Gitmo Military Trials Will Move to Nation's Heartland
Relying on an unidentified senior administration official, the Chicago Tribune reports that the White House plans to hold in the nation’s heartland future military commission trials of individuals now being held by the U.S. military as terrorism suspects.
The official tells the newspaper that President Barack Obama plans to transfer as many as 100 prisoners currently held at the U.S. military detention center at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba to the Thomson Correctional Center. It is located in northwest Illinois, approximately 150 miles west of Chicago.
This news follows an announcement this morning that the federal Bureau of Prisons plans to purchase the underused Illinois prison and convert it to a super-maximum facility. Construction of the prison was completed less than 10 years ago.
Additional coverage:
Chicago Tribune: “Quinn: I’m not acting too hastily on Thomson Gitmo plan”
NBC Chicago: “Thomson Residents: Scared, but Jobs Would Be “Fantastic”
New York Times: “Obama Tells Prison to Take Detainees”
The Lede (New York Times): “From Guantánamo to Beyond ‘Supermax’ “
Updated at 7:29 p.m. to link to subsequent New York Times blog post.
