Miami – Jury selection began Monday for the trial of alleged al-Qaeda operative Jose Padilla and two co-defendants, with potential jurors questioned about their knowledge of Padilla’s link to a purported “dirty bomb” plot.
The allegations that Padilla, a U.S. citizen held as an enemy combatant for 3 1/2 years, sought to detonate a radioactive “dirty bomb” inside the United States are not part of the criminal case.
But the Bush administration initially accused Padilla of such a plot shortly after he was arrested in May 2002 at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.
“If I said to you the phrase ‘dirty bomber,’ what does that mean?” U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke asked one prospective juror.
“Jose Padilla,” the man answered.
The exchange illustrated the challenges of seating a jury to hear the charges against Padilla, 36, and co-defendants Adham Amin Hassoun, 45, and 44-year-old Kifah Wael Jayyousi. They face life in prison if convicted on charges of participating in a North American cell that supported Islamic extremist causes around the world.
Jury selection is expected to take about two weeks, and the trial is expected to last about four months.
