Tag Archives: Jail

U.S. judge orders Florida nightclub shooter’s widow to remain in jail

File Photo: Investigators work the scene following a mass shooting at the Pulse gay nightclub in Orlando Florida, U.S. June 12, 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo

By Ian Simpson

(Reuters) – The widow of the gunman who killed 49 people at a gay nightclub in Florida must remain in jail after prosecutors argued that she was a threat to the community and a flight risk, a U.S. judge on Thursday ordered.

The federal judge in Florida stayed another judge’s order issued on Wednesday that would have released Noor Salman, 30, from a California jail. He put the release order on hold pending further arguments in the case.

Salman was arrested in California in January on federal charges she knew before the June 2016 shootings in Orlando that her husband, Omar Mateen, was planning the attack and concocted a cover story for him.

U.S. District Judge Paul Byron in Orlando ordered Salman detained and set a Wednesday deadline for her lawyers to respond to prosecutors’ arguments that she should be jailed pending her trial in Florida.

Salman is charged with obstructing justice and aiding Mateen in his attempt to provide material support to the Islamic State militant group.

Prosecutors argued in a motion that the seriousness of the charge related to the Islamic State meant Salman should be kept in jail.

“No pretrial release condition or combination of conditions may be imposed to reasonably assure the defendant’s appearance as required or the safety of the community,” they said.

They also said that Salman was a flight risk since she was unemployed and had moved to California, where she has relatives, and had almost no ties to Florida. Her family also owns property in the Middle East, they said.

Charles Swift, Salman’s lawyer, said Byron’s order keeping Salman jailed pending the filing of more motions was routine. “It’s standard,” he said in a telephone interview.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna Ryu on Wednesday had cleared the way for Salman’s release and appeared throw doubt on the government’s case against her.

Ryu had ordered her to live with her uncle in Rodeo, California, undergo GPS monitoring and leave home only for court and medical appointments. She set a $500,000 bond.

Mateen was killed in a shootout with police after a standoff at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub and carried out the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Before the shooting he called 911 and swore allegiance to the Islamic State.

(Reporting by Ian Simpson in Washington; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

Judge approves release of Florida nightclub shooter’s widow

FILE PHOTO -- Investigators work the scene following a mass shooting at the Pulse gay nightclub in Orlando Florida, U.S. June 12, 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo

By Lisa Fernandez

OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) – A judge cleared the way on Wednesday for the widow of the gunman who killed 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, to be released from jail and also appeared to throw doubt on the strength of the government’s case against her.

Noor Salman, 30, was arrested in California in January on federal charges she knew before the June 2016 shootings that her husband, Omar Mateen, was planning the attack and concocted a cover story for him.

Prosecutors want Salman to remain jailed before her trial in Florida. But U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna Ryu said in an Oakland courtroom that the government had not shown Salman was a danger to the community or a serious flight risk.

“I find the weight of the government evidence as debatable,” Ryu added.

Commenting on the prosecutor’s charges against Salman, the judge said: “All the government assertions are hotly debated.”

Salman is charged with obstructing justice and aiding Mateen in his attempt to provide material support to a terrorist organization.

Mateen was killed in a shootout with police after he took hostages during a three-hour standoff at the Pulse nightclub and carried out the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

One of Salman’s lawyers, Linda Moreno, said the approved release “doesn’t usually happen in a so-called terrorism case.”

Ryu gave prosecutors in Florida 48 hours to challenge her ruling, meaning Salman could not walk free from jail until Friday at the earliest.

William Daniels, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Middle District of Florida, said by telephone that prosecutors would file a motion by Friday with a judge in Orlando challenging Salman’s release.

Ryu likened Salman’s release to house arrest, ordering her to live with her uncle in Rodeo, California, and saying she could leave home only for court and medical appointments. Her conditional release will be secured with a $500,000 bond.

Salman’s 4-year-old son with Mateen, who is living with her mother, will be allowed to visit.

Salman, dressed in a red jail uniform, bit her nails during the hearing and looked at the dozen relatives who came in support.

Outside the courtroom, her uncle, Abdallah “Al” Salman, with whom she will live, again declared his niece innocent.

“She does not read between the lines,” he said, reiterating that she has learning disabilities and did not have the capacity to aid in the massacre.

(Reporting by Lisa Fernandez; Writing by Colleen Jenkins; Editing by Peter Cooney and Grant McCool)

Singapore bans newspaper linked to Islamic State

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore on Friday banned the distribution and possession of Al Fatihin, a newspaper linked to the Islamic State militant group, after government officials repeatedly warned against terror threats.

The wealthy city-state saw its first case of terrorism financing this month, with four Bangladeshi men jailed for terms ranging from two to five years for funding attacks in their South Asian homeland.

“The Singapore government has zero tolerance for terrorist propaganda and has therefore decided to prohibit Al Fatihin,” the Ministry of Communications and Information said in a statement.

Launched in the southern Philippines on June 20, the paper, whose name means “The Conqueror” in Arabic, is also distributed in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and southern Thailand, the Straits Times newspaper said this month.

“ISIS is a terrorist group which poses a serious threat to the security of Singapore,” the ministry added. “Al Fatihin is yet another step by ISIS to spread its propaganda abroad, with a clear intention to radicalize and recruit Southeast Asians.”

