He may not be rehabilitated, but he is free.
John Walker Lindh, a California man who spent 17 years behind bars after admitting to providing support to Taliban, was released from prison Thursday — despite reports he continues to express extremist views.
Lindh, nicknamed “American Taliban,” was 20 years old when he was captured in an Afghanistan battlefield shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
He was released from an Indiana federal prison three years before his original 20-year sentence because of good behavior.
The controversial release angered numerous critics, including elected officials and the family of Johnny (Mike) Spann, a CIA agent who was killed a day after interrogating Lindh and other Taliban prisoners.
Spann’s daughter wrote a letter to President Trump urging him to keep the “traitor” behind bars.
“I feel his early release is a slap in the face — not only to my father and my family, but for every person killed on Sept. 11th, their families, the U.S. military, U.S. intelligent services, families who have lost loved ones to this war and the millions of Muslims worldwide who don’t support radical extremists,” Alison Spann wrote.
Lindh, now 38, was a teenager when he converted to Islam. He moved to Pakistan in 2000 and later traveled to Afghanistan to join the Taliban.
NBC reported this week that that he wrote in a 2015 letter to one of its affiliates that ISIS was “doing a spectacular job.”
“The Islamic State is clearly very sincere and serious about fulfilling the long-neglected religious obligation to establish a caliphate through armed struggle, which is the only correct method,” Lindh reportedly wrote.
The former prisoner will face several restrictions now that he’s free. His internet access will be monitored, he can’t leave the country without permission and he must seek mental health treatment, among other requirements.
In a letter last week to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Sens. Richard Shelby, an Alabama Republican, and Maggie Hassan, a New Hampshire Democrat, said those measures were not enough.
“Our highest priority is keeping America safe, secure, and free,” they wrote. “To that end, we must consider security and safety implications for our citizens and communities who will receive individuals like John Walker Lindh who continue to openly call for extremist violence.”
Their letter also notes that Lindh is one of 108 “terrorist offenders” set to be released from U.S. federal prisons over the next few years.
