Free Republic

SEATTLE (AP) - The federal judge who sentenced an Algerian terrorist to 22 years in prison for attempting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport on the eve of the millennium wildly abused his discretion, said prosecutors who had sought a much longer sentence. Customs agents in Port Angeles, Wash., caught Ahmed Ressam, 38, with explosives in the trunk of his rental car when he drove off a ferry from British Columbia in December 1999. The scare prompted the cancellation of millennium celebrations at Seattle's Space Needle. At Ressam's sentencing last summer, U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour used the opportunity...

The Algerian terrorist who plotted to blow up Los Angeles International Airport at the height of New Year celebrations five years ago was sentenced to 22 years in prison on Wednesday. Defence lawyers had asked for 12½ years for Ahmed Ressam, 38, while prosecutors wanted 35 years. Mr Ressam, who had briefly co-operated with authorities in tracking down other terrorists, said nothing in court, but Thomas Hillier, a federal public defender, said his client had given John Coughenour, a US district judge, a note prior to the sentencing. The note, according to Mr Hillier, said: “I am sorry for what...