Finally, we see him!!!

Dzhokhar (Jahar) Tsarnaev’s last pre-trial hearing took place Thursday, December 18 at 10am. Drone footage shows him being brought into the courthouse around 6am wearing shackles and an orange jumpsuit. He looked thin and seemed physically weak. The courthouse entranceway was a zoo, with a huge crowd of reporters, Homeland Security, FBI, police and protesters even before 8am. The massive audience filled the courtroom, plus two overflow courtrooms and the jury assembly hall, where the proceedings were shown on livestream video. About a dozen people identifying as victims of the Boston Marathon bombings also attended. Those watching on video were able to hear the judge clearly and see the defendant’s face while those experiencing the hearing live saw only his back.

Jahar sported wild, unkempt curly hair that was almost an afro, standing many inches above his head. He has grown a short beard. His eyes were downcast most of the time. He touched his face and nose a lot. His feet remained in shackles, while he sat in a relaxed slouch with his knees open throughout the 25 minute hearing. His facial expression seemed a bit weird and befuddled - quite intense yet not quite there - perhaps a side effect of being kept in isolation for over a year. He seemed almost disoriented, but maybe he was just exhausted from being hauled out of bed in the middle of the night. A supporter later asked his mother if he was taking medication and was told no, he won’t even take aspirin for a headache. He was wearing a black sweater over a white button-down shirt and slacks for court.

Judge O’Toole asked Jahar whether he had voluntarily chosen not to be present for any of the previous hearings; whether he had been kept up to date on the proceedings; and if he was happy with his representation. Jahar answered, “Yes, sir” to the first two questions and “pretty much,” or “very much” to the last question. This is the first time the public had heard his voice since he pled “Not Guilty” in 2013. The rest of the hearing was nothing special, just going over the motions. Judy Clarke patted him on the back a few times. Until…

As Jahar was handcuffed and taken out of the courtroom after the hearing, a woman in the courtroom started yelling loudly in Russian: “There are many people here supporting you. We are praying for you. We love you. We know you are innocent! Stay strong, my son!”

Onlookers report that he heard these words and smiled, although he did not turn around.

“I'm pretty sure his lawyers were not happy! Lol! I saw Miriam Conrad's face was like a wtf moment ... But I can tell Jahar was relieved. Jahar appreciates It,” stated an onlooker.

As the US Marshalls escorted her out, Elena shouted in English, “Stop killing innocent people! Stop killing innocent boys!”

Elena Teyer, US veteran and the mother of Ibrahim Todashev’s widow, then suddenly gave an impromptu press conference to hoards of reporters for the next one and half hours outside. Thank God! It worked out very beautifully that way because of the gag order that prevents Jahar’s lawyers from even stating that their client is innocent in public. Even the prosecutors made no statement to the press. Elena passionately defended Jahar’s innocence and all his friends. She decried all of the lives that have been destroyed because of FBI lies and games.

The ongoing arguments between the defense and prosecution are that the defense wants a “continuance” - in other words, more time to prepare. The government is demanding (and I would say bullying) the defense to provide detailed information about witnesses, even though it has been made clear that the witnesses are feeing too intimidated.

About 8 protesters held up placards after the hearing. About half were from out of state while the rest were local. One sign read: “Got proof? Innocent until proven guilty.”

There was a moment where a Bostonian named Marc who had lost half of one leg in the Boston Marathon bombing, waved his empty pant leg at the demonstrators. “We all wished we could have talked to him longer. He said something about what was found in the dorm room and I said have you never played with fireworks? We have to make sure we got the right guy!! It’s important. He reportedly told me to get a job LOL,” said a local supporter.

see video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClmT70PfZRI

What was most astonishing about this hearing is that the government continues to waste the public’s time by insisting that a certain Ms. Vogelbruck be denied as a witness, because as a social worker she has interviewed a lot of people who ever knew the Tsarnaev family. Weinreb argued with his familiar smirk that he needs to know what she might say, in order that he could come up with an appropriate comeback.The government isn’t playing fair.

