why does a suicide bomber plead not guilty?

[spanone]

wouldn't you want to claim your status as a bomber?

and wouldn't you want to be put to death?

wouldn't you want to become a martyr?

[CJCRANE]

1. Don't most criminals plead not guilty?

[mdmc]

2. perhaps he is mentally ill

?

[elehhhhna]

3. he would not answer the judge re>plea so his atty plead it.

[elehhhhna]

4. he would not answer the judge re>plea so his atty plead it.

[elehhhhna]

5. he would not answer the judge re>plea so his atty plead it.

[Angleae]

6. Media attention

He pleads guilty there is no trial. He pleads not guilty there is a media circus.

[HopeHoops]

7. Just for shits and giggles.

That makes sure there will be a trial. More publicity!

[Cali_Democrat]

8. Can can a suicide bomber plead guilty if he is dead?

:shrug:

[Iggo]

9. What did he plead Not Guilty to?

I can easily imagine someone pleading not guilty to murder because he doesn't consider what he did to be murder...or in this case attempted murder, I guess.

Anyway, I'm just guessing...

[customerserviceguy]

10. Because we let him lawyer up

I don't recall any other country that lets invading warriors have their own attorneys when they surrender.

[spanone]

13. that's why we're different than any other country

[Rage for Order]

29. So you believe in American Exceptionalism then? n/t

[Iggo]

15. He's a fucking criminal and we're treating him like one.

"Invading warrior":rofl:

[muriel_volestrangler]

16. If he were an "invading warrior" who surrendered, then there'd be no charges

And he'd have the rights of a prisoner of war, and would be released when the formal war ended.

But this isn't a war. He's not a 'warrior'.

However, democracies try alleged terrorists, and find some guilty, and some not guilty. Even when they're not their own citizens. And they get lawyers and everything. Fancy that.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12250580/

In fact, which country do you think is setting the precedent you'd like to follow in this case? It'd be very interesting to know.

[CJCRANE]

19. I'm pretty sure all European countries try terrorists as criminals.

In fact pretty much every country in the world has a court system, even if we don't always agree with their impartiality.

[backscatter712]

22. Don't give this guy any credit.

Really, the Crotch Bomber wasn't much of a warrior.

Treat him like any other criminal. Relax. He's in jail. He ain't going anywhere.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

25. He's not an invading warrior; he's a criminal.

Calling these dirtbags "invading warriors" only confers on them a status that they don't deserve. They are not warriors or soldiers; merely criminals, and should be treated as such. Under the Constitution all accused criminals are entitled to counsel.

[Hansel]

26. Calling him an invading warrior gives him the power he's looking for.

He is a criminal and is clearly a few eggs short of a dozen.

Why is this guy any different that any other foreigner who commits a heinous crime in this country? By calling him a warrior you make him seem more powerful than he is and hand him the prize he seeks. Nothing will diminish these guys more than treating them like the criminals that they are.

[TheCowsCameHome]

11. He looks like he doesn't know what's going on.

and probably doesn't.

[reggie the dog]

20. He speaks English doesn"t he?

he is from Nigeria after all. He should understand just fine.

[spanone]

21. they said he speaks perfect english

[crim son]

12. I've read the responses to your question but I'm guessing

you'd already thought of them as I have. I think it's a good question; it makes no sense to deny one's "glorious" intention. Maybe he's changed his mind, or become afraid. Yes, he let his lawyer plead but I doubt he had to. It strikes me as cowardly.

[SoCalDem]

14. because he did not complete the mission

and had he, he would not even BE on trial.. he would be in the bag of a dustbuster.

Technically, what he did was to ATTEMPT to be a suicide bomber...and since it did not happen, he "could" claim that he was "going to " abort the mission..

[spanone]

17. he lit the fuse....he was sure guilty of tryin'

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

18. Because that's what normally happens at an arraignment.

It's a formality. It puts the government to its normal burden of proving you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. In this case the guy refused to plead and his lawyers entered the plea for him, which they would be obligated to do.

I suspect that the undiebomber is just another sad, disaffected loser like Richard Reid who went all jihad for psychological rather than religious reasons and got himself talked into this "mission." And now he's sitting in a jail in Michigan with bandages on his junk, facing life in a maximum security prison, and he's probably given up all dreams of glorious martyrdom.

[Warpy]

23. His attorney is going for an insanity plea

and just might make it stick. That means he'll be incarcerated in a nice hospital for the criminally insane.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

24. The insanity defense is almost never successful.

You have to be overtly raving batshit mad for it to work, and even then it usually doesn't. Jeffrey Dahmer, who clearly had a few screws loose, tried it, and it didn't work for him. There are variations in the standards depending on the jurisdiction, but in general you have to prove that you suffered from a mental illness making it impossible for you to understand that what you did was wrong or illegal. Most of us would agree that setting fire to an explosive in one's underpants is not normal; however, the fact that the guy concealed the explosive is evidence not only of premeditation, but of his knowledge that he was attempting an illegal act.

I think that an insanity defense and $3.50 will get the guy a double skim latte.

[noamnety]

27. To force a trial?

Puts extra publicity on your cause, gives you a chance to put your reasons on record if that's important to you, gives you a chance to have a mistrial, maybe charges will be thrown out on a technicality. I can see lots of reasons. Using up resources of a country you want to screw over, if nothing else.

[iamtechus]

28. He wishes not to cooperate in any way with the evil system he was trying

to destroy.