Court throws out US appeal in September 11 conspiracy case
A three-judge panel of the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Vancouver, threw out the appeal on a technicality. It ruled that the US Justice Department was premature in appealing the trial judge’s order allowing Moussaoui to question September 11 organiser Ramzi Binalshibh by video link.
The judges said US District Judge Leonie Brinkema’s order cannot be appealed “unless and until the government refuses to comply and the district court imposes a sanction”. It is not enough, they said, that the government has made it known that it will refuse to produce Binalshibh for questioning under any circumstances.
