[JURIST] Former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani [official profile] testified at the resumed sentencing trial of Zacarias Moussaoui [JURIST news archive] on Thursday, describing the 9/11 attacks as he experienced them in his official capacity. He recalled being unable to grasp the extent of the calamity until he saw victims jumping from the windows of the burning World Trade Center towers.

Prosecutors making the case for the death penalty, for which Moussaoui is eligible after a jury verdict [JURIST report] earlier this week, played video of people leaping to their deaths and described telephone calls from frantic victims stranded in the towers. The jury has also been authorized to hear the cockpit tape and read the transcript [JURIST report] of United Airlines Flight 93 [National Park Service website] which crashed in Pennsylvania. Family members of 9/11 victims are also expected to testify. Defense attorneys are countering the death penalty arguments by saying that Moussaoui has schizophrenia, had a difficult childhood and was brainwashed by al Qaida. AP has more.