American Taliban fighter John Walker Lindh was indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice Tuesday for conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens abroad, aiding and abetting terrorists and other charges. If convicted in federal court, Walker’s maximum penalty is life imprisonment.
The U.S. Department of Justice is appropriately affording Walker, a U.S. citizen, his due process rights and should continue to uphold the rule of law by continuing an investigation into his affairs. As Walker is put in the public spotlight, Attorney General John Ashcroft seems to have identified Walker as an issue he cannot decide with his usual questionable interpretations of justice and has appropriately handled the initial investigation by restraining from charges he cannot prove. Although Walker’s actions are unpopular, there will never be a place in our judicial system for rampant speculation on charges brought without material evidence.
The 21-year-old American grew up in a wealthy suburban county a few miles from the famed Golden Gate Bridge. He attended a high school where students who are deemed to have extraordinary levels of intellectual curiosity and self-discipline are allowed to create their own curriculum. Walker followed his curiosity by studying at a Mill Valley mosque. His daily routine in California leaves little doubt that Walker was aware of the agenda of those he trained in combat with overseas, only substantiating his current charges.
The Department of Justice’s criminal complaint says Walker trained at a Pakistani paramilitary camp where he opted to join the Taliban and eventually met Osama bin Laden at one of the al Qaeda terrorist camps. While he was found alongside fighting Taliban, so far no evidence of him sparring with U.S. forces exists. Questions clearly still remain what this troubled man did in his time with a known terrorist organization.
Some would like charges of treason branded on Walker with a swift execution blind of the evidence that is not currently clear. Others would like a confused young man to be released out of compassion for a U.S. citizen. We would point out that the answer exists in American laws much older than anyone pretending to know what their country stands for.
