GOOD RIDDANCE TO THE HENCHMEN OF HORROR

GOOD RIDDANCE TO THE HENCHMEN OF HORROR

By STEVE DUNLEAVY
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October 18, 2001 -- TODAY, four of the lice in Osama bin Laden's bug brigade will be sentenced to life in prison. And yesterday we heard a preview.
Attorney Sam Schmidt scored an "A" for effort trying to "downgrade" the sentence of his client Wadih El-Hage in the monstrous 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

It sounded like the cliché joke about the kid who killed his parents but pleaded for mercy because he was an orphan.

Schmidt actually argued that his client hadn't meant to harm innocent civilians. He "only joined this conspiracy to kill soldiers," the lawyer said.

Some 224 human beings were killed in that little handiwork of horror constructed by Osama bin Laden. But what's a civilian here or there when you're playing with giant firecrackers.

Schmidt - a court-appointed lawyer trying to give his vermin client the full benefit of the Constitution - really took the cake.

"That guy must have a pair of big ones," said James E. O'Doherty at the restaurant La Piazzetta on Reade Street, which is two field-goal kicks away from the proceedings at Manhattan federal court.

O'Doherty, who works for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, was talking just after 4 p.m., when Judge Leonard Sand called a prayer break because Mr. El-Hage needed sustenance from God.

O'Doherty is not an idle observer of this case. He showed me a picture of his 23-year-old daughter, Amy, who worked for Cantor Fitzgerald for 14 months until Sept. 11.

O'Doherty said: "Her ambition was to conquer the world . . . These people who killed my daughter say they hate America. I really believe they hate themselves worse."

The pre-sentencing hearing dragged on interminably as lawyers for the four defendants, Mohamed Odeh, Mohamed Al-Owhali, Khalfan Mohamed and particularly Wadih El-Hage, struggled for wriggle room with the help of lawyers.

But in fairness to the mouthpieces, they probably hated every second they were in court.

Today, Judge Sand will sentence the killers to the whole nine yards.

A jury decided they would not get the death penalty because it would only make them martyrs. Not too long ago, I thought it'd be a good idea to keep Timothy McVeigh in jail forever for the same reason. I was damnably wrong. He's gone, and good riddance.

Here's some advice for the four lice who are going away. Get fitted for some skirts, boys, you'll get used to them in the slammer.

"What a pity," said James O'Doherty, who kissed a picture of his beautiful daughter.