The chief military judge at Guantanamo Bay announced his immediate retirement yesterday, effectively scuttling the slim chances that the trial of conspirators in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks could get underway before the Bush administration ends.

Judge Ralph H. Kohlmann, a Marine colonel, had been overseeing proceedings against major defendants at the military prison in Cuba, including Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the self-professed mastermind of the attacks. It has long been a goal of some Pentagon officials, particularly those appointed by the Bush administration, to begin the capital trial of the Sept. 11 conspirators before leaving office.

Kohlmann, who was scheduled to retire in April and already had lined up a job, appointed Judge Stephen Henley, an Army colonel, to take over the trial of Mohammed and four co-defendants. Henley now must hold a hearing at which the defendants can explore the judge's potential biases, a proceeding that Kohlmann had already overseen. Henley also will have to acquaint himself with Kohlmann's decisions in the case and prepare for upcoming hearings on defense motions. At the same time, Henley is scheduled to oversee a separate trial of a Guantanamo detainee in January.

Click here to see full story