Courtroom Jihad Update: Moussaoui tried to appeal. Sami Al-Arian is appealing. These paintball mujahedin are appealing. Thus the mujahedin tie up astronomical amounts of money and time that could otherwise be devoted by the infidels to more worthwhile pursuits. This is a byproduct of the Western sense of justice and the system that has resulted from that sense. I am not saying that these men should be automatically denied the right to appeal. But make no mistake: this is part of their overall jihad effort.
“Court Hears Appeal in ‘Jihad Network’ Cases,” from AP, with thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist:
Three U.S. Muslims convicted in a conspiracy that began with paintball games to train for a holy war against the United States were improperly denied a jury trial, their lawyers told a federal appeals court Thursday.
A federal prosecutor, however, argued that the three had to live with their “tactical decision” to entrust their fate to a judge.
“They got exactly what they wanted,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Gordon Kromberg told a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Masoud Khan of Gaithersburg, Md., Seifullah Chapman of Alexandria and Hammad Abdur-Raheem of Falls Church were part of what prosecutors called a “Virginia jihad network” that prepared to join the Taliban by playing paintball games in the woods near Fredericksburg in 2000 and 2001.
In all, the government charged 11 men. Six entered plea bargains and two were acquitted.
Khan was convicted of the most serious charges, including conspiracy to levy war against the United States and conspiracy to contribute services to the Taliban. He trained with the militant, anti-American group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which the government later designated a terrorist organization….
Lawyers for Chapman and Khan also are appealing their clients’ sentences. Khan was originally sentenced to life plus 65 years in prison, but that was reduced to life plus 45 years. Chapman’s original 85-year sentence was reduced to 65 years.
The government is appealing Abdur-Raheem’s sentence reduction from eight years and a month to four years and four months.