Court denies re-hearing for Lynne Stewart

Scan page 2

We propose an EMERGENCY CONGRESS OF LABOR to discuss and 1) Bail out the people, not the bankers! Open the account books of the banks to full public inspection. Nationalize the banks to be supervised by 2) No foreclosures! No forced evictions! Cancel usurious debt payments, and reduce mortgage payments in proportion to their capitalist-caused 3) Full employment at union wages! An emergency public works program to employ all jobless workers and youth! Employ people to build what we need — low-cost quality housing, efficient mass transportation, cheap and renewable sources of power, schools, clinics — and to conserve our water, 4) Immediate and full withdrawal of U.S. troops and mercenaries from Iraq & Afghanistan! Close all U.S. bases abroad! No money for the military — use funds instead for public works! Convert the war industries to mak­ Socialist Action (ISSN 0747-4237) is published monthly by Socialist Action Publishing Association, P.O. Box 10328, Oakland, CA 94610. Postmaster: Send address changes to: Socialist Action, P.O. Box 10328, Oakland, CA 94610. RATES: For one year (12 issues, 1st-class mail): U.S., Canada, Mexico — $20. All other countries — $30. Money orders and checks should be in U.S. dollars.

Signed articles do not necessarily represent the views of Socialist Action. These are expressed in editorials. Socialist Action is edited, designed, and laid out entirely by volunteer labor. It is printed by members of Local 583, Allied Printing Trades Council, San Francisco, Calif.

Clip and mail to: Socialist Action newspaper, P.O. Box 10328, Oakland, CA 94610.

On Sept. 24, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected Lynne Stewart’s appeal for a re-hearing before the entire court. Her original conviction was upheld in 2009 by a three-judge panel of the Sec­ ond Circuit. The court’s opinion was not unexpected. This was the same court that earlier pressed Federal District Court John Koeltl to re-consider his original 28-month sentence and instead sentence Lynne to 10 years.

Disgracefully, Judge Koeltl explained the increased sentence by saying: “[C]omments by Stewart in 2006, including a statement in a television interview that she would do ‘it’ again and would not ‘do anything differ­ ently’ influenced [the] decision … indicating the original sentence ‘was not sufficient’ to reflect the goals of sentencing guidelines.”

Stewart, a leading civil rights attorney for 30 years, was convicted in 2005 on frame-up charges of conspiracy to aid and abet terrorism. Her crime? She issued a press release on behalf of her client, the “blind sheik” Omar Abdel Rachman, a lead­ ing Egyptian Islamic cleric who was also a victim of the U.S. “war on terror.” Rachman was subjected to a government-instigated frame-up trial and convicted of conspiracy to destroy New York buildings. Typical of “conspiracy” convictions, no evidence of wrongdoing was presented at his trial other than the fact that he at­ tended a meeting where some participants proposed the bombings that Rachman outright rejected.

A leading critic of the U.S.-backed Hosni Mubarak dictatorship in Egypt, he is currently serving a life sentence in Rochester, Minn. His case was the subject Editor: Michael Schreiber Canada Editor: Barry Weisleder — $5 for five months — $10 for 12 months ­ Name Address City State Phone E-mail of national attention a few months ago when Egypt’s new president, Mohammad Morsi, embarrassed the Obama administration by demanding his release.

Lynne’s attorneys explained on Sept. 24, “The clock now starts running on our Petition for Certiorari to the Supreme Court. We have 90 days to get it filed (with the possibility of a 30-day extension).”

Lynne’s lengthy 2005 trial, which this writer attend­ ed for weeks on end, was replete with violations of ba­ sic democratic rights, all of which will be the basis of her upcoming appeal. The presiding judge allowed the introduction of massive “evidence of terrorist activi­ ties” without a single indication of Stewart’s involve­ ment. Indeed, much of this “evidence,” in the form of press clippings, had been given to Lynne’s defense Zip team by the government itself during the discovery process—again, and in all cases, without the slightest indication of Stewart’s involvement.

When Lynne’s attorney at that time, Michael Tigar, objected to the press clippings being introduced to the jury on the grounds that they were entirely hearsay, the judge agreed but nevertheless allowed them to be presented to indicate the mind of the defendant.

Lynne is incarcerated at FMC Carswell outside of Fort Worth, Texas. She has successfully recovered from a difficult surgery that was spitefully delayed by prison authorities. For 45 days Lynne was denied all visitors, mail and other basic prison “rights” on the trumpedup accusation that she violated prison rules in assist­ ing a fellow prisoner to certify a legal document. Her spirits are high and she is now going through a backlog of some 100-plus letters from friends and supporters.

Write Lynne at: Lynne Stewart 53504-054, FMC Car­ swell, P.O. Box 27137, Ft. Worth, TX 76127. n Jeff Mackler is the West Coast coordinator of the Lynne Stewart Defense Committee.

----- pull-quotes -----

Subscribe to Socialist Action New readers: half-price offer until Dec. 1 — I want to join the Socialist Action Newspaper Supporters Club.

A WORKERS’ ACTION PROGRAM TO FIGHT THE CRISIS take steps to implement the following demands — workers’ committees. decline in value. forests, farmland, and open space. ing products for people’s needs and to combat global warming. SOCIALIST ACTION Closing news date: Oct. 8, 2012

I enclose an extra contribution of: — $100 — $200 — Other 2 SOCIALIST ACTION OCTOBER 2012

the level of union wages and benefits. universal, public health-care system. tion, skin color, or national origin. of workers.