Marin's John Walker Lindh, 'American Taliban' Captured in 2001, Freed From Prison

Updated 9 a.m. Thursday

John Walker Lindh, the Marin County man who became known as the "American Taliban" after he was captured by U.S. forces in the invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, was released on Thursday after nearly two decades in prison.

But conditions imposed recently on Lindh's release make clear that authorities remain concerned about the threat he could pose once free.

Lindh, now 38, was raised as Catholic, converting to Islam as a teenager after seeing the film "Malcolm X" and going overseas to study Arabic and the Quran. In November 2000, he went to Pakistan and from there made his way to Afghanistan. He joined the Taliban — an extremist Islamic movement that ruled Afghanistan at the time — and was with them on Sept. 11, 2001, when al-Qaida terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

The U.S. attacked Afghanistan after the country failed to turn over al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. Lindh was captured in a battle with Northern Alliance fighters in late 2001. He was present when a group of Taliban prisoners launched an attack that killed Johnny Micheal "Mike" Spann, a CIA officer who had been interrogating Lindh and other Taliban prisoners.

Television footage of a bearded, wounded Lindh captured among Taliban fighters created an international sensation, and he was brought to the U.S. to face charges of conspiring to kill Spann and providing support to terrorists. Eventually, he struck a plea bargain in which he admitted illegally providing support to the Taliban but denied a role in Spann's death.

Lindh received a 20-year prison sentence. He served roughly 17 years and five months, including two months when he was in military detention. Federal inmates who exhibit good behavior typically serve 85 percent of their sentence.

His probation officer asked the court to impose additional restrictions on Lindh while he remains on supervised release for the next three years. Lindh initially opposed but eventually acquiesced to the restrictions, which include monitoring software on his internet devices; requiring that his online communications be conducted in English and that he undergo mental health counseling; and forbidding him from possessing or viewing extremist material, holding a passport of any kind or leaving the U.S.

Authorities never specified their rationale for seeking such restrictions. A hearing on the issue was canceled after Lindh agreed to them.

The Bureau of Prisons said Lindh rejected an interview request submitted by The Associated Press, and his lawyer declined to comment. KQED efforts to reach his father, Frank Lindh, were unsuccessful.

A Marin County Teenager Who Wanted to Travel to the Middle East

In 2007, Frank Lindh told NPR that his son was a proxy for Osama bin Laden.

"The entire country turned on our son as if he were the terrorist, as if he had perpetrated the 9/11 attacks. It was this overwhelming and emotional response, and it was like being in a vortex. It was a real nightmare for all of us in John's family," he said.

Lindh was one of three children: He has an older brother and a younger sister. At 17, Lindh, who graduated from Tamiscal High School in Larkspur, told his parents he wanted to go to Yemen to study Arabic, NPR reported.

"I did with John research as best I could," said his mom, Marilyn Lindh. "I talked to people about the school he was looking into to attend. And I got encouragement that it was safe and the fact that many kids go abroad to study."

But they didn't know he would go on to Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Nevertheless, Lindh's parents were criticized for poor parenting from angry emailers and for their residence in affluent Marin County.

"All three of our kids have grown up here. The schools are good. The neighborhoods are friendly. It's got a strong community sense. There are good family values in Marin. There are very wealthy enclaves in Marin, but most people who live here are just middle-income people," said Frank Lindh.

Nearly a decade into his imprisonment, in May 2011, Frank Lindh told KQED Forum that his son remained "the same young man he always was."

"He's a nice kid. He's spiritual. He does his prayers every day. He's highly intellectual. He studies constantly. He's got a really very positive attitude, a sparkling sense of humor," he added. "He's a wonderful son."

Emigrate to Ireland?

It's unclear where Lindh will go when he is released. The Bureau of Prisons said it doesn't comment on individual release plans, citing safety, security and privacy.

Foreign Policy reported in June 2017 that Lindh, who got Irish citizenship in 2013, had considered potentially moving to Ireland after he got out, citing a Bureau of Prisons intelligence summary.

The Irish government could deny him a passport on grounds that he poses a threat to national security, the publication reported. Lindh's release conditions also prohibit him from holding a passport of any kind or leaving the U.S. while he remains on supervised release for the next three years.

Behavior in Prison That's Cause for Concern?

There have been reports that Lindh's behavior in prison has created cause for concern. Foreign Policy magazine reported in 2017 that an investigation by the National Counterterrorism Center found that Lindh "continued to advocate for global jihad and to write and translate violent extremist texts."

A former inmate who knew Lindh from the time they spent at the same federal prison said he never heard Lindh espouse support for al-Qaida or indicate a risk for violence, but he found Lindh to be anti-social and awkward around others, with an unyielding, black-and-white view of religion. The inmate spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he wanted to avoid further stigmatization from his time in Lindh's prison unit.

Michael Jensen, a terrorism researcher at the University of Maryland's National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, said it's clear the government has concerns about Lindh's mindset.

"For three years he's going to be watched like a hawk," Jensen said.

He said Lindh represents an interesting test case, as he is on the leading edge of dozens of inmates who were convicted on terror-related offenses in the aftermath of Sept. 11 and are eligible for release in the next five years. He said there's little research to indicate the efficacy of de-radicalizing inmates with connections to radical Islam, but he said the research shows that recidivism rates for those connected to white supremacy and other forms of extremism are high.

Lindh has been housed in Terre Haute, Indiana, with other Muslim inmates convicted on terror-related charges. The rationale was to keep those inmates from radicalizing others in the general prison population, Jensen said. Those inside the unit were supposed to be limited in their ability to communicate with each other.

"But the reality is these guys still talk to each other," he said.

Lindh, for his part, admitted his role and his wrongdoing in supporting the Taliban, but he and his family have bristled at any notion that he should be considered a terrorist.

"I don't feel that John committed the kind of crimes he was accused of, and that many of your listeners and even you continue to believe that John committed. He did not commit terrorism, he never fought against the United States of America," Frank Lindh told KQED Forum host Dave Iverson in May 2011. "And I can't express contrition for things that my son didn't do."

When he was sentenced, Lindh said he never would have joined the Taliban if he fully understood what they were about. He also issued a short essay condemning acts of violence in the name of Islam that kill or harm innocent civilians.

Some have criticized Lindh's pending release. In March, the legislature in Alabama, where Spann grew up, adopted a resolution calling it "an insult" to Spann's "heroic legacy and his remaining family members."

NPR and KQED's Miranda Leitsinger, Scott Shafer and Tara Siler contributed to this report.