The military judge who recently excluded a confession from alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed previously wrote about the growing problem of domestic extremism within the U.S. military, citing "conservative tendencies" reinforced by right-wing groups as a contributing factor.
Lt. Col. Michael Schrama, an Air Force judge specializing in military and environmental law, is presiding over the military commission in the 9/11 case. Last week, he ruled that Mohammed's 2007 confession was not voluntarily given, as it was obtained through torture while in CIA custody. This decision could significantly delay the long-running case, which has yet to go to trial.
Schrama's ruling, which was not immediately public, has faced criticism. Journalist Gerald Posner called it a "shameful prelude to the 9/11 anniversary."
In a 2023 essay published in "War on the Rocks," titled "Creating a Codified Legal Response to Domestic Extremism in the Ranks," Schrama argued for a new military legal provision to address what he described as a "rising population of military members engaging in extremist activities."
"As an active-duty Air Force military judge, I have seen firsthand a rising population of military members engaging in extremist activities," Schrama wrote. He stated that "military members are a ripe population for extremist recruitment" and that "the rise of domestic extremism in the military ranks is a threat to national security."
He cited a 2021 study by the Center for Strategic & International Studies indicating that military personnel were involved in 17.6% of domestic terrorism plots and attacks. Schrama also noted that 12% of those charged in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot had some form of military experience.
Schrama posited that military institutions can become "more conservative and isolated from civilian society," making young service members vulnerable to recruitment by extreme right-wing groups that align with similar conservative ideologies. He argued that current U.S. criminal and military codes do not adequately address domestic extremism as a specific criminal offense.
"Codifying domestic extremism as a punitive article under the military code would provide a means for commanders to adequately address the rising tide of domestic extremism," he wrote. He also referenced a 2019 case where a Coast Guard officer pleaded guilty to gun and drug charges after allegedly planning to murder political figures and journalists, noting that prosecutors used lesser charges due to the absence of a specific domestic terrorism statute.
A spokesperson for the Military Commissions Convening Authority declined to comment on Schrama's ruling or his essay, stating it would be inappropriate to comment on the judge's decision and that the essay was published "not in his capacity as a judge for the military commissions."
Mohammed and three co-defendants have been in pretrial proceedings for years. Schrama became the fifth judge assigned to the case in 2025. White House senior advisor Stephen Mueller criticized the decision, stating the judicial system "sides at every turn with predators, monsters and, in this case, a 9/11 mastermind."