FAA Lawyers Co-ordinate Testimony to Hurt 9-11 Victims' Court Cases

Lawyers: Coaching Was to Aid 9/11 Airlines

By MICHAEL J. SNIFFEN and LESLIE MILLER, Associated Press Writers
Fri Mar 17, 6:00 PM ET

WASHINGTON - Lawyers for two airlines being sued by 9/11 victims prompted a federal attorney to coach witnesses in the Zacarias Moussaoui death penalty trial so the government's case against the al-Qaida conspirator would not undercut their defense, victims' lawyers allege.

A United Airlines lawyer received a transcript of the first day of the Moussaoui trial from an American Airlines lawyer and forwarded it to Carla J. Martin, a Transportation Security Administration lawyer, the victims' lawyers, Robert Clifford and Gregory Joseph, claim.

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American Airlines attorneys denied on Friday that the government position in the Moussaoui case would have undercut their defense in the civil suit and said that none of their attorneys had any direct contact with Martin about the Moussaoui trial.

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Because that government position could have a "devastating" impact on the airlines' defense in the civil suit, American Airlines' lawyer forwarded the transcript to a United Air Lines lawyer who forwarded it to Martin, Clifford and Joseph wrote. As proof, they cited March 7 e-mails that they provided to Hellerstein.

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They then quoted a March 8 e-mail Martin sent to one of the government's Moussaoui witnesses that said:

"My friends Jeff Ellis and Chris Christenson, NY lawyers rep. UAL and AAL respectively in the 9/11 civil litigation ... all of us aviation lawyers, were stunned by the opening. The opening has created a credibility gap that the defense can drive a truck through. There is no way anyone could say that the carriers could have prevented all short-bladed knives from going through — (Prosecutor) Dave (Novak) MUST elicit that from you and the airline witnesses on direct...."


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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/moussaoui_lawyer;_ylt=AgXFNxZ5WnOsXh6qSGviyxms0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA2Z2szazkxBHNlYwN0bQ--

Moussaoui trial judge rules uncoached witnesses allowed

Death penalty testimony will resume Monday

By STEWART M. POWELL
Copyright 2006 Hearst News Service
March 18, 2006, 10:16AM

ALEXANDRIA, VA. - The federal judge in the death penalty trial of Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui said Friday she will permit testimony from aviation witnesses who weren't tainted by improper coaching from a government lawyer.

At the request of prosecutors, U.S. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema modified her blanket ban against all aviation-related testimony that she had angrily imposed on prosecutors on Tuesday in response to alleged misconduct by Carla Martin, a lawyer for the Transportation Security Administration.

Prosecutor Robert Spencer protested at the time that Brinkema's order gutted the government's bid to execute Moussaoui.

Her new order means that the trial will resume Monday as jurors hear testimony to determine whether Moussaoui should be executed or sentenced to life imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to Sept. 11-related crimes last April.

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"We're pleased to be able to move forward with this important case on behalf of the thousands of victims and their families," said Justice Department spokeswoman Tasia Scolinos.

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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/3731882.html

Judge turns down tampering probe in 9/11 civil case

By DAVID B. CARUSO
Associated Press Writer
March 17, 2006, 5:34 PM EST

NEW YORK -- A federal judge overseeing civil lawsuits related to the Sept. 11 attacks refused Friday to investigate whether those cases may have been tainted by a government attorney whose actions have come under scrutiny in the Zacarias Moussaoui trial.

In a series of letters, lawyers for people suing the aviation industry for failing to prevent the terror attacks had asked U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein to examine work done on that case by Transportation Security Administration lawyer Carla J. Martin.

The requests were prompted by allegations of witness tampering made against Martin in Moussaoui's criminal trial _ accusations that threw the government's death penalty case into turmoil this week.

The lawyers said Martin's e-mail correspondence suggested that the TSA, whose role in the civil litigation has been to censor documents whose release might compromise aviation security, might have secretly favored the airlines in its decisions.

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"Right now, the whole TSA looks tainted," said Mary Schiavo, an attorney at the firm.

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http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--moussaoui-civilla0317mar17,0,4583095.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork

Victims' relatives seeking plot details in Sept. 11 trial

BY JAMES GORDON MEEK
New York Daily News
Posted on Sun, Mar. 19, 2006

WASHINGTON - Many of the Sept. 11 families watching the Zacarias Moussaoui trial don't want his head. They just want to know what he - and the U.S. government - knew of the plot.

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The bungling has angered many of the families not because it could result in Moussaoui being spared execution, but because they just want the facts of the worst terror attacks in U.S. history laid out in a courtroom, regardless of the outcome.

"What will bring some closure to me would be to hear the full story," said Carol Ashley, whose daughter Janice perished in the World Trade Center.

Ashley has watched every day of the trial from a New York viewing site "to see if anything else comes out about what the government knew before 9/11 and what the airlines were told."

