A majority of Americans believe that terror suspects should be tried in closed military courts, according to a new CBS News poll.
While 54 percent favor the closed military court for terror trials, 40 percent of respondents say they favor open civilian courts. An additional 6 percent of Americans aren’t sure.
Last week, the Obama Administration announced that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attack, and four other Guantanamo Bay detainees will stand trial in New York federal court. Meanwhile, the cases against five other Guantanamo Bay detainees charged in military commissions will proceed.
In addition, 50 percent of Americans say Guantanamo Bay should remain open compared to 39 percent who want it closed, according to the CBS News poll.
Comments
I have full faith in our system of justice. Criminal defendants are given every advantage and resource to ensure they do not get convicted of a crime they did not commit. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed will get most of those advantages and resources. But that is all a distraction from one central fact — Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is not a criminal. He is a soldier in a war captured on a battlefield. That is not something our criminal justice system was designed to handle and should not handle.
I agree with Grant, terrorists are war criminals and should be tried by the military. They should not be given all the advantages of the American justice system. "Innocent until proven guilty" and is for Americans, not terrorists.
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