11/17/2024

Appeals Court Strengthens Protections for Naturalized U.S. Citizens

The case centers on Abdulrahman Farhane

A federal appeals court has sided with a Moroccan-born man whose attorney failed to inform him of the consequences of pleading guilty in a terrorism case, a landmark ruling that experts say expands the constitutional rights of naturalized U.S. citizens and could prove significant as Donald Trump returns to D.C.

The case centers on Abdulrahman Farhane, a 70-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder money and lying to agents in 2006. He was charged during a post-9/11 period of intense surveillance and widespread arrests that rights groups say stigmatized Muslims and led to violations of civil liberties.

Farhane told The Washington Post in 2021 that he pleaded guilty to the charges to avoid the risk of a longer sentence after his attorney at the time, Michael Hueston, told him no Muslim would get a fair trial.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Washington Post.