U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald offers rare comments on terrorism prosecutions

U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald offers rare comments on terrorism prosecutions
Patrick Fitzgerald is the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. AP/Dennis Cook
U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald offers rare comments on terrorism prosecutions
Patrick Fitzgerald is the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. AP/Dennis Cook

U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald offers rare comments on terrorism prosecutions

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Yesterday, in a rare speech to the City Club of Chicago, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said the Patriot Act was a crucial force in forging a new era of collaboration between intelligence and law enforcement across the country.

As one of the nation’s leading federal prosecutors of terrorism-related charges, Patrick Fitzgerald is a central player in the national security establishment. He’s handled numerous high-profile cases, including two against Muslim charities in Chicago, the 2007 case against a suburban Bridgeview resident accused of supporting Hamas, and, most recently, the terrorism case involving David Headley and Tawahurr Rana.

Today, we listen to excerpts from Fitzgerald’s speech and get analysis from Scott Horton, a human rights lawyer in New York. Scott recently led several studies examining abuse in the conduct of the war on terror for the New York City Bar Association. He is a legal affairs and national security contributor for Harper’s Magazine.