....Zazi and others intended to obtain and assemble the remaining components of the bombs over the weekend and conduct the attack on Manhattan subway lines on Sept. 14, Sept. 15, or Sept. 16, 2009. However, shortly after arriving in New York, Zazi realized that law enforcement was investigating his activities. Zazi and others discarded the explosives and other bomb-making materials, and Zazi traveled back to Denver.

“I would sacrifice myself to bring attention to what the United States military was doing to civilians in Afghanistan,” he said.

Original Post: Zazi to Plead Guilty

Najibullah Zazi, the Denver man accused of terror-related offenses in the Eastern District of New York, has begun cooperating and will plead guilty at 2:30 pm today to an as-yet unspecified charge.

So he had lawyers from day 1, waived his Miranda rights, wasn't tortured, and is now cooperating and pleading guilty. He's going to get a reduced sentence in exchange for his cooperation. The U.S. gets the benefit of his knowledge. He gets punished and incarcerated.

All of this in a federal criminal court with him being provided his full panoply of constitutional rights.

This is the same scenario tha will play out with Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. The same can and should be done with the 9/11 defendants. It's too late to undo the torture they underwent, but DOJ says it has a winnable case without the compromised statements. There's no need for military tribunals with reduced rights for the accused. Our federal courts work just fine.