Republicans may have a hard time keeping up their talking point about how reading Miranda rights to the Christmas Day bomber represented a dangerous new direction under President Barack Obama.
It turns out that that back in December 2001, Richard Reid — the “shoe bomber” — was read or reminded of his Miranda rights four times in two days, beginning five minutes after being taken into custody.
Furthermore, the Bush administration specifically rejected the idea of a military tribunal — another step that Republicans have argued should have been taken in the case of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who tried to bring down Northwest Flight 253 over Detroit on Christmas Day and was read his rights after 50 minutes of FBI questioning.
After Reid attempted to blow up an American Airlines flight out of Paris, Massachusetts State Police officers boarded the plane at 12:55 p.m. on Dec. 22, 2001, handcuffed Reid and removed him from the plane, according to U.S. District Court records.
“At around 1:00 p.m., one of the officers (it is unclear who) read Reid Miranda warnings,” according to a court order in Reid’s case. “The officers then placed Reid inside a police cruiser. … At some point while in the cruiser, Trooper Santiago … asked Reid ‘What happened on the plane?,’ which Reid answered by stating that nothing happened on the plane. … Reid then asked Trooper Santiago, ‘Where are the reporters?’”
“At 2:15 p.m., he was again read his Miranda warnings,” the chronology continues. “Before any interrogation of Reid commenced, he rested in his cell and was given water. … Federal investigators began interrogating Reid at around 5:07 p.m. … At that time, the agents again informed Reid of his Miranda protections, which he said he understood. …
“The following day, December 23, 2001, agents Davis and Choldin resumed questioning Reid at the Plymouth Facility at around 5:10 p.m. They reminded him of his Miranda safeguards, which he said he understood. He also signed a form acknowledging that he understood his rights and agreed to be questioned.”
The next month, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Reid for attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, attempted homicide, placing an explosive device on an aircraft, attempted murder, interference with flight crew members and attendants, attempted destruction of an aircraft, using a destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence and attempted wrecking of a mass transportation vehicle.
Later that year, Reid pleaded guilty to all charges, and was sentenced to life in prison on Jan. 30, 2003.
During a Jan. 16, 2002, news conference announcing charges against Reid, Attorney General John Ashcroft was asked whether he “consider[ed] using a military tribunal in prosecuting [Reid].” Ashcroft replied: “I think people were alert, and that created a factual basis for the kind of court case that we've alleged. I did confer with the Department of Justice — pardon me, with the Department of Defense and with their general counsel — and they had no objection to our proceeding in this matter.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has said some of the Bush administration actions in the case were a mistake. At a Capitol stakeout on Tuesday, McConnell said: "Regardless of what may have happened in the past, and we have had some terrorists tried in U.S. courts, we've learned from that. It's a mistake. Since then, we set up military commissions. There are courtrooms, state-of-the-art courtrooms at Guantanamo. That's where the terrorists have been kept. It's clear that we ought to detain foreign terrorists at Guantanamo and try them at Guantanamo in military commission courtrooms. That is the sensible way to deal with this aspect of the war on terror. And most of my members think that that's the way we ought to go."
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