BBC NEWS Moussaoui faces life over 9/11 Al-Qaeda plotter Zacarias Moussaoui is to be formally sentenced to life in jail without the possibility of parole for his role in the 9/11 attacks.
A US jury decided he should not be executed. Instead he will serve his sentence in solitary confinement in a maximum security jail in Colorado. Moussaoui, 37, is expected to be given the opportunity to make a statement at Thursday's court session in Virginia. His mother has said she wants him to be able to serve his sentence in France. Aicha el-Wafi has asked the French authorities to request the move, her lawyer said, according to AFP news agency. Moussaoui has French citizenship. The former Mayor of New York, Rudolph Giuliani, who was in the city at the time of the attacks and testified at Moussaoui's sentencing trial, said he was disappointed a death sentence had not been passed. But he added he was "in awe" of the US legal system. The greater value I think would have been if he was executed Rudolph Giuliani Former Mayor of New York US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who had pressed for the death penalty, said he was satisfied that "justice was served". The jury's decision to spare Moussaoui the death sentence was revealed on Wednesday, after seven days of deliberation. As the verdict was read out, Moussaoui, the only man to be prosecuted over 9/11, shouted: "America, you lost!" The prosecution had called for the death sentence, contending that "there is no place on this good Earth" for him. But defence lawyers successfully argued he should face life in prison, rather than martyrdom through execution. During six weeks of testimony, prosecutors had argued that Moussaoui had withheld information that could have helped prevent the attacks on New York and Washington. Under cross-examination, Moussaoui said he had "no regret, no remorse" and wished it could be 11 September 2001 every day. 'Minor role' Moussaoui was arrested on immigration charges at a flight simulator school in Minnesota in August 2001. The right decision. To execute him would be to condone state sanctioned murder and only play into the hands of fanatics Michael Los Angeles Although he was in jail at the time of the attacks, prosecutors said he told lies to allow the plot to continue. Although full details of the jury's vote have not been made public, a court spokesman said the verdict in favour of life imprisonment was not unanimous. But Moussaoui received the sentence nonetheless because under US law, all members of a jury must be in agreement where a death sentence is to be handed down. Jurors did unanimously reject the suggestion - put forward by Moussaoui's defence - that the death penalty would help fulfil the defendant's visions of martyrdom. JURY CONSIDERATIONS ON THREE CAPITAL CHARGES Aggravating factors (10): Including: - He knowingly created a grave risk of death to people other than the victims - He committed an offence in an especially heinous or cruel manner involving torture or serious physical abuse - He acted after substantial planning and premeditation to cause death or commit an act of terrorism Mitigating factors (23): Including: - His testimony of his planned role on 9/11 is unreliable - He suffers from a psychotic disorder - His role in 9/11 was minor Most computers will open PDF documents automatically, but you may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader. Three jurors felt his knowledge of the 9/11 plot was limited and three jurors said that if he was involved in the attacks, his role was a minor one. During the six-week sentencing trial, the jury of nine men and three women sat through tortuous legal arguments and harrowing evidence gathered from the bloodiest terror attacks in US history. Testimony was heard from witnesses who survived the attacks on New York and Washington and pictures were shown of the carnage caused when the hijacked aircraft crashed into their targets. The jury also heard a voice recording from the cockpit of the hijacked United Airlines flight that crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. Many of the victims' families were not happy with the verdict - though others said they were relieved Moussaoui had not been allowed to become a martyr. US President George W Bush said the verdict presented "the end of this case but not an end to the fight against terror". Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/4972184.stm Published: 2006/05/04 11:06:23 GMT © BBC MMVI ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Everything you need is one click away. Make Yahoo! your home page now. http://us.click.yahoo.com/AHchtC/4FxNAA/yQLSAA/uTGrlB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Post message: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] List owner : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
