Ghailani's conviction in November has been praised as a "victory" for the American justice system because Ghailani appeared before a jury instead of a military commission and the government was able to win its case without using evidence obtained through torture [JURIST commentaries]. In October, the court heard arguments in the trial [JURIST report], the first civilian trial of a former Guantanamo detainee. An attorney for Ghailani argued during the opening statements that al Qaeda [JURIST news archive] took advantage of Ghailani's youth and that Ghailani was unaware of the terrorists' criminal plans. In July, Kaplan refused to dismiss charges [JURIST report] against Ghailani, ruling that his Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial had not been violated. Ghailani's lawyers had previously sought a dismissal of charges, arguing that he was denied the right to a speedy trial [JURIST reports] while being detained for nearly five years in CIA secret prisons and later at Guantanamo Bay. Earlier in July, Kaplan ruled that Ghailani was not suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and was therefore fit to stand trial [JURIST report].