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"If we're going to execute someone, it should be Osama bin Laden" or three Sept. 11 planners in secret CIA jails, said Kristen Breitweiser, whose husband, Ron, died in the towers. "They were directly involved and weren't in a jail cell that day."

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http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/politics/14136095.htm

Judge in Moussaoui Trial Faces a Delicate Task

Deciding when attorney who 'tainted' witnesses will testify while keeping jury intact are her foremost concerns.

By Richard A. Serrano
LA Times Staff Writer
March 19, 2006

WASHINGTON — With the sentencing trial for Zacarias Moussaoui stumbling forward again, lawyers for the two sides were sharply at odds Saturday over when a government attorney would testify about why she tried to influence witnesses.

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Defense lawyers want Martin on the stand as soon as Monday in the trial over whether Moussaoui, 37, should be executed or sentenced to life in prison.

Prosecutors want to delay Martin's appearance until the middle of the week and have her testify only if she agrees to answer questions about her conduct and not invoke the 5th Amendment against self-incrimination.

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They had told jurors they would prove that, had the French citizen cooperated with the FBI upon his arrest on an immigration violation in August 2001, the government would have tightened airport security across the country. Those measures, prosecutors said, could have prevented hijackers from making it onto the airplanes used in the Sept. 11 attacks.

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He said she should be the next witness before the prosecution brought in any "untainted" witnesses on aviation security because her testimony would provide "critical information" about the nature of the witness-tampering effort.

SOURCE:

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-moussa19mar19,1,4192364.story?coll=la-news-a_section

Huge oil, gas reserves found in north

By Mustafa Besharat
Pajhawok Afghan News

KABUL, Mar 15 (Pajhwok Afghan News): After one year of research, Ministry of mines and industry Wednesday announced existence of great petroleum and gas reserves in northern areas and urged the businessmen to invest to extract crude oil.

Speaking to newsmen at Kabul Intercontinental Hotel Engineer Mir Mohammad Seddiq said the survey was conducted jointly by US agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Afghans that was signed a year back.

Director of Fuel Excavation and Protection Department Engineer Amirzada told Pajhwok Afghan News there were gas in northern Balkh, Samangan and Konduz and fuel in Saripul and Shiberghan provinces.

Lauding the role of NASA the minister said "We can now contract with great world companies to extract the fuel."

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http://www.pajhwak.com/viewstory.asp?lng=eng&id=15104

Lawyers: Martin coached Moussaoui witnesses to protect airlines

Greg Sampson at 10:06 AM ET

(JURIST) Lawyers representing victims of the 9/11 attacks said Friday that Transportation Safety Administration lawyer Carla J. Martin, alleged to have coached witnesses (JURIST report) and disclosed part of the government's case in violation of a sequestration order (PDF) in the trial against Zacarias Moussaoui , did so to ensure that witness statements did not undermine the defense strategy of United Airlines and American Airlines in a separate civil action brought by 9/11 families.

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http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2006/03/lawyers-martin-coached-moussaoui.php

WASHINGTON - Many of the Sept. 11 families watching the Zacarias Moussaoui trial don't want his head. They just want to know what he - and the U.S. government - knew of the plot.

SNIP...

The bungling has angered many of the families not because it could result in Moussaoui being spared execution, but because they just want the facts of the worst terror attacks in U.S. history laid out in a courtroom, regardless of the outcome.

"What will bring some closure to me would be to hear the full story," said Carol Ashley, whose daughter Janice perished in the World Trade Center.

Why would Osama bin Laden want to kill Dubya, his former business partner?

By James Hatfield

Editor's note: In light of last week's horrific events and the Bush administration's reaction to them, we are reprising the following from the last column Jim Hatfield wrote for Online Journal prior to his tragic death on July 18:

July 3, 2001—There may be fireworks in Genoa, Italy, this month, too.

A plot by Saudi master terrorist, Osama bin Laden, to assassinate Dubya during the July 20 economic summit of world leaders, was uncovered after dozens of suspected Islamic militants linked to bin Laden's international terror network were arrested in Frankfurt, Germany, and Milan, Italy, in April.

German intelligence services have stated that bin Laden is covertly financing neo-Nazi skinhead groups throughout Europe to launch another terrorist attack at a high-profile American target—his first since the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen last October.

According to counter-terrorism experts quoted in Germany's largest newspaper, the attack on Dubya might be a James Bond-like aerial strike in the form of remote-controlled airplanes packed with plastic explosives.

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In June 1977, Dubya formed his own drilling company, Arbusto Energy ("arbusto" means "bush" in Spanish), in Midland, Texas. Like his father before him, Dubya founded his oil business with the financial backing of investors, including James R. Bath, a Houston businessman whom Dubya apparently first met when they were in the same Texas Air National Guard unit. (Interestingly, both Dubya and Bath were both suspended from flying in August and September 1972, respectively, for "failure to accomplish annual medical examination.")

