Edited by Jennifer Pietropaoli
New York Court Allows Arrest of Anyone on Planet Thinking of Harming U.S.
The American justice system has reserved the right to pursue and punish the citizen of any country at any spot on the globe if that person plans on harming the United States.
This “right” of prosecutors and U.S. special service agents was confirmed by a federal appeals court in New York looking into the application of a man sentenced on these grounds: Syrian citizen Monzer al-Kassar. He was sentenced to thirty years in prison in 2009 after being convicted for agreeing to supply arms to the terrorist organization Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
The Court of Appeals decided this week that the U.S. government did not artificially create circumstances that pushed the Syrian to criminal activity, referring to the sting operation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). According to the court, the prosecutor accurately established al-Kasser’s intention to harm American citizens. According to the American justice system, this is sufficient for trying and sentencing a person to a term in prison.
Legal experts believe that the Court of Appeals decision to affirm the “right” of prosecutors and special service agents to lead sting operations abroad will significantly impact the series of judicial processes taking place in circuit courts around Manhattan. One such court is handling the case of Russian national Viktor Bout, who the U.S. is also accusing of selling arms to FARC with the knowledge that the organization’s goals include killing American citizens in Colombia. Bout’s defense has repeatedly demanded that the case be dropped because it does not fall under the jurisdiction of American authorities and therefore should not be evaluated on U.S. territory. Furthermore, attorneys have insisted on an end to the case in light of the “illegal extradition of Bout from Thailand and the unlimited power allotted to the U.S. in this regard.”* Like al-Kassar’s defense, they maintained that the American special service lured their client into a trap and provoked him to a criminal proposal that he did not intend to carry out.
In light of the last decision by the Court of Appeals, attorneys of the Russian national have been deprived of any possibility that the court might heed their call for a termination of the case. The truth is that the American justice system relies on case law, meaning many applications and defense appeals may be automatically dismissed. Bout’s attorneys could theoretically turn to the final authority, the Supreme Court, but observers consider that unlikely.
Source: Itar-Tass
*Editor’s Note: This quote, accurately translated could not be verified.
This “right” of prosecutors and U.S. special service agents was confirmed by a federal appeals court in New York looking into the application of a man sentenced on these grounds: Syrian citizen Monzer al-Kassar. He was sentenced to thirty years in prison in 2009 after being convicted for agreeing to supply arms to the terrorist organization Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
The Court of Appeals decided this week that the U.S. government did not artificially create circumstances that pushed the Syrian to criminal activity, referring to the sting operation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). According to the court, the prosecutor accurately established al-Kasser’s intention to harm American citizens. According to the American justice system, this is sufficient for trying and sentencing a person to a term in prison.
Legal experts believe that the Court of Appeals decision to affirm the “right” of prosecutors and special service agents to lead sting operations abroad will significantly impact the series of judicial processes taking place in circuit courts around Manhattan. One such court is handling the case of Russian national Viktor Bout, who the U.S. is also accusing of selling arms to FARC with the knowledge that the organization’s goals include killing American citizens in Colombia. Bout’s defense has repeatedly demanded that the case be dropped because it does not fall under the jurisdiction of American authorities and therefore should not be evaluated on U.S. territory. Furthermore, attorneys have insisted on an end to the case in light of the “illegal extradition of Bout from Thailand and the unlimited power allotted to the U.S. in this regard.”* Like al-Kassar’s defense, they maintained that the American special service lured their client into a trap and provoked him to a criminal proposal that he did not intend to carry out.
In light of the last decision by the Court of Appeals, attorneys of the Russian national have been deprived of any possibility that the court might heed their call for a termination of the case. The truth is that the American justice system relies on case law, meaning many applications and defense appeals may be automatically dismissed. Bout’s attorneys could theoretically turn to the final authority, the Supreme Court, but observers consider that unlikely.
Source: Itar-Tass
*Editor’s Note: This quote, accurately translated could not be verified.
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