Judge delays Moussaoui trial until June

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- For the second time, a judge postponed the trial of terrorist suspect Zacarias Moussaoui, agreeing with prosecutors and the accused that the alleged Sept. 11 accomplice needs more time to prepare for a case that could cost him his life.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema said Monday that the trial would begin June 30, instead of next January.

The trial originally was to have begun Monday, but the judge previously extended it because the defense wasn't ready. Defense attorneys also had argued it was too soon after the one-year anniversary of the attacks in New York and Washington. Jury selection now begins next May.

Moussaoui is accused of conspiring with 19 members of suicide teams to commit terrorism, hijack aircraft and kill more than 3,000 people in four hijacked jetliners, the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

The government has said it would seek Moussaoui's execution if the 34-year-old French citizen is convicted of capital charges. Four of the six conspiracy counts against him carry the death penalty.

Moussaoui is representing himself, although a team of experienced court-appointed lawyers are assisting him even though he often insults the attorneys in his handwritten motions.

Brinkema said prosecutors, Moussaoui and the defense team agreed on the compelling argument that the need for a fair trial outweighs the interests of the public and defendant to a speedy trial.