Saudi Cleared of Terror Charges in Idaho (Victory against Patriot Act)

[RamboLiberal]

Handing the government a stinging defeat in its war on terror, a jury acquitted a Saudi graduate student Thursday of charges he used his computer expertise to help Muslim terrorists raise money and recruit followers.

"I hope the message is that the First Amendment is important and meaningful in this country," said David Nevin, defense attorney for Sami Omar Al-Hussayen.

The case against Al-Hussayen, a 34-year-old Ph.D. candidate in computer science student at the University of Idaho, was seen as an important test of a provision of the Patriot Act that makes it a crime to provide expert advice or assistance to terrorists.

Al-Hussayen set up and ran Web sites that prosecutors said were used to recruit terrorists, raise money and disseminate inflammatory rhetoric. They said the sites included religious edicts justifying suicide bombings and an invitation to contribute financially to the militant Palestinian organization Hamas.

Al-Hussayen's attorneys argued that he had little to do with the creation of the material posted. And they said the material was protected by the First Amendment right to freedom of expression and was not designed to raise money or recruit extremists.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&u=/ap/20040611/ap_on_re_us/computer_terrorism_11&printer=1

And I posted this yesterday in GD where it died a quick death - but interesting that apparently 4 months before 9-11 the website talked of crashing planes.

Prosecutors contend he used his computer skills to establish a network of Islamic Web sites for the Michigan-based Islamic Assembly of North America that promoted a radical Islamic ideology and supported terrorist groups. Key evidence included four fatwas -- Islamic edicts -- that endorsed suicide attacks and were posted on an IANA site in May 2001, four months before 9/11.

One of those called for airplanes to be crashed into "enemy" targets.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/trib/news/s_198131.html

[Miss Authoritiva]

1. Now that's interesting.

"Al-Hussayen faced up to 15 years for each of the three terrorism charges, 25 years on each visa-fraud charge and five years on each false-statement charge.

Visa-fraud charges carry stiffer penalties than terrorism charges? Who in the Justice Department did the math on that one?

I knew vaguely about some trials under way under the Patriot Act, but never seem to see information about them (wonder why). Thanks for the post. I'll have to do some basic background reading on this, especially the pre-9/11 fatwa about crashing airplanes into enemy targets (anybody tell Condi Rice about this yet?).

Edited for typo.

[RamboLiberal]

4. What is weird is Richard Mellon Scaife's rag

The Pittsburgh Tribune Review has been covering this trial nearly every day. And quite fairly I may add. That's where I got 2nd story. Maybe even the Wingnuts are concerned about the Patriot Act.

[ewagner]

2. This guy was one of the lucky ones

He got a full trial and right to an attorney.

[struggle4progress]

3. Yet more evidence the Bushistas are more interested in show trials ...

than the careful police work necessary to destroy terror networks.

<edit: typos>

[Jack Rabbit]

5. A victory against the Patriot Act

A victory against the Patriot Act is a victory for the American people over the Bush junta.

The act should be repealed and civil disobedience is the proper response to it until it is.

Hi, Mike. :hi:

[murielm99]

6. They are going to deport him anyway.

No link yet, but I heard it on the news tonight.

[gottaB]

7. slashdot discussion

not much technical insight on this one, but amusing coverage of freepers vs. DU, and a few insightful comments

http://yro.slashdot.org/yro/04/06/10/2355201.shtml?tid=123&tid=126&tid=95&tid=99