RESPECT THE COURT VERDICT, FREE SAMI AL ARIAN

To:  Dear Attorney General Gonzales,

As a US citizen I am most concerned about preserving the American way of life which, above all, includes rule of law and equal justice for all.

On Tuesday, December 6th, a Tampa, Florida jury acquitted Al-Arian of eight of the 17 counts against him, including a key charge of conspiring to maim and murder people overseas. The jury had deadlocked on other charges 10 to 2 in Al-Arian’s favor.

Two of Al-Arian's co-defendants were acquitted entirely, and a third was acquitted on most counts, with jurors deadlocked on several others. In the end, not a single guilty verdict was returned after a lengthy trial that included more than 80 witnesses and 400 transcripts of intercepted phone conversations and faxes.

A headline in the Washington Post, dated Dec 14, says it all: “Ex-Professor Won Court Case but Not His Freedom”.

I fully appreciate your efforts to keep America safe but it should not be at the expensive of equal justice for all.

This has been one of costliest courts cases in the history of Florida, if not the Untied States. Investigative journalist John Sugg has estimated that the decade-long investigation and trail of Al-Arian has cost the taxpayers more than fifty million dollars. It would make no sense to spend millions more.

I emphatically urge you to respect the verdict and to let Al-Arian become a living symbol of America’s open, pluralistic and justice-based society. Such a gesture will allow America to credibly advocate for the right to free speech in countries around the world that lack such freedoms.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The RESPECT THE COURT VERDICT, FREE SAMI AL ARIAN Petition to Dear Attorney General Gonzales, was created by and written by Hazem I. Kira (civilrightsforall@sbcglobal.net).  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form.

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