Bin Laden's Driver Gets 5½ Years

Prosecutors Sought 30 Years For Salim Hamdan, Who Is Now Eligible For Release In 5 Months

(CBS/ AP)  A U.S. military jury gave Osama bin Laden's driver a surprisingly light sentence on Thursday, making him eligible for release in just five months despite the prosecutors' request for at least a 30-year sentence to deter would-be terrorists.

Salim Hamdan's sentence of 5½ years, including five years and a month already served at Guantanamo Bay, fell far short of the life sentence he could have gotten for aiding terrorism by driving and guarding bin Laden. It now goes for mandatory review to a Pentagon official who can shorten the sentence but not extend it.

It remains unclear what will happen to Hamdan once his sentence is served, since the U.S. military has said it won't release anyone who still represents a threat. The judge, Navy Capt. Keith Allred, said Hamdan, who is from Yemen, would likely be eligible for the same administrative review process as other Guantanamo prisoners.

Defense lawyers said they expect Hamdan will be let go in five months. "It was all for show if Mr. Hamdan does not go home in December," said Charles Swift, one of Hamdan's civilian attorneys.

Neal Katyal, one of Hamdan's other attorneys, called it a bad day for the Bush adminstration.

"It does I think demonstrate the fundamental overblown nature of what the Bush administration has claimed about people at Guantanamo," Katyal told CBS News correspondent Wyatt Andrews.

The Pentagon, however, said it still can detain Hamdan indefinitely if he is deemed to be a threat, reports Andrews.

Hamdan thanked the jurors for the sentence and repeated his apology for having served bin Laden.

"I would like to apologize one more time to all the members and I would like to thank you for what you have done for me," Hamdan told the five-man, one-woman jury, all military officers hand-picked by the Pentagon for the first U.S. war crimes trial in a half-century.

“The lenient sentencing will not change some legal critics' view that the tribunal process is flawed, but it does mean that the jury was able to differentiate a driver from a commander in the war on terror and a small fish from the big one,” said CBS News foreign affairs analyst Pamela Falk, “and it does indicate that the trials will start continue at a much faster pace now.”

Hamdan was found guilty of supporting terrorism by serving as bin Laden's armed bodyguard and driver while knowing the al Qaeda leader was plotting U.S. attacks. But he was found not guilty of providing missiles to al Qaeda and knowing his work would be used for terrorism. He also was cleared of being part of al Qaeda's conspiracy to attack the United States - the most serious charges he faced.

The military has not said where Hamdan will serve his sentence, but the commander of the detention center, Navy Rear Adm. David Thomas, said last week that convicted prisoners will be held apart from the general detainee population at the isolated U.S. military base in southeast Cuba.

"I hope the day comes that you return to your wife and daughters and your country, and you're able to be a provider, a father and a husband in the best sense of all those terms," the judge told Hamdan.

Hamdan, dressed in a charcoal sports coat and white robe, responded: "God willing."

Military prosecutors had said even a life sentence would be fitting in order to send an example to would-be terrorists.

But the jury, which acquitted Hamdan of the most serious charges, apparently agreed with the judge, who called him only a "small player" in al Qaeda.

"The decision showed what the jury thought Hamdan was worth," Air Force Col. Morris Davis, the former chief prosecutor for the Guantanamo trials, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.

Referring to the decks of cards the U.S. military has distributed with images of most-wanted terrorists, Davis said: "Hamdan would be the two of clubs."

Still, the sentence should give skeptics some pause, Davis said, by showing that military juries are independent and carefully evaluate evidence presented in the war crimes trials.

"There is a perception that trying people in front of the military was going to be a rubber-stamp process," Davis said. "This shows they are conscientious, following instructions and are making rational decisions."

The chief defense counsel for the Guantanamo tribunals, Army Col. Steve David, said the government failed in its strategy to link Hamdan to the Sept. 11 attacks.

"The government attempted to inflame the emotions of the panel," he said. "It didn't work."

Hamdan admitted he drove bin Laden around Afghanistan at the time of the 2001 attacks, but said he took the job without knowing the al Qaeda leader was a terrorist. It came as "a big shock," he said, when he learned bin Laden was responsible for the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen, where Hamdan is from.

Still, he kept the job, Hamdan said - he needed the money, and couldn't go home.

"It's true there are work opportunities in Yemen, but not at the level I needed after I got married and not to the level of ambitions that I had in my future," said Hamdan, who has a fourth-grade education.

Reading a prepared statement in Arabic, he said he had a "relationship of respect" with bin Laden, as would any other driver in the al Qaeda motor pool. Hamdan has said he drove mainly low-profile pickup trucks with tinted windows because his boss shunned the Toyota Land Cruisers favored by Afghanistan's Taliban rulers.

Hamdan expressed regret over the "innocent people" who died in the attacks in the United States, according to a Pentagon transcript. His apology couldn't be heard by reporters because the sound was turned off during part of the proceedings to protect classified information.

