Al-Qaida member faces sentencing, lawyers say years held without charge punishment enough
By APWednesday, October 28, 2009
Lawyers want admitted al-Qaida member released
PEORIA, Ill. — An al-Qaida sleeper agent is expected in federal court in Illinois for a sentencing hearing that could have far-reaching effects.
Ali al-Marri, a 44-year-old native of Qatar, pleaded guilty in May to one count of conspiring to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization.
His two-day sentencing hearing begins Wednesday in Peoria.
His attorneys say the judge should consider the five years al-Marri spent locked up without charge, much of it in a U.S. Navy brig in South Carolina. Prosecutors have recommended 15 years behind bars.
The U.S. still holds more than 200 people without charge at Guantanamo Bay. If convicted, they also could argue that their time as detainees should be considered at sentencing.
