Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Washington Post
December 4, 2007
Pg. B6
By Dan Morse, Washington Post Staff Writer
A federal judge in Maryland declared a mistrial yesterday after jurors failed to reach a verdict in the case of a former Andrews Air Force Base security guard accused of lying to conceal his ties to a controversial Muslim religious leader.
Three members of the jury said later that, after two days of deliberations, the panel was deadlocked 7 to 5 to acquit Darrick Jackson, 37, of making a false statement to the federal government. Jackson, who no longer works at the base, was employed by a private contractor and sometimes guarded the front gate.
In an interview, Jackson said he thinks he was prosecuted because of his Islamic beliefs. "I didn't do anything on purpose, so I don't think I should be here," he said outside the courtroom in Greenbelt.
Federal prosecutors have said they brought the case because they have a duty to protect government installations, not because of religion, and because people with such sensitive jobs must be honest. Yesterday, a spokeswoman for Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein said prosecutors have not decided whether to retry Jackson.
He was accused of failing to disclose his Muslim name, Abdul-Jalil Mohammad, when asked during a 2005 background check whether he had "ever used or been known by another name." The government contended that the omission was deliberate, an effort to hide his ties to a mosque in Southeast Washington and to its imam, Abdul Alim Musa.
Prosecutors played a video in which Musa, speaking of the Palestinian conflict, said, "When they go out and strike at the heart of Zionism, they are not suicide bombers, they are heroes." He has also said Zionist American agents blew up the World Trade Center. Musa has given a course at his mosque called "How to Punk the FBI," intended to teach people how to handle questions from federal agents.
The defense maintained that the case amounted to an attack on Jackson's religious freedom. Defense attorney John Chamble argued that his client made an innocent mistake, thinking that the question applied to women's maiden names.
Juror Eric Smith, a Silver Spring resident, said outside court: "I feel the government didn't prove its case. They didn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it was willful, that he did it with the intent of doing some harm."
Smith said prosecutors had asserted that they "wanted to not make it about religion" but ended up doing just that.
Another juror, speaking on the condition that she not be named to protect her privacy, said the government did not make good on a promise to show that Jackson was affiliated with a group that had bad intentions. She said those who voted to acquit appeared to be swayed by evidence that Jackson did not hide his views while on the job at Andrews or elsewhere.
At Andrews, Chamble said, Jackson asked supervisors to give him time off on Fridays for prayer services. According to Chamble, after Jackson said that Palestinians have a right to defend themselves, an Andrews supervisor gave him this advice: "On this base, you need to chill on that kind of stuff."
A third juror, also speaking on the condition he not be identified, stressed that the panel worked hard. "We weren't a group that was trying to get out of there," he said. "Everybody came up with darn good, persuasive arguments."
Reached for comment, Musa said: "I think it's a very good outcome. . . . All [the government] did was make us more popular."
Staff writer Ruben Castaneda contributed to this report.
December 4, 2007
Pg. B6
By Dan Morse, Washington Post Staff Writer
A federal judge in Maryland declared a mistrial yesterday after jurors failed to reach a verdict in the case of a former Andrews Air Force Base security guard accused of lying to conceal his ties to a controversial Muslim religious leader.
Three members of the jury said later that, after two days of deliberations, the panel was deadlocked 7 to 5 to acquit Darrick Jackson, 37, of making a false statement to the federal government. Jackson, who no longer works at the base, was employed by a private contractor and sometimes guarded the front gate.
In an interview, Jackson said he thinks he was prosecuted because of his Islamic beliefs. "I didn't do anything on purpose, so I don't think I should be here," he said outside the courtroom in Greenbelt.
Federal prosecutors have said they brought the case because they have a duty to protect government installations, not because of religion, and because people with such sensitive jobs must be honest. Yesterday, a spokeswoman for Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein said prosecutors have not decided whether to retry Jackson.
He was accused of failing to disclose his Muslim name, Abdul-Jalil Mohammad, when asked during a 2005 background check whether he had "ever used or been known by another name." The government contended that the omission was deliberate, an effort to hide his ties to a mosque in Southeast Washington and to its imam, Abdul Alim Musa.
Prosecutors played a video in which Musa, speaking of the Palestinian conflict, said, "When they go out and strike at the heart of Zionism, they are not suicide bombers, they are heroes." He has also said Zionist American agents blew up the World Trade Center. Musa has given a course at his mosque called "How to Punk the FBI," intended to teach people how to handle questions from federal agents.
The defense maintained that the case amounted to an attack on Jackson's religious freedom. Defense attorney John Chamble argued that his client made an innocent mistake, thinking that the question applied to women's maiden names.
Juror Eric Smith, a Silver Spring resident, said outside court: "I feel the government didn't prove its case. They didn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it was willful, that he did it with the intent of doing some harm."
Smith said prosecutors had asserted that they "wanted to not make it about religion" but ended up doing just that.
Another juror, speaking on the condition that she not be named to protect her privacy, said the government did not make good on a promise to show that Jackson was affiliated with a group that had bad intentions. She said those who voted to acquit appeared to be swayed by evidence that Jackson did not hide his views while on the job at Andrews or elsewhere.
At Andrews, Chamble said, Jackson asked supervisors to give him time off on Fridays for prayer services. According to Chamble, after Jackson said that Palestinians have a right to defend themselves, an Andrews supervisor gave him this advice: "On this base, you need to chill on that kind of stuff."
A third juror, also speaking on the condition he not be identified, stressed that the panel worked hard. "We weren't a group that was trying to get out of there," he said. "Everybody came up with darn good, persuasive arguments."
Reached for comment, Musa said: "I think it's a very good outcome. . . . All [the government] did was make us more popular."
Staff writer Ruben Castaneda contributed to this report.