The head of a group of family members of victims of the Sept. 11 terror attacks said Saturday that she’s hearing nearly unanimous praise after the U.S. defense secretary was forced to nullify a plea deals for the accused 9/11 mastermind and two others that would have removed the death penalty as a possibility.
The American Civil Liberties Union, meanwhile, said it plans to challenge the reversal in court, citing it in a statement Saturday as a “rash act” that “violates the law.”
Terry Strada, national chair of the group 9/11 Families United, said she was shocked by the announcement late Friday that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was suddenly rejecting a plea deal reached just days ago and was restoring the death penalty as an option in the cases.
He wrote that authority in the matter ultimately rested with him.
“Nobody saw this coming,” Strada said.
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But she quickly added that it was the right thing to do.
“These men deserve no mercy,” Strada said. “They certainly didn’t show any mercy to my husband or the other 2,976 who died in the attacks.”
She