Judge Tells 9/11 Suspect to File Motion to Change Lawyer

A military judge from Guantanamo Bay recently ruled that the Yemeni suspect from the Sept. 11 bombings should keep the lawyers appointed to him by the court. According to the judge, this should be followed until a motion showing why the attorneys should be replaced is filed.

Reuters reported that the ruling was issued by Judge Army Colonel James Pohl after he had read a letter from one of the five defendants charged against plotting the 9/11 attacks in the United States. The letter was said to be from Walid bin Attash, one of the men who was suspected to be a training camp leader from al Qaeda group. Daily Mail shows that in his letter, bin Attash referred to two of his three lawyers to have become "the enemy." This was after Tuesday's pretrial hearing.

But while the letter from bin Attash states these, it fails to provide any good merit as to why the defense team should be removed. This has prompted Judge Pohl to tell bin Attash that he would reconsider his request if he would resubmit the request as a motion drafted with the assistance of an independent attorney.

Yahoo recalls that back in October, the same judge denied bin Attash's motion to fire Cheryl Bormann, who acted as his lead attorney. When Pohl's decision was made, bin Attash said that he would cut off any communication with his defense team. The 9/11 suspect was quoted saying "This problem could take forever." Additionally, bin Attash said that he will not be attending any court proceedings pertaining to his death penalty case.

As for bin Attash's lawyer, Bormann, she also requested to be removed as part of the defendant's defense team, stating that her client has been turned into "a damaged human being" after years of torture and isolated detention. Bormann added that bin Attash no longer trusts her for reasons that were out of her control. The Chicago-based lawyer blamed the strain in the attorney-client trust mostly on the government, who she accuses of having been secretly recording the meetings she has had with her client. At the same time, the government has also seized legal documents that were from her client's cell. This has further led to an FBI investigation that lasted an 18-month delay in the case.

Pohl denied the offer made by the lawyer.

Bin Attash is one of the five men suspected to have carried out the 9/11 bombings where nearly 3,000 people were killed when hijackers crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvania field on Sept. 11, 2001.

Tags

9/11 bombing, Walid bin Attash, Cheryl Bormann, James Pohl, Guantanamo Bay

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