Richard Reid Sentence Hearing

[betasoldier]

This is an old email I got a long time ago and just now read. It's very insightful.




Richard Reid- sentence hearing



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/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 asked 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 stated "I think I will not apologize for my actions," and told the court "I am at war with your country."



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 consecutive with the other.



T hat's 80 years. On count 8 the Court sentences you to the mandatory 30 years consecutive to the 80 years just imposed. The Court imposes upon you each of the eight counts a fine of $250,000 for the aggregate fine of $2 million. The Court accepts the government's recommendation with respect to restitution and orders restitution in the amount of $298.17 to Andre Bousquet and $5,784 to American Airlines. The Court imposes upon you the $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.



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 all 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 soldier in any war. You are a terrorist. To give you that reference, to call you a soldier, gives you far too much stature. Whether it is the officers of government who do it or your attorney who 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 where 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 and 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.



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 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 Unite d 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.

[redwarrior666]

You will never see these words on TV, the Liberal Media is too busy dividing our country for the election of 2008. Liberals are ruining our country making it weak and creating divisions, we should be United to kick terrorist asses but we are not. I saw on TV the Liberals crying about there could be a draft reinstatement for the fact that our military is too small. I think we should do mandatory service like Israel. You get out of high school and its 2 years mandatory service in the military then a GI bill of some sort to get you through college. This would straighten out alot of problems with the youth these days, give them structure, discipline, and sense of honor and duty something alot of Americans seems to lack in this age. Beta it's youth like yourself that America desperately needs for it's future. I'm in favor of beefing up our military and mandatory service, America needs to get United and strengthen itself in every way possible.

REDWARRIOR

[BigBossMonkey]

You will never see these words on TV, the Liberal Media is too busy dividing our country for the election of 2008. Liberals are ruining our country making it weak and creating divisions, we should be United to kick terrorist asses but we are not. I saw on TV the Liberals crying about there could be a draft reinstatement for the fact that our military is too small. I think we should do mandatory service like Israel. You get out of high school and its 2 years mandatory service in the military then a GI bill of some sort to get you through college. This would straighten out alot of problems with the youth these days, give them structure, discipline, and sense of honor and duty something alot of Americans seems to lack in this age. Beta it's youth like yourself that America desperately needs for it's future. I'm in favor of beefing up our military and mandatory service, America needs to get United and strengthen itself in every way possible.

REDWARRIOR

Couple of things:

1). Liberals are ruining the country, but so are conservatives. Politicians are ruining this country. Doesn't matter if they are left or right, all they want to do is keep their power and screw over the rest of us... Atleast, thats my opinion on the matter...
2). I wouldn't object to a mandatory service similar to Isreal, and I do agree it certainly help out new generations get their heads out of their asses.

[rhonnin]

Monkey is absolutely correct, it has nothing to do with liberal or conservative and everything to do with politicians in general. I could go on and on about that but I think this icon I made for my live journal page about sums it up.

[BigBossMonkey]

Monkey is absolutely correct, it has nothing to do with liberal or conservative and everything to do with politicians in general. I could go on and on about that but I think this icon I made for my live journal page about sums it up.

Ahh... I see Rhonnin is familiar with the Pork faced Jackaphant.

[PanzerFaust]

I wouldn't particularly like to be drafted, however, I do know that it would do me good, and I wouldn't object. It would be interesting to see just how many social problems would simply evaporate if they did that.
It's a shame no one will ever recognize that judge if you quote him, it's men like him that give the rest a good name.

[redwarrior666]

Ok you guys got me on the politicians not Liberals or Conservatives but I'm a Conservative at heart . I could be wrong but I see the division of our country as weakening our country and that is just wrong in my eyes. Of course I grew up with a parent figure who spent 22 years in the Marine's this may have had some influence on how I feel about things.

[Tackalt]

That judge has it down. You'd think at least FOX News would've picked up on it. The draft will never come back into effect unless...

A.) We are either attacked harder on US soil than ever before. Meaning more collateral damage than 9/11 and more casualties than on that day. No politician will present a bill to reinstate the draft in fear for his reelection the next time around. It's like taxes. No shit-for-brains would propose an increase in taxes to cut the annual national deficit of 260 billion in fear for their political career.

B.) Flat out war with a country like China. Not stupid shit in Iraq that the enemy hides behind civilians and can blend in whenever they like. Nothing derogatory meant towards US soldiers, either. But the stupid crap of having to deal with court martials for flicking off a civilian, or shooting an armed terrorist and then being jailed because his family claimed he was innocent. (Reference: Pendleton 8 ).

I'd love to see a draft. It'd do people some good to have a little structure in their life. And I'd be hella proud to be an officer in a huge, unstoppable military that didn't jail its own soldiers to make it look like it's not the politicians fault.

[Valkyrie]

Drafted..........sounds nice.....what kind of beer is it ^.^

[Pilsner]

Mandatory service would cure none of the social ills currently present in America. All you have to do is look back to the last time there was a draft and look at the reception it received and think of Kent State. Although it has often been proven that military service does provide misguided souls with structure and discipline mandatory service wont solve any problems this country may now be experiencing.