Not surprisingly, residents of Alexandria aren’t too thrilled with the idea that prisoners from Guantanamo Bay might be headed their way:
An outcry is growing in Alexandria over a prospect no one seems to like: terrorist suspects in the suburbs.
The historic, vibrant community less than 10 miles from the White House markets itself as a “federal friendly zone.” But it has turned decidedly unfriendly to news that the Obama administration might move some detainees from their highly controlled military fortress at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to Alexandria to stand trial at the federal courthouse.
“We would be absolutely opposed to relocating Guantanamo prisoners to Alexandria,” Mayor William D. Euille (D) said. “We would do everything in our power to lobby the president, the governor, the Congress and everyone else to stop it. We’ve had this experience, and it was unpleasant. Let someone else have it.”
The 2006 death penalty trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, who was convicted of conspiring in the terrorist attacks of Sept, 11, 2001, turned the neighborhood into a virtual encampment, with heavily armed agents, rooftop snipers, bomb-sniffing dogs, blocked streets, identification checks and a fleet of television satellite trucks.
President Obama has vowed to close Guantanamo by January, and the government is reviewing files on the roughly 240 detainees. The administration has strongly indicated that some will be transferred to federal courts, and a senior Justice Department official recently named Alexandria, along with Manhattan, as possible destinations.
Alexandria Sheriff Dana A. Lawhorne, who operates the city jail, said federal security requirements for housing suspects could “overwhelm the system” if multiple detainees are brought there.
City officials and some legislators are concerned that terror trials would take years, shut down roads and cost millions and could invite attacks from terrorist sympathizers. Business owners in the dense area around the courthouse — newly filled with hotels, restaurants and luxury apartments — fear disruptions amid a declining economy.
If the Moussaoui trial was any indication, these trials would bring the area around the Federal Courthouse grinding to a halt with all the security requirements and, unlike the Moussaoui trial, there’s even more residential and commercial development in that area that will be impacted. As someone who had frequent business at the Courthouse while the trial was going on, I can tell you that it was nothing short of a nightmare.
Also, for those of you who don’t live in Northern Virginia, it’s important to note that any prisoner held for trial at the Federal Courthouse is kept at the Alexandria City Jail, which is about a half-mile away. This means that the City of Alexandria has to give up jail space.
There’s got to be a better solution to this than putting these prisoners on trial in the middle of one of the most populated metropolitan areas in the country.
