Locals sound off on terrorist trial
Several believe terror trials should be held outside the U.S.

By Larry Meyer
Argus Observer
LarryM@argusobserver.com
Friday, November 20, 2009 10:38 AM PST

ONTARIO — A small group of area residents proved to be divided over the wisdom of sending terrorists linked to the deadly Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center to be tried in federal court.

Attorney General Eric Holder recently announced a decision to bring several key suspects in the terror attack case — including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind behind the 2001 terror assault — to New York where they will be tried in a federal court and not under a military-based tribunal system.

The plan raised a number of questions — regarding security and whether the suspected terrorists can secure a fair trial — and, in some quarters, touched off a firestorm of criticism of the Obama administration.

The judicial blueprint has found little support locally.

“They should be tried in Cuba,” Luz Escobedo, a Nyssa resident, said, expressing dismay they were to be brought to the U.S.

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Another Nyssa resident, Louie Grimaldo, also wondered why the government decided to do this.

“What is the purpose of taking them to New York?” he asked. He added he thought it could put the country at risk, with supporters trying to get them released.

“I’d rather see it not happen,” Jacob Rynearson, Fruitland, said. Given the nature of the attacks, he said he thinks the suspects should be tried before a military court rather than civilian court.

One Ontario resident, though, thinks otherwise.

“I have a firm belief in the fairness of our justice system,” Jim Mosier, Ontario, said.

He said he is not bothered at all by bringing the 9/11 suspects to the U.S. for trial.

“It’s not just a national defense issue, it’s a justice issue,” he continued.

Mosier also said he wanted the trials to provide a clear picture of what the country is facing.

“I hope there is a broad public understanding that we are really at war,” he said.

In his executive order on closing the prison where alleged enemy combatants have been detained, President Barack Obama said the government has already moved more than 500 of the detainees, either to their home countries or to a third country willing to accept them. Some of the detainees have been at Guantanamo for six years, raising concerns about having a prompt and appropriate disposition of their cases.