"I personally present my apologies to them if anything that I did has caused them pain," Hamdan said.

Prosecutor John Murphy had pressed for a sentence stiff enough to dissuade potential terrorists from joining the fight.

"You have found him guilty of offenses that have made our world extremely unsafe and dangerous," Murphy said. "The government asks you to deliver a sentence that will absolutely keep our society safe from him."

The judge instructed jurors to consider the nearly seven years Hamdan has spent in confinement, and that he is the sole supporter of his wife and two children.

The guilty verdict will be appealed automatically to a special military court in Washington. Hamdan also can appeal to U.S. civilian courts, thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court. Defense lawyers say Hamdan's rights were denied by an unfair process, hastily patched together after the court ruled that previous tribunal systems violated U.S. and international law.

"The problem is the law was specifically written after the fact to target Mr. Hamdan," said Swift.

Deputy White House spokesman Tony Fratto on Wednesday disputed allegations of injustice, saying Hamdan had received a fair trial and that prosecutors will now press ahead with other war crimes trials. Prosecutors intend to try about 80 Guantanamo detainees, including 19 already charged.

"Although Hamdan's trial will be seen as a landmark case in the tribunals," said Falk, "the next trial, that of Khalid Sheikh Mohammad - called the mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks - will be the real bellwether, because it is a case that will raise the issue of harsh interrogations and because it is a death penalty case."

[stevex47]

"But have you ever heard about Pearl Harbor and Japan.. and the Atom bomb.."

Um, when japan and germany attacked us, did we then attack Canada? Mexico? Brazil?

So, when Iraq attacked us on 9-11....oh, oops.

[shingles1]

''In closing I would like to thank the worthless court system of the United States for protecting the criminals and hurting the victims.. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK AND YOU WILL ACCOMPLISH YOUR DREAMS OF DESTROYING AMERICA!!!
Posted by meanbiker''

You DO understand that this was a MILITARY TRIBUNAL which had nothing to do with the US court system whatsoever, right?

[stevex47]

Out in 5 months. Good going nutjobs. Case closed. Mission Accomplished.

Meanwhile back at the tent, boosh is still holding hands with his muslim oil buddies.

[meanbiker]

Oh F-it.. let them all go.. at 5,000 ft above the desert.. without a parachute..


But we need to have new rules of engagement. TAKE NO PRISONERS.. Double tap them all... Treat those we are fighting as they treat US.. If they torture.. then we do the same.. If they hang our dead soldiers and troops on a bridge then we do the same.. If they dismember our dead then we do the same.. Do it to protect our troops, to end the wars quickly instead of letting the politicians drag our conflicts out for years..(both parties are to blame)

I can hear the bleeding hearts gasping for air as they read this.. But have you ever heard about Pearl Harbor and Japan.. and the Atom bomb.. Oh it killed many.. but it also saved many more.. And the war was over QUICKLY and our Men came home shortly after..

In closing I would like to thank the worthless court system of the United States for protecting the criminals and hurting the victims.. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK AND YOU WILL ACCOMPLISH YOUR DREAMS OF DESTROYING AMERICA!!!

[whyafghan]

LOL Since when did they start giving Law Degrees to 6th grade graduates? Of course there are a wide range of Violations of Law that Bush could be Impeached on. The problem faced by the people and the Representatives they elected is simple. There isn''''t enough time and not enough honest members of Congress yet. After the next election the Republican''''s will no longer be in a position to stop investigations and of course with a Democrat in the White House the Sand Bagging will have to stop. I''''ll give you odds that there will be a LOT of document burning taking place between the election and when Bush leaves office... especially in the office of that God Awlful excuse for a Vice President.
-------------
Posted by skyk

And this from the $hit house lawyer.

[mhw1063]

I SAY TAKE HIM TO THE DESERT AND BURY HIM IN THE SAND UP TO HIS NECK

[beboldin09]

Now - to BeBoldn09

Happy you are so passionate about the Military and Service to Our Nation

Let me invite you to do what I, and many others who post here, did - Serve in the Military (Nam Navy Vet, ty)

Am sure any of the Services will be happy to accept you, sign up

And if you are going to talk trash to any ''''cowards''''

Perhaps give YOUR real name and info, makes the talk more credible


Thanks
BC Kelly
Tallahassee Fla







--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by BC_Kelly at 06:09 PM : Aug 07, 2008

Hey BC_Kelly, I''m glad that you think you are God and that you know what everyone has done in their lives.

Fact is, I''ve served in the military, only I don''t have to use it as a public crutch to make myself feel better about myself on a public message forum like you just did.

How childish. If you did serve in the military, they didn''t teach you any humility, that''s for sure.

[wogerwabbit]

terrorislamv... what are you so afraid of? Have courage instead of snivelling.

