia last year--ostensibly to pursue Islamic studies but eventually to fight alongside radical Muslims in Afghanistan. Lindh joined the Taliban before Sept. 11. He was captured during the fighting by the Northern Alliance and turned over to U.S. authorities. His gaunt, bearded visage was shown on CNN after he was wounded in a prison uprising that killed CIA officer Johnny "Mike" Spann. Prosecutors were eager to try Lindh, whom they viewed as a traitor, but it was never clear how strong the legal case was against him. Monday's hearing was supposed to determine whether the defense could suppress statements that Lindh made in Afghanistan to the FBI and military interrogators. The plea deal was hammered out over the weekend and had White House approval, prosecutors said, and each side depicted the agreement as a victory. Without the deal, the defense feared Lindh could spend the rest of his life behind bars. The Justice Department took satisfaction in a relatively stiff sentence, gained without bringing intelligence agents and key figures in the anti-terrorist war into open court to testify about operations in Afghanistan. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III, surprised to learn of the plea agreement, had been preparing an arrangement of black curtains that would allow such witnesses to testify without being seen by the public and press. Sentencing set for Oct. 4 Ellis has the final say on sentencing, but he said in court that he is generally guided by what is agreed to in plea bargains. He set Oct. 4 for sentencing. Brosnahan said he thought the intensity of feelings in America after the Sept. 11 attacks contributed to the severity of the government's initial charges against Lindh. He said he was hopeful a pardon might be possible in a calmer future. Lindh's father, Frank, complained the government had overreacted in bringing the other counts against Lindh. "I'm really gratified that the government has decided to drop all of the terrorism charges against my son," he said. Appearing outside the courthouse with Lindh's family after Monday's hearing, Brosnahan insisted Lindh's involvement with the Taliban was motivated by religious faith, not hatred of America. Eastern Virginia U.S. Atty. Paul McNulty, the chief prosecutor, called the agreement a victory for the Justice Department. "This is a tough sentence," McNulty said. "This is an appropriate punishment. And this case proves that the criminal justice system can be an effective tool in combating terrorism." Still, the sentence appeared to be less than what Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft wanted. Ashcroft had made a series of tough pronouncements on the case and accused Lindh of "turning his back" on America and taking direction from "murderous ideologies." In a statement Monday, however, Ashcroft called the plea bargain "an important victory in America's war on terrorism." The family of Spann, who was killed in the uprising at the Mazar-e Sharif fortress where Lindh was a POW, had hoped for stronger punishment. At an earlier hearing, Spann's widow Shannon said, "Certainly I should have preferred the death penalty, myself." Brosnahan emphasized that the prosecution had produced no evidence that Lindh was a terrorist or that he had any knowledge of the Al Qaeda plot to attack the World Trade Center and Pentagon. "He wanted to leave [the Taliban] after Sept. 11," Brosnahan said. "He couldn't because he was threatened with death." Douglas Cassell, director of Northwestern University's Center for International Human Rights, saw the agreement as a victory of the rule of law and a model the government should follow in prosecuting other U.S. citizens accused of terrorism. "The government was able to get a 20-year sentence for a low-ranking foot soldier," Cassell said, "without having to compromise any national security [in trial testimony]. It's important that the government accomplished this through the law-enforcement process and not through military repression, as it has in other cases." Tentative talks between the two sides on a possible plea agreement began six weeks ago and progressed to serious negotiations Friday, Brosnahan said. Final settlement was reached at midnight Sunday. Lindh, who had been somber and withdrawn in earlier trial proceedings, smiled and shook the hands of his lawyers upon entering the courtroom. With his hair cut short, Lindh was respectful and attentive as Ellis summarized his rights, the case against him and the consequences of his guilty plea. Asked to say in his own words what he was admitting to, Lindh replied: "I provided my services as a soldier to the Taliban last year from about August to December. In the course of doing so, I carried a rifle and two grenades. I did so knowingly and willingly, knowing that it was illegal." He was charged in Count 9 of the indictment with providing services to the Taliban in violation of an executive order of President Bill Clinton that declared the organization a terrorist group. This offense carries a maximum penalty of 10 years. By carrying a rifle and two hand grenades, he was guilty of possessing explosives in the commission of a felony and subject to another 10-year sentence. Family's tearful defense Lindh's father; mother, Marilyn; brother Connell, 24; and sister Naomi, 13; were in the courtroom for the hearing and joined in an embrace after it was over. Making sometimes tearful statements outside the courthouse, they said Lindh, who had traveled from California to Yemen and Pakistan in pursuit of his Islamic studies, was greatly misunderstood. "Many people believe that they know who and what John is," said his mother. "What they may not know is that John is honest, kind, humble and a loving son. He's also a devout Muslim. . . . He did not go to Afghanistan with the intention of fighting against the United States, his homeland." "I've always been proud of him," said Lindh's brother, Connell. "I'm still proud of him. He's behaved with total integrity, total grace. It pains me that he is going to be away for so long, but I'm grateful for this decision." "I just want him to come home," said his sister. 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