Omar Khadr's Military Lawyer Collapses at Hearing
The military lawyer for Omar Khadr, who is being tried in Guantanamo Bay, collapsed at the end of a hearing Thursday.
Army Lt. Col. Jon Jackson, who began coughing and asked the judge for a brief recess, collapsed when he reached for a bottle of water, the Toronto Star reports.
Jackson reportedly regained consciousness, but was taken by ambulance to the base hospital.
The Star reports the scene as a dramatic end to the first day of Khadr’s long-awaited trial. Opening statements portrayed two Khadrs. Either he is “a trained al-Qaida terrorist who murdered a U.S. soldier, or a kid sent to Afghanistan by a father who ‘hated his enemies more than he loved his son.’ “
Khadr, who was captured in Afghanistan when he was 15, is accused of throwing a grenade during a firefight that killed an American soldier, Sgt. Christopher Speer.
More ABAJournal.com posts on Khadr:
Captured at 15 and Held By US at Gitmo, Khadr Says He Nixed 5-Year Plea Deal
‘Boy Soldier’ Faces Gitmo Tribunal, Could Be First Under Obama Administration
Tapes Show Sobbing Youth Being Questioned at Guantanamo