[tapsettle]

If 5.5 yrs is fair for this guy, what would be fair for Bush, a man with the blood of hundreds of thousands on his hands, and responsible for several wrecked countries (including his own)?

[skyk-2009]

there is nothing to impeach bush on,,,

AND THAT IS THE TRUTH,,,

Posted by terrorislamv at 06:45 AM : Aug 08, 2008

LOL Since when did they start giving Law Degrees to 6th grade graduates? Of course there are a wide range of Violations of Law that Bush could be Impeached on. The problem faced by the people and the Representatives they elected is simple. There isn''t enough time and not enough honest members of Congress yet. After the next election the Republican''s will no longer be in a position to stop investigations and of course with a Democrat in the White House the Sand Bagging will have to stop. I''ll give you odds that there will be a LOT of document burning taking place between the election and when Bush leaves office... especially in the office of that God Awlful excuse for a Vice President.

[ajmarine111]

Posted by Humanavance at 06:39 AM : Aug 08, 2008

Thank you.

I have always said, "If they are guilty of war crimes, someone PLEASE put them in jail..........seems like no one wants to.

[houcine-2009]

http://forums.walesonline.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=2032

The war engaged in Irak and Afghanistan will be deadfully for america and the world.
Hamdan condamnation was the begining of a long series about the Gwantanamo detainers.

[ajmarine111]

We are less than a decade removed from impeaching a president and nearly relieving him of office because of a lie in a civil deposition about ********. Yet when congressman Dennis Kucinich recently attempted to impeach Bush over torture, extraordinary rendition and other grotesque constitutional abuses, Kucinich''s embarrassed fellow Democrats couldn''t kill the measure quickly enough.

Why? Top Democrats are so complicit in what has happened since 9/11 that my guess is they dare not travel down that road. From voting in favor of the war in Iraq to holding the telecommunications companies guiltless for their role in spying on Americans (Barack Obama infuriated much of his progressive base by voting for immunity), the Democrats have often acted more as enablers than as a true opposition party. From their point of view, no doubt it''s best to move on.

[n8yvn29]

I wonder how many years Bin Laden''s manicurist, his barber, his dentist, etc., will get when the Bush Crime Family catches them? And I wonder how many years Bush and Cheney will eventually get when the World Court in the Hague finally tries and sentences them? Let''s hope they get the maximum! "You can run, but you can''t hide, no matter how rich you are."

[ajmarine111]

Once again, you miss the point,

Posted by AVSuvorov at 04:03 AM : Aug 08, 2008


I''m not missing the point, it seems like you want to argue about all that you see wrong with the US and the world and I want to comment on the story about the poor smuck that only drove OBL because he needed the money and wasn''t really a terrrorist.

[ajmarine111]

Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Powell, Rice, Wolfowitz and
Perle should be tried as war criminals for their criminal invasion of Iraq, which was based on at least
935 documented lies, and led to the deaths of over 200,000 Iraqis and 4,000 U.S. military personnel,

Posted by AVSuvorov at 03:21 AM : Aug 08, 2008


I have said all along, if they are guilty of something, put them in jail. But all we get is people ******** about them for 8 years and Nancy saying impeachment if off the table.

Either someone bring them up on charges or enough is enough already.


Besides that, the article is about Al Qaeda, not Iraq.

[ajmarine111]

I"VE GOT IT! They should detain bin Laden''''s BARBER and sentence him to life for not trying to cut his throat! Or how about his babysitter or gardener? ... poolboy?

Posted by AVSuvorov at 02:36 AM : Aug 08, 2008



The principal stated aims of al-Qaeda are to drive Americans and American influence out of all Muslim nations, especially Saudi Arabia; destroy Israel; and topple pro-Western dictatorships around the Middle East. Bin Laden has also said that he wishes to unite all Muslims and establish, by force if necessary, an Islamic nation adhering to the rule of the first Caliphs.

According to bin Laden''s 1998 fatwa (religious decree), it is the duty of Muslims around the world to wage holy war on the U.S., American citizens, and Jews. Muslims who do not heed this call are declared apostates (people who have forsaken their faith). "


OBL''s babysitter, gardener, and poolboy are all Al Qaeda and should get life sentances or death,....or declare that they are NOT Al Qaeda.

[incog-nito]

Yeah, the sentence was a slap. But the President can hold an enemy combatant indefinitely....even after his trial/sentence are over.

This case is a sorry as it gets. At least the next case involves someone principal to Al Qaeda, not a servant.

Posted by Nearl4511 at 11:54 PM : Aug 07, 2008

Then why even have a trial at all? Especially one that proved embarrassing to the administration?

[incog-nito]

President Bush got just about everything he wanted: A showcase trial with military tribunal and a jury composed of personnel hand-picked by the Pentagon. Now we have a verdict, and STILL some people are not happy. What? Those military jurors are now traitors too?

[shameonbush]

I guess the lesson to learn here is BE CAREFUL WHO YOU DRIVE.