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http://www.onlinejournal.com/Special_Reports/Hatfield-R-091901/hatfield-r-091901.html

Plot to assassinate Bush – reports

MOSCOW, Russia -- Osama bin Laden has threatened to assassinate U.S. President George W. Bush at a G8 meeting in Italy, the head of Russia's Federal Bodyguard Service has said, according to reports.

The Associated Press said Yevgeny Murov was quoted by Itar-Tass news agency as saying: "Bin Laden is threatening the American president, but we know what international terrorism is today and therefore all the bodyguard units concerned are preparing for this.

"We view the threats as totally serious, but hope that with joint efforts we can solve all the problems."

The Group of Eight summit is meeting between July 20-22 in Genoa, Italy. Leaders from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States are expected to attend the summit.

Murov -- Russian President Vladimir Putin's chief bodyguard -- did not elaborate on the threats. He said agents from Russia's Federal Bodyguard Service have travelled to Genoa to coordinate with their counterparts from the other nations taking part in the summit to investigate the threats.

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http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/06/20/russia.binladen/

Missiles to protect summit leaders

Special report: globalisation

Rory Carroll in Rome
Wednesday July 11, 2001
The Guardian

Italy has installed a missile defence system at Genoa's airport to deter airborne attacks during next week's G8 summit, fuelling hysteria about looming violence.
A land-based battery of rockets with a range of nine miles and an altitude of 5,000 feet has been positioned in the latest security measure against perceived threats from terrorists and protesters.

Unidentified planes, helicopters and balloons risk being shot down should they drift too close to the heads of state from the group of seven leading industrialised nations and Russia.

Colonel Alberto Battaglini, of the ministry of defence, said the precaution was not exces sive. "The measure, which was planned by the previous government, may seem open to criticism, but in reality it is merely to act as a deterrent against any aerial incursion during the summit.

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/globalisation/story/0,7369,519925,00.html

Ashcroft Flying High

CBS News
WASHINGTON, July 26, 2001

Fishing rod in hand, Attorney General John Ashcroft left on a weekend trip to Missouri Thursday afternoon aboard a chartered government jet, reports CBS News Correspondent Jim Stewart.

In response to inquiries from CBS News over why Ashcroft was traveling exclusively by leased jet aircraft instead of commercial airlines, the Justice Department cited what it called a "threat assessment" by the FBI, and said Ashcroft has been advised to travel only by private jet for the remainder of his term.

"There was a threat assessment and there are guidelines. He is acting under the guidelines," an FBI spokesman said. Neither the FBI nor the Justice Department, however, would identify what the threat was, when it was detected or who made it.

A senior official at the CIA said he was unaware of specific threats against any Cabinet member, and Ashcroft himself, in a speech in California, seemed unsure of the nature of the threat.

"I don't do threat assessments myself and I rely on those whose responsibility it is in the law enforcement community, particularly the FBI. And I try to stay within the guidelines that they've suggested I should stay within for those purposes," Ashcroft said.

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http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/07/26/national/main303601.shtml

Reprise of the October Surprise: Is the Worst Surprise Still to Come?

By Richard H. Curtiss
May/June 1991, Page 11
Special Report

EXCERPT...

It is here that the story of illegal dealings with Khomeini intermediaries by Reagan campaign officials begins. Bob Woodward and Walter Pincus of The Washington Post were the first to report that one such meeting took place in Washington, DC. It was held Oct. 2 at the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel. Reagan campaign participants were Richard Allen, subsequently the Reagan administration's first national security adviser; Marine Lt. Col. Robert (Bud) McFarlane, then an aide to Senator John Tower but subsequently also a Reagan administration national security adviser; and Allen aide Lawrence Silberman, who apparently set up the meeting and who presently is a judge on the Federal Court of Appeals in the national capital. A shadowy Iranian Jewish arms dealer, Hushang Lavie, says he was the Iranian principal. Allen says he was not, but that he has forgotten the name of the Iranian they met. Silberman and McFarlane wouldn't discuss the matter with the "Frontline" producers. All three Americans maintain, however, that they have lost any notes they made during or after the meeting.

Sick and the "Frontline" producers say that long before the meeting in the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel there were others, starting in early March of 1980, involving Reagan campaign manager William Casey, a former OSS operative and, subsequently, Reagan's first director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Casey's first meeting was in Washington, DC's Mayflower Hotel with two Iranian arms dealers, Cyrus and Jamshid Hashemi. The brothers, who also were involved in the Iranian dealings with the Carter administration, said Casey made it clear he wanted to prevent Carter from gaining political advantage from freeing the hostages.

SOURCE:

http://www.wrmea.com/backissues/0591/9105011.htm