This is a government prosecution that was able to feed HBO and the History Channel all the statements they wanted to make, extra legal. I’d look into the government cable TV link.

The ongoing “live dispute” pertains to the list of witnesses who might testify as character witnesses in the event of a Guilty decision.

Jahar seems resigned as a noble Chechen would be, to the fate of Allah.

He absolutely refuses to plead guilty for a crime he did not commit.

Government Aggressively Seeks Defendant’s Associates; Defense Fears Intimidation

TMO 

Editor’s note:  Karin Friedemann is a TMO Columnist.  Her opinions are her own.

Demonstrators held signs in front of Boston’s federal courthouse on October 20, 2014 during the last hearing for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who was accused of the Boston Marathon bombings.

Arina Montag of Haverhill, Massachusetts told reporters she believes Tsarnaev and his late brother are being unfairly prosecuted.

“I believe the boys have been set up,” she said. “I haven’t seen any actual evidence against them. I mean I’ve seen circumstantial evidence. Nothing that actually links them to what they are allegedly being accused of doing.”

Elena Teyer, the mother-in-law of Ibragim Todashev, was one of the seven people speaking out against the justice system. Her daughter’s husband was shot seven times and killed in his Florida home by federal agents from Boston in May 2013. Teyer held a collage of his autopsy photographs.

“I am dead because I knew Tsarnaevs. I knew the truth,” her sign read.

Teyer told reporters about the email between FBI agents after they killed Todashev. It says, “Good work. A job well done.” The email congratulated the FBI team for their success! It did not say, “Well that turned uglier than we had planned.” This can only imply that they were sent from Boston to Orlando to murder a potential witness.

“They came from Boston to kill my son-in-law. I know that for sure.”

“We are all here for justice,” said Teyer, detailing to reporters the holes and inconsistencies in law enforcement’s account of Todashev’s death.

The news story of the alleged Todashev confession – that he and Tamerlan Tsarnaev were involved a drug-related 2011 triple homicide in Waltham, Massachusetts – was originally leaked to the media by reporter Michelle McPhee. There is a bloodstained note partially written, never signed. Todashev apparently had refused to continue with this forced confession, and paid with his brains splattered next to his front door.

Government prosecutors mentioned this unsigned confession letter in a previous court filing as if it were indeed undisputed fact. Defense attorneys have since tried repeatedly without success to compel the government to give some more details about these murders, which seem to be unrelated to the Boston Marathon bombing.

On October 24, 2014, four days after the hearing, US prosecutors filed with the court their opposition to Tsarnaev’s Fourth Motion to Compel [Discovery]. In order to avoid having to hand over any evidence to the defense, US prosecutors now suddenly admit:

“The government has no evidence that Tamerlan Tsarnaev actually participated in the Walham murders.”

J.M. Lawrence, who writes for Bloomberg and the Boston Globe, tweets: “If US ‘has no evidence’ Tamerlan murdered 3 in Waltham, was the Todashev ‘confession’ in FL false? Lots of unanswered questions.”

McPhee’s most recent article in Newsweek entitled “Twisted Sisters” took heat inside the courtroom. The Islamophobic article painted a negative picture of the Tsarnaev family and contained a number of factual errors. McPhee’s article states that she was tipped off by a high ranking law enforcement official. McPhee is also the source of other erroneous stories related to the Boston Marathon bombing like the “note in the boat.”

Media leaks are very serious, because the TV version of events is extremely absent from the actual court proceedings – but heavily weighs the jury’s mindset against the defendant. Tsarnaev’s motion to address leaks “requests that the Court hold a hearing, and direct government counsel to produce the supervising law enforcement officers with access to information about this case including both federal and state supervising agents or officers – to testify about their instructions and efforts to investigate and stop unauthorized communications with news media.” 

The other big issue is the government intimidation of witnesses. The government wants the defense to reveal the names of Jahar’s old friends and relatives long before the trial. This is something that is not normally done, and the defense is not going along with it, because they fear for the safety of these people and they also fear that these people once the FBI starts harassing them, will cease to become defense witnesses.

