Terror Goes on Trial

By Mitch Frank

DATE AND CHARGES/WHAT'S HAPPENED

Zacarias Moussaoui Aug. 16, 2001 He was arrested after suspicious flight lessons and charged with six counts of conspiracy connected with 9/11 Still on hold. Lawyers for Moussaoui petitioned the Supreme Court in January for permission to interview detained al-Qaeda captives they believe can help his case

Detroit Sleeper Cell Sept. 17, 2001 Arrested with airport-security passes and fake IDs, charged with ID fraud and providing material support to terrorists The two accused men were found guilty in 2003, but the judge dismissed the convictions after discovering that prosecutors had kept some evidence from the defense

Yaser Esam Hamdi November 2001 A Louisiana-born Saudi captured in Afghanistan with Taliban fighters, he was labeled an enemy combatant The Supreme Court ruled last June that Hamdi had the right to challenge his status. After talks, the government agreed to release him in Saudi Arabia if he renounced his U.S. citizenship

John Walker Lindh November 2001 Found in Afghanistan, he was charged with conspiring to kill Americans and providing support to al-Qaeda Lindh agreed to plead guilty to aiding the Taliban and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. After Hamdi's release, lawyers for Lindh petitioned the court to give him a shorter sentence

Richard Reid Dec. 22, 2001 A British citizen, he was caught trying to blow up a flight from Paris to Miami with explosives hidden in his shoes Bragging about his loyalty to al-Qaeda, Reid pleaded guilty in federal court in 2003 to multiple counts of attempted murder. He received a sentence of life in prison

Jose Padilla May 8, 2002 Accused of training with al-Qaeda and plotting to detonate a dirty bomb, he is being held as an enemy combatant Padilla continues to challenge his status. The Supreme Court dismissed his case on a technicality but, on the basis of the Hamdi decision, is likely to rule in his favor if there is another hearing

Lackawanna Six Sept. 13, 2002 From upstate New York, these men were accused of traveling to Afghanistan in May 2001 to train with al-Qaeda Afraid of being designated enemy combatants, all six pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists and were given prison sentences ranging from seven to 10 years

Portland Seven Oct. 4, 2002 Six men were charged with trying to go to Afghanistan to fight U.S. troops; an ex-wife was accused of helping One reached Afghanistan and died fighting. The other six pleaded guilty and were given sentences ranging from three to 18 years, on the basis of how much they cooperated

Iyman Faris March 2003 An Ohio truck driver, he was accused of training with Osama bin Laden and plotting to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge Arrested after being named by captured al-Qaeda leader Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Faris pleaded guilty in May 2003 and agreed to cooperate. He was sentenced to 20 years in jail

The Paintball Jihad June 2003 Eleven men were indicted for training-- sometimes with paintball sessions in Virginia--to fight with Islamists in Kashmir Six of the men pleaded guilty; three were convicted; two were acquitted on all charges. The guilty received sentences ranging from four years to life in prison

The Albany Pair Aug. 5, 2004 An imam and a pizza-shop owner were nabbed for allegedly laundering cash they thought was from a terrorist plot Free on bail. Justice said, based on a note found in Iraq, that Imam Yassin Aref, left, was an al-Qaeda leader but later said it had misread brother in Kurdish as commander in Arabic