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Doctor: Bolingbrook suspect in ISIS case needs therapy

Posted November 17, 2016 12:00 am

Associated Press

A psychiatrist who examined a Bolingbrook man in an Islamic State case wants a judge to impose a sentence that could mean the 21-year-old's release next year.

The doctor says in a letter filed in Chicago federal court Wednesday that Mohammed Hamzah Khan now knows his ideas about the Islamic State were "idealistic and unrealistic."

Khan pleaded guilty to a terrorist-related charge for trying to join the Islamic State in 2014. He faces a maximum 15-year prison term when sentenced Friday.

Prosecutors asked for a reduced 5-year term, citing Khan's help identifying Islamic State recruiters. Khan's lawyers want 3 years, resulting in his release in 2017 with time served.

Psychiatrist Stephen Xenakis says Khan needs therapy and an extended prison time could again radicalize him. Khan's lawyers say he'll enter college once freed.

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