Your Danish Cartoons Hangover Update

I only want to drive notice towards one story today, but I think it's a compelling one: the prosecutors in the case against Pakistani Canadian Tahawwur Hussain Rana have postponed the trial for three months, agreeing to a request by the defense attorneys. I'm not sure I ascertained the exact reason for the request, but I have to assume there's a lot here for the attorneys to process.

This is a compelling case because Rana was indicted on charges of helping David Coleman Headley. The thing is, Headley has since confessed to not only plotting against the Danish Cartoons publishing newspaper Jyllands-Posten and generally bouncing around Europe with a hard-on for doing harm to those that doodled Muhammed, but also for doing some advance scouting on behalf of the shootings in Mumbai back in 2008. So Rana's trial becomes an interesting exercise in 1) some evidence that came to light during Rana's cooperation with authorities that chips away at Rana's presumed innocence, 2) the fascinating notion that when the person you're accused of helping kind of goes for an upgrade in terms of the evilness accomplished with your alleged help, your case therefore becomes that much more serious. It's like being arrested for giving a hit-and-run driver a ride away from the scene of a crime and then discovering that the driver had you on speed trial, and then finding out there were multiple bodies in the driver's trunk.

Rana has maintained his innocence, and has received the support of some folks within his Chicago community (he also has ties with Toronto and New York). An additionally interesting side issue is that Headley's confessions have developed political weight -- he sort of indicted Pakistani intelligence officers in some of the work he was doing. Legal matters like Rana's can feel the pressure of political interest, particularly the kind of interested that may have already resulted in policy and diplomatic action. I wonder how much if any of that pressure might be felt in this trial.
 
posted 7:00 am PST | Permalink
 

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