GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!!!!!
Sentence of Reid
Remember the guy who got on a plane with a bomb built
into his shoe and tried to light it?
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 aske d 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."< /SPAN>
Judge Young then delivered the statement quoted below:
January 30, 2003, United States vs. Reid. 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
$29817 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 soldie r 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 bare 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, but
that's another subject. Pass this around. Everyone
should and needs to hear what this fine judge had to
say. Powerful words that strike home. God bless
America
Please forward this--------- so that every American
has a chance to read it.
