The following editorial first appeared in the Los Angeles Times:
From Abscam to the arrest of former Washington Mayor Marion Barry on drug charges, sting operations have brought accusations the government was entrapping its targets. This perennial complaint has acquired a new sensitivity with charges the FBI, as part of its anti-terrorism activities, is inducing Muslims to take part in fictitious plots and then arresting them. So far the accusations seem exaggerated, but the FBI needs to be careful it doesn't propose violations of the law to individuals who have shown no propensity to commit crimes.
The latest suggestion of entrapment comes from the lawyer for Mohamed Osman Mohamud, the 19-year-old Somali American accused of plotting to explode a bomb at a Christmas tree lighting in Portland, Ore., last month. The lawyer said undercover agents had been "basically grooming" Mohamud for months to commit a terrorist act, and complained they failed to record their first meeting with Mohamud - the meeting at which evidence of entrapment would be most evident.
The notion Mohamud was entrapped brought a defiant response from Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. Addressing a group of American Muslims, Holder said he would make no apologies for the FBI's conduct in the case, which included providing Mohamud with a large and elaborate "explosive." More generally, Holder said undercover operations "have proven to be an essential law enforcement tool in uncovering and preventing potential terror attacks."
If the government's recitation of facts in the Mohamud case is to be believed, Holder is on solid ground. Although the word "entrapment" is often used synonymously with "sting operation," entrapment in the legal sense occurs when police induce someone to engage in a crime he otherwise would not have committed. According to the FBI, Mohamud indicated his intention to kill Americans, identified the target and refused to change his mind when he was reminded that children would be harmed in an explosion.
It would be appalling, and illegal, for the FBI to try to tempt Muslims who have shown no propensity to violence to engage in terrorist operations. Besides being insensitive to constitutional rights, such a strategy would be a waste of law enforcement resources. Holder insists the FBI is engaged in something different: pretending to help suspects plot acts of terrorism only after they have indicated their desire to commit a violent crime. So long as the government abides by that distinction, sting operations are a legitimate tool in combating terrorism. JuneauEmpire.com
my take on this issue
The lawyer said undercover agents had been "basically grooming" Mohamud for months to commit a terrorist act ?
the radical Wahhabi imams who are radicalizing other Muslims all over the world, including the US. . is the real problem in my opinion not the FBI They're Just Doing Their Jobs number one fbi responsibility is to keep our country safe." We should be grateful .
I am Americans of Somali descent I TOTALLY agree with our Attorney General Eric Holder
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