[Ppnews] After 3 years of solitary Syed Fahad Hashmi enters plea

[Political Prisoner News]

http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2010/freefahad270410.html

<http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2010/freefahad280410.html>After 3 
Years in Solitary Fahad Takes a Plea
by CUNY 4 Fahad, Theaters Against War, and Educators for Civil Liberties

On Tuesday April 27, <http://freefahad.com/>Fahad Hashmi took a 
government plea bargain.  He pleaded guilty to 1 count of conspiracy 
for allowing an acquaintance to store waterproof socks, ponchos, and 
raincoats in his apartment.  The government dropped the other 3 
charges.  Fahad made this decision after having served 3 long years 
in solitary confinement and one day after Judge Preska approved the 
government's recent 
<http://www.ccrjustice.org/newsroom/press-releases/ccr-denounces-government-attempt-frighten-jury-nyc-trial-fahad-hashmi>request 
for an anonymous jury with extra security measures.  In addition to 
the use of secret evidence and indefinite solitary confinement in 
Fahad's case, the move to have an anonymous jury raised already 
heightened concerns as to whether a fair trial was even 
possible.  With sentencing to happen on June 7, Fahad faces a maximum 
of 15 years, as opposed to the 70 years he might have faced if he had 
been convicted on all 4 counts.  With time already served (4 years 
total) and considerations for good behavior, Fahad could be out in 
less than 10 years.  It is of note that on the eve of the trial the 
government was willing to shave 55 years off the potential sentence.

Today's decision does not in any way detract from the importance of 
the work we've been doing and the civil rights and human rights 
issues that Fahad's case has raised.  The government's use of Special 
Administrative Measures and the attacks on due process in "terrorism" 
cases like Fahad's continue and cast a pall on the US justice 
system.  For that reason, we plan to hold our usual 
<http://www.thawaction.org/>vigil on Monday night outside the 
Metropolitan Correctional Center.   We hope you will spread the word 
and join us.

We will be posting further thoughts and analysis on Fahad's case and 
the attendant issues in the coming week.

<http://justice4fahad.org/>CUNY 4 Fahad
<http://thawaction.org/>Theaters Against War
<http://www.educatorsforcivilliberties.org/>Educators for Civil Liberties

----------
Update

N.B.: After the announcement below was published, 
<http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE63Q5SD20100427>Reuters 
reported that Fahad Hashmi pled guilty to "one count of material 
support to a foreign terrorist organization": "Hashmi's guilty plea 
was part of a last-minute deal with prosecutors in which he admitted 
to certain charges in exchange for three other counts being dropped, 
thus avoiding a trial and a possible 70-year sentence."  There will 
be no trial.  Instead, a sentencing hearing is scheduled for the 7th of June.






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