Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued the following statement on the Obama Administration’s decision to hold for interrogation and to prosecute Ahmed Abdulqadir Warsame in federal criminal court, where prosecutors will seek a mandatory life sentence:

“The Senate Intelligence Committee has been kept informed on the intelligence being produced by Warsame’s interrogation since his capture.

“Warsame has provided valuable and actionable intelligence in response to interrogation consistent with the Army Field Manual, and the Administration’s national security team has determined that a federal criminal court is the best venue in which to prosecute Warsame. He will be charged with nine separate counts that can mean a mandatory sentence of life in prison. 

“I have been in favor of allowing the President to make these decisions on a case by case basis, and there is good reason to support the decision of the executive branch in this case. 

“There are more than 300 convicted terrorists who have been tried in federal courts and are incarcerated in federal prisons. It is likely that Warsame will be added to that list. No prisoner has ever escaped from these prisons, which can provide maximum and super maximum security. 

“The Bush Administration utilized the federal courts to prosecute terrorists and so should the Obama Administration. Military Commissions are an option depending on the nature of the case.”

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