MA US Attorney Destroys Another Life

Carmen Ortiz, Aaron Swartz and Tarek Mehanna

"... It is not surprising that Eric Holder and Carmen Ortiz are consistent in their overzealous prosecutions against individuals who are engaged in political dissent: For Aaron Swartz, this dissent took the form of challenging the electronic paywalls that prevented public access to work done by scholars like myself, who will never see a penny from the tens of articles that I have published. Mehanna’s speech at sentencing is worth reading; he is clearly a politically aware young man. His dissent took the form of challenging and criticizing the US government’s imperial war …"

Read the full article.

Boston Phoenix Gives Carmen Ortiz 15th Annual Muzzle Award

"In a year marked by numerous instances of oppression and repression, the disturbing case of Tarek Mehanna leads the list. Last year the 29-year-old Sudbury (MA) pharmacist was convicted of federal terrorism charges — not because of what he did, but because of what he said, wrote, and translated. In April, he was sentenced to more than 17 years in prison.

Thus our top Muzzle goes to US Attorney Carmen Ortiz, whose office ran roughshod over Mehanna's constitutional rights … "

Read more.

The Real Criminals in the Tarek Mehanna Case

"In one of the most egregious violations of the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech seen in quite some time, Tarek Mehanna, an American Muslim, was convicted this week in a federal court in Boston and then sentenced yesterday to 17 years in prison. […] At some point in the future, I believe history will be quite clear about who the actual criminals are in this case: not Mehanna, but rather the architects of the policies he felt compelled to battle and the entities that have conspired to consign him to a cage for two decades."

Read the full article by Glenn Greenwald.

No Justice In Auerhahn Case

A three judge panel—including Judge O’Toole (the presiding judge in the case that Auerhahn is prosecuting against Tarek Mehanna)—failed to apply even the weak two year suspension sought by Bar Counsel. The message is clear: federal prosecutors in Massachusetts have a green light to commit even criminal acts of misconduct with impunity.

Report by David Boeri onWBUR

Video: Framing the Innocent

Framing the Innocent: Crimes Under Color of Law at the Massachusetts US Attorney's Office 

Forum held March 24, 2011 at Northeastern University School of Law 

Michael Avery, professor of law at Suffolk Law School and former president of the National Lawyers Guild.

• On the history of the FBI and the Massachusetts US Attorney deliberately using false testimony by "cooperating witnesses" and informants to frame innocent people.

Robert Boyle, New York attorney recognized for his work on behalf of civil rights and in defense of activists and political prisoners.

• On the FBI's Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO) and the use of federal prosecution to attack movements for social justice.

Chuck Turner, five-term Boston City Councilor representing Roxbury and Dorchester, and a lifetime activist for social justice.

• On his political targeting by the Massachusetts US Attorney's Office and the FBI. Last public address before beginning a three year prison sentence for a crime he did not commit.

Laila Murad, organizer with the Tarek Mehanna Support Committee.

• On the case of Tarek Mehanna, who is currently being prosecuted by the Massachusetts US Attorney under terrorism charges, and the campaign to hold the US Attorney accountable for wrongdoing.

Kazi Toure, former political prisoner and former co-chair of the Jericho Movement for Amnesty.

• Honoring Councilor Chuck Turner for his decades of political leadership.

Moderated by Dara Bayer.

(Video no longer available.)

Community Organizing Meeting

Thursday, April 7, 7:30 p.m.
Community Church of Boston
565 Boylston Street, Boston MA

GOALS OF THE CAMPAIGN

• To expose the criminal collaboration of the FBI and the US Attorney in manipulating informants to frame innocent people. 
• To call  for a review of pending cases where FBI agents and government prosecutors responsible for a pattern of wrongdoing have been involved.
• To call for serious sanctions against government prosecutors involved in rights violations.
• To stop the use of federal prosecution as a weapon against immigrants, indigent defendants and people of color in the service of a racist political agenda.

Join us in building the campaign for accountability!

On the 3/24 Forum and Northeastern's Denial of Access

We would like to thank everyone who attended our forum on the crimes of the US Attorney's office on Thursday 3/24, and to apologize to everyone who tried to enter but was refused by security at Northeastern. Many people who were part of Chuck Turner's community--who have known him, organized with him, and shared his history of struggle for decades--were denied entry not only to the lecture hall, but to the building. Many waited for hours in the cold to say goodbye to him before he left for prison on the following day.

As people may know by now, the administration at Northeastern sent a message to student sponsors of the forum, one day before it was scheduled to take place, informing them of special harsh "security" conditions for the event: sponsors would be forced to pay police at overtime pay; the room would be capped at 130 and no overflow space provided. As we have already stated, we considered these discriminatory conditions to be illegitimate and objected to them. With more time, we would have organized people to fight the policy or would have chosen another venue.

As it was, the student organizers were negotiating up to the very last minute to ensure that the forum take place against threats from the administration to close it down. Since Chuck Turner had chosen to use his last night of freedom to speak at the forum, everyone felt that our primary responsibility was to make sure that the event take place.

We chose Northeastern as a venue for several reasons. We hoped to reach different audiences that we think are necessary for moving forward a struggle to fight the criminal abuse of power by prosecutors and FBI agents working under the Department of Justice in Massachusetts. These include

• Communities that have been targeted for severe repression and abuse
• People with legal skills who are willing to use them in defense of basic rights and on behalf of communities denied those rights
• Civic, religious and political leaders willing to speak out against injustice on this issue
• Independent journalists willing to tell the story that the mainstream media has censored

We thought that Northeastern would be a good venue for bringing together some members of these different groups in the effort to launch a serious campaign.  Law student activists were involved in the event as organizers, but also an important audience we hoped to reach. We also wanted to put the US Attorney on notice, with TV cameras rolling at a forum and venue that would be hard to ignore, that we are organizing a campaign to fight their criminal abuse of power.

The denial of access to so many good people who tried to attend the forum and show their support for Councilor Turner was unacceptable. We will be holding future events and organizing meetings in places that are accessible to the community. We hope that people who are outraged at Chuck Turner's imprisonment will get involved in this campaign.

You can write to Chuck Turner at:

Hazelwood Penitentiary
P.O. Box 2000
Bruceton Mills, West Virginia 26525
  
Full audio of the forum can be downloaded by clicking here.
 
Chuck Turner's speech alone can be downloaded here.