Letter of the Day: The fiend of the 9/11 attacks doesn't deserve civilian court

The mastermind of the attacks of 9/11, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, will not walk free if he is tried in civilian court. That's not the issue. These jihadists attacked our nation -- not just specific targets. They are sworn enemies of the country as a whole, and as such do not warrant the title of "civilian," which, in a war setting, refers to a noncombatant. The reason we have a separate court system for our soldiers when they are suspected of going after civilians of other nations is the far-reaching implications of such cases. What the court-martial system does is lessen the chance of cases being decided on technicalities. If Mohammed is tried in civilian court, there is simply no getting around the fact that we are now giving terrorists more benefit of the doubt when they go after our civilians than we give our own soldiers when they are suspected of going after civilians in Iraq or Afghanistan. This is a travesty. Even when he is convicted, it will be cheapened by treating him like a common criminal. If our military court-martial system is good enough for those responsible for protecting our nation, it is certainly good enough for those who swear to destroy it. ALEX ADAMS-LEYTES, NEW BRIGHTON