“Defense counsel have described the unusual and severe obstacles they have encountered in their efforts to interview and secure testimony from potential witnesses who knew the defendant, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, and other members of his family prior to April 15, 2013… A substantial part of these difficulties stems from the aggressive, persistent and pervasive law enforcement presence in the lives of many potential defense witnesses, and the atmosphere of fear and intimidation that has necessarily followed…”

“Given the virtual certainty that the FBI will descend on each of the non-expert witnesses to interview them (and in most cases, to re-interview them), the defendant has a well-founded concern that in the very unusual context of this case, defense witnesses whose identities are disclosed to the government prior to trial will quickly cease to be defense witnesses. For this reason, the defense does not agree to a witness disclosure requirement that is not mandated by statute or rule.”

1,000 potential jurors will be screened for Tsarnaev’s trial, District Judge George O’Toole said at Monday’s hearing. The process of picking the 12 jurors and six alternates who will hear the case against Tsarnaev is expected to begin on November 3, 2014.

Exciting Developments in Tsarnaev Case

"The government has no evidence that Tamerlan Tsarnaev actually participated in the Walham murders."

http://newtrendmag.org/ntma1574.htm


On October 20, 2014, Tsarnaev's most recent status conference hearing took place. Seven demonstrators spoke to the flock of reporters reminding them about their legal obligation to promote the presumption of innocence.

"I haven't seen any actual evidence against [the Tsarnaev brothers]. I mean I've seen circumstantial evidence. Nothing that actually links them to [the bombings]," stated demonstrator Arina Montag.

Elena Teyer is the mother in law of Ibrahim Todashev, who was shot 7 times in his Florida home by Boston FBI in May of 2013. Elena drove for three days, sleeping in her car in order to be present at this demonstration. Her brave diligence was noted.

Associated Press' Denise Lavoie reported, "Elena Teyer held a placard with photos of son-in-law Ibragim Todashev. 'I am dead because I knew Tsarnaevs. I knew the truth,' the sign read in part."

"'We are all here for justice,' said Teyer, pointing to Ibrahim's autopsy photos, explaining what she believes to be holes and inconsistencies in law enforcement's account of Todashev's death," reported Morgan Rousseau in the Boston Metro.

"They came from Boston to kill my son-in-law. I know that for sure."

Elena mentioned to reporters the email between FBI agents after they killed her daughter's husband. It says, "Good work. A job well done." It did not say, "Well that turned uglier than we had planned." The email congratulated the FBI team for their success! This can only mean that they were sent from Boston to Orlando to murder the potential witness.

Meanwhile, inside the courthouse, defending attorneys complained of media leaks. In particular, a recent Newsweek article by Michelle McPhee, entitled "Twisted Sisters," painted a negatively biased picture of the Tsarnaev family. It was Islamophobic and contained a number of factual errors. McPhee's article states that she was tipped off by a high ranking law enforcement official. McPhee is also the source of other weird stories related to the Boston Marathon bombing like "the note in the boat."

This is very serious, because the TV version of events is extremely absent from the actual court proceedings but heavily weighs the jury's mindset against the defendant. Four days after the courthouse protest, on October 24, attorneys filed three very interesting documents: Tsarnaev's defense team filed their Third Motion for a Hearing to Address Leaks by Law Enforcement, and a Memorandum Regarding Scheduling, which addresses government intimidation of witnesses. The government filed its opposition to Tsarnaev's Fourth Motion to Compel [Discovery].

Tsarnaev's motion to address leaks "requests that the Court hold a hearing, and direct government counsel to produce the supervising law enforcement officers with access to information about this case including both federal and state supervising agents or officers - to testify about their instructions and efforts to investigate and stop unauthorized communications with news media."

The next illuminating document discusses government intimidation of witnesses. The defense argues that they are not legally obligated to disclose the names of Jahar's friends, as the government demands.

"Defense counsel have described the unusual and severe obstacles they have

encountered in their efforts to interview and secure testimony from potential witnesses who knew the defendant, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, and other members of his family prior to April 15, 2013... A substantial part of these difficulties stems from the aggressive, persistent and pervasive law enforcement presence in the lives of many potential defense witnesses, and the atmosphere of fear and intimidation that has necessarily followed. This problem, and the consequent slowing of the pace of the defense mitigation investigation, was one of the reasons why defense counsel sought a continuance of the trial date to September 2015..."

