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<font size=3><br><br>
</font><font face="georgia" size=4 color="#666699"><b>American Justice
will apply to all of us<br>
</font><font face="arial" size=3 color="#D70000">Chicago</b> <b>Muslim
Groups Say Verdict on Boim Case
Unfair</b></font><font face="arial" size=3 color="#A40000"> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE</font><font face="arial" size=3 color="#A40000"> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2><b>Muslim Civil Rights Center, December
08, 2004<br>
</b></font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>(CHICAGO, IL, 12/08/2004 ) - An
unfortunate, but expected, decision was rendered today by a jury who
heard one side of the story. The Quranic Literacy Institute (QLI) has
been found guilty on evidence that is vague and poorly contextualized
without having a realistic chance of addressing the evidence cited
against it. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>Few weeks earlier, before the trial
began, Judge Arlander Keys ruled in a summary judgment against the
Islamic Association of Palestine (IAP), the Holy Land Foundation and
Mohammad Salah and held them liable for the death of David Boim without
adequate due process. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>Today, Judge Keys ordered the three
Islamic charities and Mohammad Salah to pay $156 million to Boim’s
parents. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>SEE: <br>
Judge Awards $156M to Dead Teen's Parents <br>
<a href="http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=nki7ozaab.0.9w4fpzaab.k7h77xn6.356&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chicagotribune.com%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fsns-ap-islamic-charities-suit%2C1%2C223551.story%3Fcoll%3Dchi-news-hed">http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/sns-ap-islamic-charities-suit,1,223551.story?coll=chi-news-hed</a>
<br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>The defendants who had had their assets frozen already did not have the funds to hire the necessary legal representation; their legal team was comprised of one lawyer. They were denied a key continuance on the case, which is routinely granted, to prepare and refute the plaintiff’s arguments. Moreover, recent media coverage shows that many reporters have taken sides, and have presupposed guilt, condemning the defendants in the court of public opinion long before the verdict came out. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>“Attention needs to be drawn to the fact that QLI has not received a fair trial - neither in the courtroom, nor on the pages of the daily papers. This is a case of justice catered to the more resourceful party, and proper due process denied to the usual suspects,” said Rasheed Ahmed , President of the Muslim Civil Rights Center . <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>“The implications of this case are trend-setting,” said Yaser Tabbara , Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations – Chicago<b>.</b> “Such a lawsuit, with the inordinate connections it’s trying to forge, is unheard of and therefore is likely to set an outrageous precedent in which every party with the necessary resources and an agenda will purport to sue every organization with the flimsiest links to suspected parties involved in the conflict in the Middle East, and for the most farfetched of behests.” <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>“In the case of QLI, the evidence cited to incriminate it has been vague and presumptuous; guilt was always presupposed. This is very much a political case in that the subjective identity of the defendant has solicited exorbitant and undue scrutiny, influencing the verdict. An unbiased fact-based pursuit of justice should really be the only determinant for the proceedings and outcome of a case entrusted to an official court of law. We ask that the media and the public remain vigilant of this alarming anomaly of democracy that seems to increasingly single out members of the Muslim-American community,” said Amer Haleem, Secretary of the Quranic Literacy Institute. <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>“This case was supposedly about remedying the harm that was done to an innocent young man, sadly, another egregious harm has been inflicted upon yet another completely innocent entity,” Haleem added <br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2><b>-END-</b> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3> <br><br>
</font><font face="arial" size=2>CONTACT: MCRC, Rasheed Ahmed, 708-598-6640, Email: <a href="mailto:rasheed@mcrcnet.org">rasheed@mcrcnet.org</a> <br>
</font><div align="center"><font face="arial" size=2 color="#000080"> <br><br>
</font></div>
<font face="arial" size=1><b>Muslim Civil Rights Center </b></font><font face="arial" size=1 color="#808080">is a community based non-profit organization with the mission to create awareness about civil rights in the United States. For more information, please contact:<br><br>
Muslim Civil Rights Center<br>
7667 W. 95th Street, Suite 8E, Hickory Hills, IL 60457<br>
Phone: 1-708-598-6640, 1-866-648-6272, Fax: 1-708-598-5283<br>
Email: <a href="mailto:info@mcrcnet.org">info@mcrcnet.org</a>, Website: <a href="http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=nki7ozaab.0.6h98n9n6.k7h77xn6.356&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mcrcnet.org">www.mcrcnet.org</a> <br>
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