Judge: 9/11 defendant can't question prisoners

The Supreme Court on Monday rejected terrorism suspect Zacarias Moussaoui's attempt to directly question three al-Qaida prisoners and cleared the way for a trial of the only U.S. defendant charged in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks.
The ruling allows the government to proceed with plans to seek the death penalty if Moussaoui is convicted of participating in an al-Qaida conspiracy that included the 2001 airplane hijackings.
The Justice Department said it would file a motion as early as today, suggesting a trial date in Alexandria, Va.
The government had told the nation's highest court that national security would be compromised if Moussaoui, an acknowledged al-Qaida loyalist, was given access to al-Qaida captives.