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US court rejects American Taliban's plea to dismiss case

A federal judge on Monday rejected a plea by attorneys for John Walker Lindh to dismiss the entire case against the American Taliban or move the trial away from Virginia.

US district court judge T S Ellis denied seven motions by Lindh's defence team, which had argued the charges against their client ignored his constitutional rights.

Ellis, who said the decisions were all 'difficult' and 'uncharted territory', also denied a defence request to change the venue of the trial, saying the proximity to the Pentagon, hit in the September 11 attack, would not affect a jury pool.

Lindh's attorneys had challenged the government's indictment of the 21-year-old Californian, captured in Afghanistan last year while fighting with the Taliban.

Lindh has pleaded not guilty to the 10-count indictment charging him with conspiring to murder Americans and conspiring with and aiding the Taliban and Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda network.

The United States blames Al Qaeda and bin Laden for the September 11 hijacked plane attacks that killed 3,000 people.

The defence had argued that Lindh had a constitutional right to associate with whomever he chooses.

They said he also had the right to claim 'combat immunity' under international law, which allows soldiers to take part in armed conflict.

But Ellis disagreed, siding with the government which had noted that President George W Bush had declared the Taliban 'unlawful combatants' and they are not protected under international rules of law.

"Combat immunity is not available to unlawful combatants and the president has determined that the Taliban is (an) unlawful combatant," Ellis said, as Lindh, dressed in a prisoner's jumpsuit, stared straight ahead at the judge.

Lindh's parents and his teenage sister were sitting just behind him in the second row in the courtroom.

Ellis also rejected defense arguments that Lindh had a First Amendment right to associate with unpopular groups, and rejected the defence's claim that the charges against him reflected 'guilt by association'.

"The defendant is not being charged with ... standing on the street corner and advocating any religious point of view," Ellis said. "He's being charged with undergoing weeks of training with terrorist organisations ... and engaging in combat."

"It is a mistake to characterise this case as involving any infringement of First Amendment rights," he said. "The First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of association is no license to supply terrorists with resources."

Ellis also rejected a motion to move the trial because of prejudicial pretrial publicity.

Reuters

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