NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) -- The US Supreme Court refused to reinstate plea agreements that would have shielded three alleged Sept. 11 perpetrators, including accused mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, from the death penalty.
Mohammad, Mustafa al Hawsawi and Walid bin ‘Atash were challenging a decision by then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to withdraw from the 2024 deals, under which the trio would have pleaded guilty and received life sentences. The Supreme Court gave no explanation in turning away appeals from the three men.
The plea deals were approved by Susan Escallier, a retired brigadier general whom Austin appointed to oversee the military commissions handling the cases at the US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Austin, the defense secretary under President Joe Biden, moved two days later to reverse her decision.
A military judge rejected the withdrawal, saying the accused men had already begun performing their end of the bargain by declining to question a key witness at a hearing. After a military appellate court upheld that decision, the government turned to the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which allowed the withdrawal on a 2-1 vote.
At the Supreme Court, the accused men contended the appeals court overstepped its authority, while the Trump administration urged rejection of the appeals without a hearing.
The cases are bin ‘Atash v. US, 25-1335, and Mohammad v. US, 26-13.
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