Supreme court backs pentagon decision to throw out plea khalid sheikh mohammed

The U. S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to take up appeals from three men accused of planning the September 11, 2001, attacks, leaving intact the cancellation of their plea deals. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Mustafa al Hawsawi and Walid Bin 'Attash had challenged a lower-court ruling that sided with the government. The justices' action sends the long-stalled prosecution back to military courts, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh did not take part, according to CNN · NBC News.

The deals, announced in 2024 after more than two years of talks, would have removed the death penalty in exchange for guilty pleas to every charge and a public sentencing hearing where the defendants would face questions from victims' relatives and survivors. Some groups representing victims and families objected to them. Then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin withdrew the arrangements, saying a decision of that weight belonged with him. A military judge had found the deals valid and enforceable, and a military appeals court later ruled against Austin. The U. S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit nonetheless concluded last year that he plainly had the power to cancel them. The Trump administration has kept defending his move.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CNN · NBC News’s reporting. Read the full story at CNN · NBC News →