In an appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee today, Attorney General Eric Holder said the 9/11 terror trials could still take place somewhere in New York — and that a venue here is “not off the table.” Yet he acknowledged the Administration was taking “into consideration the concerns that have been raised by local officials, and by the community in New York City”about high security costs and the impact on neighborhoods.
Weeks ago the White House appeared to back away from holding the trials at the Federal Courthouse on Pearl Street, but there has been no official announcement. Holder told the senators a decision could still be weeks away. Holder did not specifically rule out Manhattan, but he suggested other locations in the state could be under consideration:
“The Southern District of New York, for instance, is a much larger place than simply Manhattan,” Mr. Holder said. “There’s also the possibility of trying the case in other venues beyond New York.”
After the hearing, Senator Charles Schumer released a statement saying:
“We know the administration is not going to hold the trial in New York. They should just say it already.”
Activists in Chinatown fought a hard battle to get the trial venue changed. They have expressed a lot of frustration that there has been no definitive word from Washington.
