Remember the guy who got on a plane with a bomb built into his shoe and tried to light it [Dec. 22, 2001]?
Did you know his trial is over?
Did you know he was sentenced?
Did you see/hear any of the judge's comments on TV or Radio?
Didn't think so.!!!
Everyone should hear what the judge had to say.
Ruling by Judge William Young, US District Court.
Prior to sentencing, the Judge asked the defendant if he had anything
to say His response: After admitting his guilt to the court for the
record, Reid also admitted his 'allegiance to Osama bin Laden, to Islam,
and to the religion of Allah,' defiantly
stating, 'I think I will not apologize for my actions,' and told the court 'I am at war with your country.'
Judge Young then delivered the statement quoted below:
Judge Young: "Mr. Richard C. Reid, hearken now to the sentence the Court imposes upon you.
On counts 1, 5 and 6 the Court sentences you to life in prison in the
custody of the United States Attorney General. On counts 2, 3, 4 and 7,
the Court sentences you to 20 years in prison on each count, the
sentence on each count to run consecutively. (That's 80 years.)
On count 8 the Court sentences you to the mandatory 30 years, again to
be served consecutively to the 80 years just imposed. The Court imposes
upon you for each of the eight counts a fine of $250,000, that's an
aggregate fine of $2 million. The Court accepts the government's
recommendation with respect to restitution and orders restitution in the
amount of $298.17 to Andre Bousquet and $5,784 to American Airlines.
The Court imposes upon you an $800 special assessment. The Court
imposes upon you, five years supervised release simply because the law
requires it. But the life sentences are real life sentences so I need go
no further.
This is the sentence that is provided for by our statutes. It is a fair and just sentence. It is a righteous sentence.
Now, let me explain this to you. We are not afraid of you or any of
your terrorist co-conspirators, Mr. Reid. We are Americans. We have been
through the fire before. There is too much war talk here and I say that
to everyone with the utmost respect. Here in this court, we deal with
individuals as individuals and care for individuals as individuals. As
human beings, we reach out for justice.
You are not an enemy
combatant. You are a terrorist. You are not a soldier in any war. You
are a terrorist. To give you that reference, to call you a soldier,
gives you far too much stature. Whether the officers of government do
it, or your attorney does it, or if you think you are a soldier, you are
not-----, you are a terrorist. And we do not negotiate with terrorists.
We do not meet with terrorists. We do not sign documents with
terrorists. We hunt them down one by one and bring them to justice.
So war talk is way out of line in this court. You are a big fellow. But
you are not that big. You're no warrior. I've known warriors. You are a
terrorist. A species of criminal that is guilty of multiple attempted
murders. In a very real sense, State Trooper Santiago had it right when
you first were taken off that plane and into custody and you wondered
where the press and the TV crews were, and he said:
'You're no big deal. '
You are no big deal.
What your able counsel and what the equally able United States
attorneys have grappled with and what I have, as honestly as I know how,
tried to grapple with, is why you did something so horrific. What was
it that led you here to this courtroom today?
I have listened
respectfully to what you have to say. And I ask you to search your heart
and ask yourself what sort of unfathomable hate led you to do what you
are guilty, and admit you are guilty, of doing? And, I have an answer
for you. It may not satisfy you, but as I search this entire record, it
comes as close to understanding as I know.
It seems to me, you
hate the one thing that to us is most precious. You hate our freedom.
Our individual freedom. Our individual freedom to live as we choose, to
come and go as we choose, to believe or not believe as we individually
choose. Here, in this society, the very wind carries freedom. It carries
it everywhere from sea to shining sea. It is because we prize
individual freedom so much that you are here in this beautiful
courtroom, so that everyone can see, truly see, that justice is
administered fairly, individually, and discretely. It is for freedom's
sake that your lawyers are striving so vigorously on your behalf, have
filed appeals, will go on in their representation of you before other
judges.
We Americans are all about freedom. Because we all know
that the way we treat you, Mr. Reid, is the measure of our own
liberties. Make no mistake though. It is yet true that we will bear any
burden; pay any price, to preserve our freedoms. Look around this
courtroom. Mark it well. The world is not going to long remember what
you or I say here. The day after tomorrow, it will be forgotten, but
this, however, will long endure.
Here in this courtroom and
courtrooms all across America , the American people will gather to see
that justice, individual justice, justice, not war, individual justice,
is in fact being done. The very President of the United States through
his officers, will have to come into courtrooms and lay out evidence on
which specific matters can be judged and juries of citizens will gather
to sit and judge that evidence democratically, to mold and shape and
refine our sense of justice.
See that flag, Mr. Reid? That's
the flag of the United States of America . That flag will fly there long
after this is all forgotten. That flag stands for freedom. And it
always will.
Mr. Custody Officer. Stand him down."
So,
how much of this Judge's comments did we hear on our TV sets? We need
more judges like Judge Young. Pass this around. Everyone should, and
needs to, hear what this fine judge had to say. Powerful words that
strike home.
Please SEND this----so that everyone has a chance to read it.
Shane Bytheway We must hate the sin but love the sinner, John Steenburgh. You must love this guy, Rick Warren says so.
Helga Hickman Ha Ha Ha Ha! After reading this beautiful speech by this great judge, I have to read an IDIOTIC comment, like the IDIOT Shane Bytheway spews!
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