[BITList] The Shoe Bomber

[wantok at me.com]

Remember the 'Shoe Bomber' Mr Richard Ried ?  A UK citizen arrested for having a bomb in his shoe aboard an aircraft a few years back ?  This is the sentence he received.  The comments of the presiding Judge are immense and both his words and the sentence should be handed to every so called Judge in the UK and Australia.

 

It was a good job that this guy was tried in the US - In the UK he might have got 14 years, with the possibility of appealing to the European Courts and then god knows what might have happened. Particularly when you consider what the US Judge has to say to him - it would not be allowed in "Europe".

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 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 stating, '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:

 

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 $298.17 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

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 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 bear 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.  Pass this around.  Everyone should

and needs to hear what this fine judge had to say. Powerful words that

strike home.