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<a href="http://www.aljazeerah.info/News/2009/March/12%20n/Judge%20Allows%20Sami%20Al-Arian's%20Defense%20to%20File%20Motion%20to%20Dismiss%20Charges.htm" eudora="autourl">
http://www.aljazeerah.info/News/2009/March/12%20n/Judge%20Allows%20Sami%20Al-Arian%27s%20Defense%20to%20File%20Motion%20to%20Dismiss%20Charges.htm<br>
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</a></font><font face="Arial, Helvetica" size=3><b>Editorial Note:</b>
The following news reports are summaries from original sources. They may
also include corrections of Arabic names and political terminology.
Comments are in parentheses.<br>
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Judge Allows Sami Al-Arian's Defense to File Motion to Dismiss
Charges<br><br>
World View News Service<br>
March 12, 2009<br><br>
<br>
Judge says Justice Department's Integrity at Stake<br><br>
Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled in favor of<br>
a defense request to file a motion to dismiss the charges against
Dr.<br>
Sami Al-Arian at a hearing in federal court today. Her decision
follows<br>
new revelations that prosecutors in Florida were opposed to efforts by
a<br>
Virginia prosecutor to call Dr. Al-Arian to testify in another case.
The<br>
judge's important decision raises the possibility that Dr.
Al-Arian's<br>
ordeal could be resolved and that he can finally regain his freedom<br>
after six years of grueling legal battles.<br><br>
During the hearing earlier today, Assistant U.S. Attorney Gordon<br>
Kromberg argued for the fourth time that the entire issue of the
2006<br>
plea agreement is irrelevant to the criminal contempt charges. The
judge<br>
has repeatedly rejected that argument, reaffirming on Monday that
the<br>
"record is incomplete" and that the government's response poses
more<br>
questions than answers. Judge Brinkema stated that there was
"enough<br>
smoke" in the facts of the case that needed to be cleared up.<br>
By the end of the hearing, the judge said she was granting the
defense's<br>
request to file for a complete dismissal of the charges because
"the<br>
integrity of the Justice Department cannot be compromised."<br><br>
The judge began the hearing by asking Kromberg how he became aware
of<br>
the plea agreement on March 1, 2006, despite the fact that it was
filed<br>
under seal in Florida the previous day, and was only known to the<br>
parties involved. Evading the question, the prosecutor simply stated<br>
that he was able to call Dr. Al-Arian to testify once the Florida
judge<br>
imposed the maximum sentence, a move that extended his imprisonment
by<br>
eleven months.. Judge Brinkema agreed with lead defense counsel
Jonathan<br>
Turley that the plea agreement could not be breached by the
government<br>
simply because Dr. Al-Arian received a longer sentence.<br>
Judge Brinkema also pointed out that, contrary to the prosecution's<br>
assertions, the issue of the plea agreement has never been resolved<br>
since no other court has ever granted a hearing to examine all the<br>
evidence. After Kromberg concluded his statement to the court,
Professor<br>
Turley noted that new facts had come to light in the government's
recent<br>
court motion that had not been previously disclosed. Specifically,
none<br>
of the courts that have addressed the issue of the plea agreement
were<br>
made aware of an internal split within the Department of Justice on<br>
whether Dr. Al-Arian should be called to testify in Virginia. It has<br>
since come to light that prosecutors in Florida objected to efforts
by<br>
Kromberg to compel Dr. Al-Arian's testimony. Professor Turley
concluded<br>
by saying that now was the time for the court to consider these new<br>
facts and allow the defense to argue for the dismissal of the
charges.<br><br>
In granting the motion, the judge expressed her disappointment with
the<br>
prosecutors' persistent refusal to present clear statements about
their<br>
conduct during the plea negotiations. She said that there are
serious<br>
questions about whether the government conducted bad faith dealings
with<br>
the defense that could now result in Dr. Al-Arian's imprisonment.
Before<br>
someone could be forced to give up their individual liberty, she
said,<br>
these issues should be resolved. She suggested that although
prosecutors<br>
had not offered their own affidavits on the plea negotiations, she
was<br>
"reading between the lines" that there was "a meeting of
the minds" that<br>
the intent of the plea agreement was to conclude Dr. Al-Arian's
business<br>
with the U.S. government once and for all.<br><br>
Although Judge Brinkema was originally expected to set a new trial
date<br>
during today's hearing, she instead gave the defense ten days to
submit<br>
a motion to dismiss the charges. Prosecutors will then have ten days
to<br>
respond.<br><br>
An estimated twenty-five people, some hailing from as far as Tampa,<br>
Florida, attended the hearing today to express their support for Dr.<br>
Al-Arian.. The Tampa Bay Coalition for Justice and Peace would like
to<br>
extend its appreciation to those individuals who have consistently
stood<br>
up for justice in Dr. Al-Arian's case, led by Dr. Al-Arian's legal<br>
counsel, Professor Turley from George Washington University and
William<br>
Olson and P.J. Meitl from the law firm of Bryan Cave.<br><br>
<br><br>
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