Lawyer: FBI asked terror suspect to be informant
Lawyer Blogs
A Massachusetts man accused of plotting to kill Americans was portrayed by federal prosecutors Thursday as a jihadist who is too dangerous to be released on bail, but the man's lawyer said he was charged only after he refused to become an FBI informant against Muslims.
Tarek Mehanna, 27, of Sudbury, was arrested a year ago and charged with lying to the FBI. New, more serious charges were added last month, when Mehanna was accused of conspiring with two other men to shoot shoppers at U.S. malls, to kill two unnamed prominent U.S. politicians and to kill American soldiers in Iraq.
Authorities said he and the other men never came close to pulling off an attack, but did seek training at terrorist camps in the Middle East. The men allegedly told friends they were turned down for terrorist training because of their nationality, ethnicity or inexperience, or that they were unable to make contact with people they hoped would get them into such camps.
The men abandoned plans to attack malls because their weapons contact said he could find only handguns, not automatic weapons, prosecutors allege.
During a detention hearing in federal court on Thursday, Magistrate Judge Leo Sorokin heard arguments from prosecutors and Mehanna's defense on whether he should be kept behind bars until his trial. Sorokin did not immediately rule.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aloke Chakravarty urged the judge to hold Mehanna without bail, saying he poses a danger to the community and is likely to flee before his trial because he faces a possible sentence of life in prison.
Related listings
-
W.Va. Supreme Court opts for e-mail privacy
Lawyer Blogs 11/13/2009The state Supreme Court has ruled that public officials and public employees can keep their personal e-mails private.The court ruled 4-1 Thursday that none of the 13 e-mails between former Supreme Court Chief Justice Elliott "Spike" Maynard and Masse...
-
Lawyer: Colo. balloon boy parents to plead guilty
Lawyer Blogs 11/12/2009The Colorado parents who reported their 6-year-old son floated away aboard a helium balloon will plead guilty to some charges and serve probation so that the family can stay together, the attorney for the boy's father said Thursday.Richard Heene will...
-
Va. AG Mims to work for law firm after Jan. exit
Lawyer Blogs 11/11/2009Attorney General Bill Mims will join a powerful law and lobbying firm after his 11-month stint in office ends in January.Mims will become a partner in the Hunton & Williams firm in its administrative law and government relations practice after Ke...
Grounds for Divorce in Ohio - Sylkatis Law, LLC
A divorce in Ohio is filed when there is typically “fault” by one of the parties and party not at “fault” seeks to end the marriage. A court in Ohio may grant a divorce for the following reasons:
• Willful absence of the adverse party for one year
• Adultery
• Extreme cruelty
• Fraudulent contract
• Any gross neglect of duty
• Habitual drunkenness
• Imprisonment in a correctional institution at the time of filing the complaint
• Procurement of a divorce outside this state by the other party
Additionally, there are two “no-fault” basis for which a court may grant a divorce:
• When the parties have, without interruption for one year, lived separate and apart without cohabitation
• Incompatibility, unless denied by either party
However, whether or not the the court grants the divorce for “fault” or not, in Ohio the party not at “fault” will not get a bigger slice of the marital property.