Supreme Court rejects effort to revive Khalid Sheikh Mohammed plea deal

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 19 Oct, 15:31 · Archive

The Supreme Court has rejected an effort to revive a plea deal for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the accused mastermind of the September 11 attacks.

The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an effort to revive a plea deal for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the accused mastermind of the attacks on September 11, 2001. The agreement would have spared Mohammed the risk of execution in exchange for his guilty plea and a sentence of life without parole.

Mohammed is accused of developing and directing the plot to crash hijacked airliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Another hijacked plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. The plea agreement was approved by military prosecutors and the Pentagon's senior official for Guantanamo Bay before then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin intervened.

Austin threw out the deal in 2024, saying a decision on the death penalty in an attack as grave as September 11 should be made only by the defense secretary. Defense attorneys had argued that Austin, who served under President Joe Biden, acted too late. A divided appeals court panel found Austin acted within his authority.

Relatives of the September 11 victims were split on the agreements for Mohammed and two co-defendants. Some said a trial is the best path to justice, while others viewed it as the best hope for bringing the long case to a conclusion.

How it is being reported

• Supreme Court rejects effort to revive Khalid Sheikh Mohammed plea dealThe Supreme Court has rejected an effort to revive a plea deal for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the accused mastermind of the September 11 attacks.Clickorlando · 19 Oct, 15:07
• Supreme Court rejects effort to revive Khalid Sheikh Mohammed plea dealThe Supreme Court has rejected an effort to revive a plea deal for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the accused mastermind of the September 11 attacks.News4Jax · 19 Oct, 15:07

In this story: Khalid Sheikh Mohammed · Lloyd Austin · World Trade Center · Pentagon · Guantanamo Bay · Pennsylvania

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