Al-Arian Jurors Agree On 2 Verdicts
Published: Dec 6, 2005
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TAMPA - Jurors have reached unanimous verdicts on two defendants in the terrorism-support trial of Sami Al-Arian and three other men. The panel is deadlocked on some counts against the other two.
It isn't known which defendants are the subject of disagreement or which counts have the jury hung up. U.S. District Judge James Moody sealed the two completed verdict forms Monday afternoon, then ordered the jury to try to work through the impasse. Reading from a standard jury charge, Moody urged those in the minority to reconsider their conclusions regardless of whether the majority is for conviction or acquittal.
"Your duty is to agree upon a verdict if you can do so," Moody said.
If the majority favors acquittal, he said, those who want convictions should question whether to accept "the weight and sufficiency of evidence that fails to sway the others."
The five women and seven men on the jury went back to work for about 45 minutes before ending their 12th day of deliberations. They are scheduled to resume talks this morning.
Al-Arian, Ghassan Ballut, Hatim Fariz and Sameeh Hammoudeh are accused of running a North American cell for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The 51-count indictment includes four conspiracy charges that target all four defendants, including conspiracies to commit racketeering, plot murder abroad and provide material support to terrorists.
Monday's notes to Moody marked the first communication from the jury since Nov. 15, the first day of deliberations. Then, they inquired about an index of exhibits prosecutors referenced.
Attorneys and courthouse observers were left to speculate on what the partial verdicts mean.
Stephen Bernstein, a Gainesville-based defense attorney who represents Hammoudeh, said jurors have accepted their responsibility seriously.
"It's good that we come to some resolution," he said. "We'll see if the judge's charge today makes a difference."
To convict on the conspiracy counts, jurors must conclude that the men's actions were made knowingly, with the intent of furthering illegal activities by the Islamic Jihad.
Prosecutors portrayed Hammoudeh as Al-Arian's surrogate, collecting money and sending it to the Middle East after Al-Arian became the subject of a criminal investigation.
"The government has yet to produce one lick of evidence or document that any of this went to the Islamic Jihad," Bernstein said during his closing argument.
Moody deferred ruling on defense motions to acquit Ballut. During a hearing last month, the judge challenged the prosecution to show Ballut was more than a mere member of the Islamic Jihad.
The case began June 6 and featured dozens of witnesses. The prosecution's primary evidence came from secretly intercepted telephone calls and faxes involving the defendants. Conspiracy charges account for most of the 95 pages of jury instructions read at the trial's end.
If jurors cannot get past the deadlock, the verdicts they have agreed upon will count.
"When they render a unanimous verdict on any count, that's it," Bernstein said.
