Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies
© St. Petersburg Times, published January 24, 2002
WASHINGTON -- John Walker, whose spiritual quest, prosecutors say, led him to fight against his fellow Americans in Afghanistan, returned Wednesday to the United States and is scheduled to appear in court today in Virginia.
Walker arrived at Dulles International Airport outside Washington shortly after 6 p.m. and was flown by helicopter to an undisclosed detention center in northern Virginia.
A lawyer retained by Walker's family, James J. Brosnahan of San Francisco, said that he and Walker's parents were trying to visit him in the detention center Wednesday night and that he did not know about Walker's condition or whether his hair and beard had been shaved.
The Justice Department, which took custody of Walker on Tuesday, wanted him to arrive at Dulles, as opposed to a military base, for two reasons. Legally, he needs to land in the jurisdiction in which he will be tried. Secondly, officials wanted to underscore that he is under the control of civilians, not the military.
Paul J. McNulty, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, said Walker would appear at 9 a.m. today for the first of several hearings before he goes on trial on charges of conspiring to kill Americans in Afghanistan and supporting terrorist groups. Conviction could bring a term of life in prison.
One-third of the public in an Associated Press poll believes a terrorist attack is likely at the Winter Olympics next month in Salt Lake City.
Two-thirds in the poll said they thought the advertising and commercial presence at the Olympics were necessary to pay the bills, and almost that many -- 63 percent -- thought tax money should not be used.
Another poll, meanwhile, showed a solid majority of Americans favor expanding the use of force in the anti-terror campaign beyond Afghanistan to other countries
Nine in 10 surveyed by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press said they think more military force is needed, even if Osama bin Laden is captured or killed.
From two-thirds to three-fourths supported military action against other countries such as Somalia, Sudan and Iraq. But the poll also suggested that support would fade if the United States acts alone.
GUARD AIRPORT DUTY END NEAR: Defense officials hope to begin pulling National Guard troops off security duties at the nation's airports in the next 60 to 90 days, turning the work over to the new Transportation Security Administration, Army Secretary Thomas White said Wednesday.
ANTHRAX REWARD UPPED: After four months without an arrest, federal authorities Wednesday doubled the reward to $2.5-million for information leading to the capture of whoever sent four letters tainted with anthrax. Fliers will be sent to more than 500,000 people in New Jersey and Pennsylvania asking for help.
EPA HAS CONCERNS: Citing a "potential serious health risk," the Environmental Protection Agency's internal watchdog launched an investigation Wednesday into whether the EPA erred in reopening the Hart Senate Office Building. The focus of the inquiry is not the anthrax that contaminated the building last fall, but chlorine dioxide, the chemical used to kill the anthrax spores.
KARZAI COMES CALLING: Afghanistan's interim leader Hamid Karzai will address the U.N. Security Council Wednesday during his first visit to the United States next week, after meeting with President Bush in Washington.
NO TV APPEAL: Court TV said it will not appeal a judge's ruling that bars broadcasts of the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person charged so far in the Sept. 11 attacks.