Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Will Not Be Tried As Enemy Combatant, Charged With Conspiring To Use Weapon Of Mass Destruction
The man allegedly responsible for the bombings during last week's Boston Marathon will not be tried as an enemy combatant and has been charged with conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction, according to the Associated Press.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev could not be tried as an "enemy combatant" because he is a U.S. citizen. As such, he will be tried in Federal Court, Carney said.
"We will prosecute this terrorist through our civilian system of justice," Carney said. "Under U.S. law, United States citizens cannot be tried in military commissions."
Many congressional Republicans had called for Tsarnaev to be treated as an enemy combatant, but the majority of Democrats disagreed, calling such a move unconstitutional.