The newspaper is published in the Indonesian language, which is very close to Malay, Yaacob Ibrahim, Singapore’s minister in charge of Muslim affairs, said in the statement.

Anyone convicted of possessing or distributing the newspaper faced a fine or imprisonment, or both, the statement added.

The fine can range up to S$10,000 ($7,380), and the jail term up to three years for a first offense, rising to four years for subsequent offences, the Straits Times newspaper said.

Al Fatihin is mainly distributed online, said Rohan Gunaratna, a terrorism expert at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University.

“I have not seen a printed version in Singapore,” Gunaratna told Reuters this month. “It is primarily directed at Indonesia and Malaysia. The number of potential supporters and sympathizers in Singapore is very small – insignificant.”

(Reporting by Masayuki Kitano and Marius Zaharia; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

Judge Orders Kim Davis Released from Jail

On Tuesday Morning, U.S. District Judge David Bunning, the same judge who initially jailed  Kim Davis, the court clerk from Kentucky last Thursday on a contempt of court charge has ordered her release. Davis has been held for five days for refusing to issue marriage licenses to all couples after the recent Supreme Court Decision that re-defined marriage for all states.   

Judge Bunning lifted that order Tuesday, allowing her to be released stating that the court is “satisfied.” Since last week, the clerk’s office has been issuing marriage licenses “to all legally eligible couples” — those licenses have been issued by Davis’ deputy clerks. At the same time, Bunning directed Davis not to “interfere in any way” with the marriage licenses now being issued by her office.

Chinese Pastor Who Opposed Cross Removal Imprisoned

A Chinese Christian pastor who vocally defended area churches when government officials removed crosses from buildings has been thrown in jail.

Pastor Huang Yizi was sentenced by the “People’s Court” of Pingyany County for “gathering crowds to disturb the social order.”  He was given one year in prison for the conviction.

Pastor Huang’s conflict with the local authorities was sparked by demands for the government to explain the beating of more than 50 parishioners in his government-sanctioned Fengwo Church.  The parishioners were attempting to stop the removal of a cross from Salvation Church in Pingyang.

The police stopped more than 400 Christians from attending the trial.  A witness said they stopped cars at first and then blocked off a perimeter of almost three football fields around the courthouse.

The destructions were revealed to be a government plan to stop the Christian churches from continuing their fast growth.

Jihadi Who Faked Death Gets 12 Years in British Prison

A jihadi who faked his death in an attempt to sneak back into Britain has been jailed for 12 years.

Imran Khawaja joined a faction aligned with ISIS and was part of a terrorist training camp in Syria for six months.  He also appeared in several online videos for the group including one where he posted with the severed head of the terror group’s victims.

The lawyer for Khawaja said that his client just wanted to return to the country because he had “had enough” of the terrorist camp.  He faked his death in online postings until it was reported in local newspapers.  He thought by doing so he could resume his life in Britain.

He was caught when he tried to enter England in June by sneaking into a port in Dover.

Judge Jeremy Baker said that Khawaja was a risk to the public and said that despite his claims, he was a “willing and enthusiastic” participant in the terror group.

“You took part in the production of films designed to promote the Islamic State cause and encouraging U.K. Muslims to join you in jihad,” he said. “Your interest was sufficiently profound for you to travel to Syria to train for jihad.”

Man Convicted Of Murder Of Girl Who Refused Abortion

A young girl’s decision to give life to her unborn child resulted in her losing her own.

Now a New York man will be going to prison for her killing.

A jury deliberated about an hour before convicting 22-year-old Christian Ferdinand on a second degree murder charge in the death of 14-year-old Shaniesha Forbes.  Ferdinand met the girl on Facebook in 2012 and met up with her for sex.  She text messaged him a few months later saying she was pregnant with his child and would not abort the baby.

“Are you serious? Kill that [expletive],” Ferdinand texted back to her.  He then killed the teen when she met him at his cousin’s house by smothering her with a pillow.  He then stuffed the girl’s body into a suitcase, burned it and then threw it into lake.

“He intentionally smothered a 14-year-old girl to death and burned her body to get rid of the evidence,” prosecutor Robert Walsh told jurors on Monday. “He had a problem that needed solving. He didn’t want to pay child support, and Shaniesha got in the way.”

Ferdinand actually told investigators he didn’t think the killing was a big deal.  He asked them if they could just give him community service for the murder.

He faces 25 years in prison.  Ironically, the medical examiner said it was likely the girl was not pregnant in the first place.

Venezuela Moves Quickly To Eliminate Opposition

Venezuelan leaders have begun to blatantly ignore human rights in squelching protests and opposition to their rule.

President Nicolas Maduro has been warning opposition leaders for weeks that they will be jailed and tortured like opposition hardliner Leopoldo Lopez if they do not stop opposing his plans for the country.

Thursday the government arrested two opposition members of the legislature and had already sentenced one of them to 10 months in jail.  Another congresswoman is jailed and the government is working to strip away her congressional immunity from prosecution because of her opposition to Maduro.

The mayor of San Diego, Enzo Scarano, was removed from his position by the Supreme Court which is loaded with Maduro associates.  He was jailed for not following a court order to remove protester barricades from the city.

Maduro said Thursday he will “neutralize” the “country’s enemies.”