Prosecutors’ Files Kept Closed in Oregon Islamic Charity Case
March 4, 2011 | Read Time: 1 minute
A federal judge refused Thursday to open prosecutors’ files sought by lawyers for a former Islamic charity official seeking a new trial on terrorism-related charges, the Associated Press writes.
U.S. District Judge Michael Hogan said he was convinced prosecutors’ failure to divulge payments to the husband of a witness against Pete Seda was inadvertent and that his lawyers had been provided sufficient information.
Mr. Seda was convicted last year of helping to smuggle $150,000 to Saudi Arabia through the U.S. arm of the Al Haramain Islamic Foundation, which the federal government branded a terrorist organization. Defense lawyers petitioned for a new trial, in part based on prosecutors’ failure to reveal the witness payments.
