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| Fifth Column |
| Trial of Terrorist Sheik’s Lawyer Opens |
| 2004-06-23 |
| A lawyer who has made a career out of defending radicals went on trial Tuesday on charges she helped one of her clients - a jailed terrorist sheik - communicate with his followers. Federal prosecutor Christopher Morvillo told the anonymous jury in his opening statement that Lynne Stewart "used her status as a lawyer as a cloak to smuggle messages into and out of prison." He said she allowed Omar Abdel-Rahman to "incite terrorism." Abdel-Rahman is a blind Egyptian cleric serving a life sentence at a maximum-security federal prison in Florence, Colo., for conspiring to blow up New York City landmarks and assassinate Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Defense lawyer Michael Tigar told the jury "in 40 years in this town, Lynne Stewart has been building for justice, not for terrorism." He described her as a "compassionate, skillful and brave lawyer" who has been falsely portrayed by prosecutors relying on erroneous and incomplete information. Tigar said Stewart, 64, will testify. She could get about 20 years in prison if convicted. Stewart is on trial with two other defendants: a translator for the sheik and a U.S. postal worker. The three were "able to break Abdel-Rahman’s message of terror out of jail and deliver it to the very people who never should have heard it," Morvillo said. The postal worker, Ahmed Abdel Sattar, faces the most serious charge: conspiring to kidnap and kill people in a foreign country. He could get life in prison. Stewart and the Arabic translator, Mohammed Yousry, are charged with providing material support to terrorists. A lawyer for Yousry, David Ruhnke, told jurors his client was "not a terrorist, not a supporter of terrorism. ... This is a case that never should have been brought." A lawyer for Sattar was scheduled to make his opening statement Wednesday. |
| Posted by:TS(vice girl) |
| #16 Heavens 5341! I am hoping your dad is still around and knows the kid who played "HillBilly" is a pawnbroker in DeLand FL.... got an autographed pikcture last month. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-06-23 2:41:18 PM |
| #15 Ship- "...Who is that tapping on my timber?!" My dad was AT Parris Island when they made The DI , I think I've seen that film so many times I can recite it in my sleep. The bit about the sand flea is still priceless... Mike |
| Posted by: Anonymous5341 2004-06-23 2:26:46 PM |
| #14 What rodent died on her chin? |
| Posted by: Zpaz 2004-06-23 1:30:07 PM |
| #13 No! Wait! The DI! With Jack Webb being in full Jack Webb lecture mode.... that's the one. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-06-23 1:27:04 PM |
| #12 Purdy damn good Rex M. I think Sands of Iwo Jima would prolong the agony. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-06-23 1:25:56 PM |
| #11 Lynn Stewart: commie lawyer who openly advocates the violent overthrow of our government. Execute her, but: Electric Chair - who could afford that electric bill? Gas Chamber - she IS the gas chamber Hanging - she hasn't got a neck Lethal Injection - possible if the necessary chemicals are stored in a barge nearby ...it's a quandry folks. Got it! Lock her in cell and force her to watch Yankee Doodle Dandee until chokes on her own 5th columnist vomit. |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2004-06-23 12:53:29 PM |
| #10 Lynne Stewart, the antidote to Viagra. |
| Posted by: Raj 2004-06-23 12:30:13 PM |
| #9 Or just wear a burkha. |
| Posted by: ed 2004-06-23 10:39:44 AM |
| #8 Cut back on your carbs, eat smaller meals five times a day, and begin a rigerous cardio program... |
| Posted by: Dragon Fly 2004-06-23 10:36:41 AM |
| #7 good to see we are in no danger of a sudden break out of maturity. /sarc |
| Posted by: dcreeper 2004-06-23 10:16:33 AM |
| #6 what a pig! Looks like a female Ernest Borgnine (apologies to Ernest) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-06-23 9:54:13 AM |
| #5 ugly? not sure. I'll know better after she shaves. |
| Posted by: Dirty Old Man 2004-06-23 9:12:01 AM |
| #4 May I suggest these fine lines of legal defense products. Legal aids |
| Posted by: ed 2004-06-23 8:22:01 AM |
| #3 she's so darn ugly, she doesn't stand a chance. |
| Posted by: B 2004-06-23 7:07:41 AM |
| #2 Lynne Stewart has "issues": http://asia.news.yahoo.com/040618/ap/nyr12106182023.html The jury may be sympathetic, do you think? |
| Posted by: rex 2004-06-23 3:24:45 AM |
| #1 Bet Lynne is wishing Mom and Dad had named her Martha. Somehow, I don't think she'll get a room with a decorating potential and a view at Lompoc. |
| Posted by: Mr. Davis 2004-06-23 12:45:16 AM |