Judge Denies Mistrial In Padilla Case
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
MIAMI — The federal judge in Jose Padilla’s terrorism support trial refused to declare a mistrial yesterday after at least one juror saw one of Mr. Padilla’s co-defendants in shackles outside the courtroom.
Attorneys for Adham Amin Hassoun said his right to a fair trial had been jeopardized, but U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke said after interviewing jurors that none had been “unfairly prejudiced in this matter.”
On Tuesday, the 16 jurors were being transported in government vans from the courthouse’s basement garage to their cars. As one of the vans was leaving, three deputy U.S. marshals escorted Mr. Hassoun through the area in leg shackles and a belly chain attached to his wrists.
In the interviews with Judge Cooke, a male juror said he saw Mr. Hassoun in chains, and others either saw him or heard one of two female jurors make comments about it. One woman acknowledged saying that seeing a defendant that way was wrong because it might affect jurors’ “perceptions.”
