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Dead Constitution See other Dead Constitution Articles Title: Mistrial in Muslim Charity Case, but Retrial Is Expected Mistrial in Muslim Charity Case, but Retrial Is Expected By LESLIE EATON DALLAS, Oct. 22 — In a major setback for the government, a judge declared a mistrial today in the case of several former leaders of a Muslim charity who were charged with financing Middle Eastern terrorists, after jurors failed to reach a verdict. The decision came during a morning of confusion for jurors and those on both sides of the case, in which federal prosecutors were trying to show that the charity, based in a Dallas suburb, was not simply trying to help poor Palestinians, as officials said, but was in fact an arm of the radical Islamic group Hamas. The jury delivered no convictions on any of the charges against the five defendants and the charity. The panel delivered acquittals on some charges, which the judge allowed to stand, and was deadlocked on others. Prosecutors said afterward that they would retry the defendants. The case, involving the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, is the government’s largest and most complex legal effort to shut down what it contends is American financing for terrorist organizations in the Middle East. It has involved more than a decade of investigation, almost two months of testimony — including some from Israeli intelligence agents using pseudonyms — and mounds of documents, wiretap transcripts and even videotapes dug up in a backyard in Virginia. Jurors had said on Thursday that they had reached verdicts, but their decision was sealed because Federal District Judge A. Joe Fish, who was presiding over the case, was out of town. When today’s session began, the decision was unsealed with an announcement in the court that three former leaders of the group had been found not guilty. But some of the jurors said that was incorrect, prompting Judge Fish to poll the full jury. In all, three of the 12 then said the verdicts had been read incorrectly. After that unusual development, Judge Fish sent the jurors back to deliberate further on the matter. About an hour later, jurors sent him a note saying that 11 of the 12 believed that further deliberations would not lead them to reach a unanimous decision. It was then that Judge Fish declared a mistrial on the remaining, deadlocked counts. The acquittals on some charges were allowed to stand. The judge had announced that Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development fund-raiser Mufid Abdulqader was acquitted on all counts, and two co-defendants — Mohammed El-Mezain, former chairman of the group, and, Abdulrahman Odeh, the group’s New Jersey representative — were acquitted on most counts, according to The Associated Press. The verdicts questioned by the jurors were on charges against the foundation, as well as former chief executive Shukri Abu Baker and another former chairman, Ghassan Elashi. The jury was deadlocked on those counts by morning’s end. There are five individual defendants in the case, all former officials of or volunteers for the foundation, facing as many as 36 counts apiece. Between the lengthy jury instructions and the verdict form, the packet given to the jurors “looks like the phone book for a small city,” the judge had said. In the course of the trial, prosecutors said that the Holy Land Foundation, once the biggest Muslim charity in the United States, functioned as an arm of Hamas, the radical Palestinian group that has sponsored suicide bombings in Israel. The government did not allege that the foundation’s money paid directly for attacks, but rather that the money — more than $12 million — that the foundation sent to charities controlled by Hamas had increased public support for Hamas and had helped it recruit terrorists and spread its ideology. Lawyers for the defendants told the jury that their clients did not support terrorism; rather, the defense said, they were humanitarians trying to lessen suffering among impoverished Palestinians. Though their clients may have expressed support for Hamas, the defense argued, they did so before the United States government designated Hamas as a terrorist organization in 1995. One defendant, Mufid Abdulqader, is the half-brother of Khalid Mishal, a Hamas leader who has been designated as a terrorist by the United States government. Another Hamas official and designated terrorist, Mousa abu Marzook, is married to a cousin of the former chairman of Holy Land, Mr. Elashi, a defendant in the case; last year, Mr. Elashi was sentenced to almost seven years in prison for having financial dealings with Mr. Marzook and for violating export laws. The jury has been out since Sept. 19, although their deliberations were slowed by the replacement of one juror on Sept. 26. Judge Fish did not reveal why he replaced the juror with an alternate, nor did he disclose the contents of several early notes the jury sent him. On Oct. 3, the jury sent the judge another note indicating that one panel member was refusing to vote; Judge Fish read them what is known as an Allen charge, stressing their responsibility to try to reach a verdict. The case has been highly controversial among many Muslim Americans, who believe that their charitable efforts, required by their religion, are being unfairly singled out. During the trial, protesters gathered across the street from the federal courthouse here, holding signs with slogans like, “Prosecuting Islamic Charities is a Homeland Insecurity.” The case was also being closely watched by legal experts who saw it as test of anti-terrorism laws and tactics adopted by the government after the Sept. 11 attacks, including laws that allow it to freeze assets of groups it says are aiding terrorist organizations. “It’s an extremely expansive statute to begin with, and the prosecution’s interpretation in this case is the most expansive I’ve seen yet,” David D. Cole, an expert on constitutional law at Georgetown University in Washington, said before the mistrial was declared. Maria Newman contributed reporting from New York.
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#1. To: aristeides, *Ron Paul for President 2008* (#0)
"... The prosecution's key witness was a lawyer for the Israeli domestic security agency Shin Bet who testified under a false name. He said Palestinian charities that got Holy Land money were controlled by Hamas. Neal, the juror, said he found the Shin Bet officer's testimony unconvincing — that he would expect an Israeli official to condemn an ally of Palestinians. ..." http://www.charter.net/news/news_reader.php? storyid=14103834&feedid=7&storyid=14103834&feedid=7 In this case, the jury foreman should have said: "Your Honor, we find the Plaintiff--er, the prosecutors--er, whoever is sitting over at this table over here, guilty." What a great case for Bush and his Zionist handlers!!!! BBWWAAHH!!!!
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