Mohammed prepares for 9/11 trial

GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba, May 25 (UPI) -- The case of the self-described leader of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States could shape the rules of the U.S. war on terrorism, his lawyer says.

Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, a U.S. educated engineer is held at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He has spent the last five years fielding questions from U.S. security forces and other officials, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

Navy Reserve Judge Advocate General Prescott Prince has been named to lead the defense team for Mohammed, who is charged with murder in the deaths of nearly 3,000 people in the 2001 attacks.

Prince is barred from disclosing details of what Mohammed has told him in their conversations. However, he did say he expects the case to go on for years and culminate in a landmark Supreme Court decision.

"I think it's the constitutional case of our time," Prince told the newspaper. "Because in the 221st year of America, the question is whether the Constitution applies to the government."

Prince called Mohammed a model client and the picture of decorum and politeness.

"He does not come across as angry or bitter or hateful," Prince said.