Terror Trial is Terrible Idea, Says Leibell

Senator Vincent Leibell says that after tending to New York’s fiscal mess, he is spending his time working on security issues, especially with the approaching Manhattan trial of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and his associates.

“The President made a decision against using military tribunals. I think it is wrong, and there are dangerous consequences for New York,” said Leibell.

Increased security costs for the New York terror trial have been ballooning from $75 million to a projected $200 million according to the NYPD “We need to make sure the federal government pays for that,” Leibell said to the Courier. Leibell’s position on federal reimbursement has been echoed by officeholders throughout the Empire State, including Senator Chuck Schumer.

Leibell is a ranking member of the Homeland Security and Military Affairs Committee in the state senate, and has been attending meetings with members of the NYPD, homeland security, and other agencies in anticipation of the trials. “We work on these issues throughout the year,” Leibell said, “but it becomes more sensitive as we come toward this trial situation.”

Security for the trial will be handled primarily by the NYPD working in conjunction with the U.S. Marshals department, which is normally tasked with protecting federal court facilities.

NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly has said that “New York can handle the trial” of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, but the price of the trial remains 24-7 security.

The news of the hefty price tag on security comes as federal agencies are considering holding more terror trials in New York State. Majid Khan, currently held at Guantanamo Bay, was raised in Maryland before he join Al Qaeda and plotted to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge. The Justice Department under Eric Holder will consider trying Khan in Brooklyn.

“We have to deal with this,” Leibell said, “I don’t know why you wouldn’t use a military tribunal, but the president has made his decision and we have to live with the consequences.”