US may rethink terror cases after mistrial-experts

[Lone_Star_Dem]

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. government's failure this week to win a conviction in a major case of alleged terrorism financing is a sign it may be targeting the wrong suspects and needs to rethink its prosecution strategy, legal experts say.

A judge in Dallas declared a mistrial on Monday on most counts against an Islamic charity -- the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development -- and several men linked to it who were accused of illegally funneling money to the militant Palestinian group Hamas.

The government vowed to retry the case, but legal experts said it faces obstacles in prosecuting charitable groups and terrorism cases in general.

"This case shows that we have not done our homework," said Karen Greenberg, executive director of New York University's Center for Law and Security. "It's conveying an impression to the American people that we don't know how to do this."

Read more: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N23319902.htm

[McCamy Taylor]

1. No sh*t. Sherlock. The "mistrials" were acquitals till two jurors went home and started talking to

people who got them to change their minds. That means that the government lost most of the case, except for the judges incompetence in allowing the jurors to reach a decision and then not reading it right away but instead sending them out for four days to face peer pressure (and who knows, maybe prosecutorial pressure?) before bringing them back four days later to read the verdict and then poll the jury at which point two women had inexplicably changed their minds.

And the feds say that this gives them the right to refile their charges.

I think the judges in the case were trying to salvage the prosecutors' case, figuring some people would think a mistrial meant one hold out juror for acquittal.

[gratuitous]

2. What? Incompetence in the Bush administration?

I don't think anyone could have foreseen this.

And, by the way, Ms. Greenberg, the American people not only have the "impression" that the Bush administration doesn't know what it's doing, we know it for a fact. See, if you're a miserable failure in everything you try to do (except for issuing alarmist, overheated warnings), after a while the villagers quit believing you, even if there really is a wolf out there. Seems to me there's an old story along those lines.

[Javaman]

3. Moron*: note to self, fabricate more evidence. nt