Sept. 11 suspect jars court

Moussaoui drops bombshells in 50-minute address to federal judge

BROOKE A. MASTERS, THE WASHINGTON POST

Originally published Tuesday, April 23, 2002

WASHINGTON -- Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person facing U.S. charges in the Sept. 11 hijackings, shocked a federal courtroom Monday by telling a judge he wants to fire his court-appointed lawyers and that he prays for the destruction of the United States and Israel.

In a calm but fervent 50-minute statement at the lawyers' lectern, Moussaoui, 33, quoted extensively from the Koran in English and Arabic as he explained that he wants to represent himself and hire a Muslim attorney as his legal consultant. He faces the death penalty if convicted on charges that he conspired with Osama bin Laden and the 19 hijackers to carry out the attacks.

The French citizen told U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema that his lawyers "have no understanding of terrorism, Muslim, mujahideen." He also accused Brinkema and his lawyers of being part of a government plot to "get this matter over as quickly as possible... (because) the U.S. commander in chief wants me to be over quickly."

Then he called for the return of parts of the world to Muslim rule, including Spain, Kashmir and Chechnya. "I pray ... for the destruction of the Jewish people and state and the liberation of Palestine ... I pray to Allah the powerful for the return of the Islamic emirates of Afghanistan and the destruction of the United States," he said.

"America, America I am ready to fight in your Don King fight ... even both hands tied behind the back in court."

Moussaoui's request complicates the case for the Justice Department, which may now have to share the stage with an alleged terrorist, who would be able to make an opening statement, a closing argument and cross-examine witnesses.

"This is a nightmare scenario," said Eric Holder, a former top Justice Department official. "Now you have the prospect of him deflecting attention from the one opportunity the United States has to explain what Sept. 11 was all about and what al-Qaida is. Now people are going to be focused on the rantings and ravings of this zealot."

Moussaoui's announcement derailed what was to have been a short hearing to consider defense complaints about his confinement.

His lawyer had just started talking when Moussaoui raised his arm, one finger to the sky. Given permission to speak, he announced in heavily accented but fluent English, "They are not anymore my lawyers."

Brinkema told Moussaoui she respected his constitutional right to represent himself against charges of helping to plot the four hijackings that killed more than 3,000 people in New York, Arlington and Pennsylvania, but would not make a final decision until a psychiatrist examined him for mental health problems.

"From what I have seen in court today, you appear to know and understand what you are doing," the judge said. "You are very bright ... unless the doctor comes up with something, I will find this is a knowing and intelligent waiver of counsel."

Government officials allege Moussaoui was training to be the 20th hijacker -- aboard the flight that crashed in Pennsylvania -- until employees at a Minnesota flight school called the FBI in August because they were suspicious of his behavior. He was in INS custody at the time of the attacks.

Moussaoui told Brinkema that he wants a judge rather than a jury to decide the case, which is scheduled for trial in October. Brinkema said the government would also have to agree to such a request.

Cases where defendants represent themselves put an extra burden on the judge and the government because there is no defense lawyer to object to trial errors that could lead an appeals court to reverse the outcome.

Deciding to go it alone "does not serve the government well or Moussaoui well," said former prosecutor Mark Hulkower.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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