January 14th, 2025
On Wednesday January 8th, three members of Peaceful Tomorrows who had traveled to the military commission hearings at the Guantanamo Naval Base, Colleen Kelly, Elizabeth Miller and Terry Rockefeller, heard Khalid Shaik Mohammad's attorney, Gary Sowards, tell the trial judge in open court that Mr. Mohammad was prepared to admit to his guilt in planning and supporting the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
From the hearing transcript:
Judge McCall: "So first, can you confirm that Mr. Mohammad is pleading guilty to all charges and specifications without exceptions or substitutions?"
Mr. Gary Sowards: "Yes, we can, Your Honor."
We believe that had the judge been able to question Mr. Mohammad in open court, as was scheduled for Friday, January 10th, 9/11 victim family members would have received a degree of justice and accountability for the murder of our family members. The finality of a guilty plea in the 9/11 military commission means there will not be an appeal. However, on the evening of Thursday, January 9th, the DC Circuit Court issued an administrative stay in the pre-trial proceedings, bringing the possibility of finality to yet another agonizing delay.
During the week, we had the opportunity to communicate with both the prosecution and defense teams. They agree that a pre-trial agreement in the 9/11 case is the best path to finality.
Perhaps the most important thing we learned was that the pre-trial agreements would NOT mean that there would be no trial. A “sentencing hearing” or “sentencing trial” would last for several months, and would likely take place sometime in 2026. The sentencing trial would in fact provide more evidence than a contested death penalty trial, because as part of the pre-trial agreements, the defendants will now allow all of the previously contested evidence obtained by FBI investigators to be revealed in court. Additionally, the pre-trial agreements include signed stipulations of fact, from each of the three defendants who have thus far signed agreements. These stipulations detail who did what, when, where, how, and why concerning the planning and support of the 9/11 attacks. 9/11 victim family members, and the public will learn extensive evidence of their guilt.
Members of Peaceful Tomorrows continue to believe that pre-trial agreements are the only means to end the legal purgatory we have experienced in the 9/11 proceeding, which will soon begin their thirteenth year. We agree with Admiral Rugh and the prosecution team who, on July 31st, wrote to victim family members, “it is our collective, reasoned, and good-faith judgment that this resolution is the best path to finality and justice in this case.” They continued, "following the entry of the guilty pleas, a sentencing hearing will be scheduled where the parties will have an opportunity to present evidence and argue for an appropriate sentence."
In court on Wednesday, January 8th, Managing Trial Counsel Clay Trivett shared more about what a sentencing trial would look like:
We envision a several-month presentation with all of this evidence to establish the historical record. That was always our intention.… There’s now hundreds of people that are now interested and on the list of those who our Victim/Witness Assistance Program reaches out to on a daily basis for updates that we're going to now talk to and determine whether or not they do want to give any victim impact testimony, whether that's in a video form, whether that's in written form.
But Thursday’s announcement of an administrative stay by the DC Circuit Court brought more uncertainty to the 9/11 case, and with it continued confusion, disappointment and trauma, to both the victim family members present at Guantanamo, and around the globe. More than 23 years after the death of our loved ones, and after nearly 13 years of pre-trial hearings, the members of September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows believe it is time to convict the defendants and ensure that they do not die innocent in the eyes of the law.