"These same concerns make it impossible for the defense to voluntarily agree to disclose to the government the names of non-expert witnesses long before they are to be called. Given the virtual certainty that the FBI will descend on each of the non-expert witnesses to interview them (and in most cases, to re-interview them), the defendant has a well-founded concern that in the very unusual context of this case, defense witnesses whose identities are disclosed to the government prior to trial will quickly cease to be defense witnesses. For this reason, the defense does not agree to a witness disclosure requirement that is not mandated by statute or rule."

In the government's response to defense requests for more information about Todashev's alleged confession regarding the triple homicide in 2011, in order to avoid having to hand over any evidence to the defense, US prosecutors now suddenly admit:

"The government has no evidence that Tamerlan Tsarnaev actually participated in the Walham murders."

J.M. Lawrence, who writes for Bloomberg and the Boston Globe, tweets: "If US 'has no evidence' Tamerlan murdered 3 in Waltham, was the Todashev 'confession' in FL false? Lots of unanswered questions."

The Todashev confession news leak also came from, surprise! McPhee. Government prosecutors mentioned Ibrahim's confession in an earlier court filing as fact. This is a common practice in shady politics: leak news report, then refer to news report in legal case. But if Todashev is now suddenly considered innocent, why did he write a blood-stained confession note?

1,000 potential jurors will be screened for Tsarnaev's trial, District Judge George O'Toole said at Monday's hearing. The process of picking the 12 jurors and six alternates who will hear the case against Tsarnaev is expected to begin on November 3, 2014.

Todashev Relative Offers Home to BMB Suspect

A long bail hearing for Khairullozhon Matanov, friend of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who is facing the death penalty, took place on June 4, 2014. The thin, fragile-looking 23 year old asked Judge Marianne Bowler for "voluntary incarceration" instead of requesting bail because he had nowhere to live, since he lost his job as a taxi driver on account of his arrest. This same Judge Bowler convicted Tarek Mehanna of terrorism support based on inflammatory rhetoric in April of 2010.

Upon hearing this pitiful news, Elena Teyer, the mother of the wife of Ibrahim Todashev, who was murdered by the FBI in his Florida home in May of 2013, immediately contacted Matanov's attorney Edward Hayden to offer the young man a room in her home in Georgia and volunteered to pay for his transportation there. She has never met the Tsarnaevs nor this man before, but since the murder of her son-in-law she feels strongly, "We are all family now."

In August 2013, Teyer's daughter, Todashev's wife, Reniya Manukyan traveled to Dagestan to visit Zubeidat and Anzor Tsarnaev, Jahar and Tamerlan's parents.

"We cried so much there's just no more tears left," Reniya said about the visit.

Teyer wants to testify in the Tsarnaev trial as a witness against the FBI but her letters to Jahar's attorneys go unanswered. This is despite the fact that government prosecutors added to the case against Tsarnaev a clause implicating his brother Tamerlan in a triple homicide based on an alleged confession Todashev "was about to write down" before the FBI shot him seven times.

"I saw the body. I saw the inside of the apartment where he was killed," she says.

Teyer is determined to fight for justice and for the truth to come out about this concerted government attack on Russo-Muslim immigrants to the US.

"I am recently retired from long term active duty in the US Army. I'm not like these kids [Jahar's friends]. I'm not afraid."

Khairullozhon Matanov, originally from Kyrgyzstan, probably has by now realized that he walked into a trap. When the FBI posted photographs of the Tsarnaev brothers on TV and asked the public to identify them, they already knew who the boys were and where they lived. Local police reported that the FBI already had Tamerlan's home in Cambridge under surveillance.

The FBI seems to have cast a dragnet to lure in anyone who might know the Tsarnaevs, so that they could then ensnare them into false testimony or else prosecute them; therefore creating a false public impression that the FBI had heroically disrupted a local "terror cell."

Matanov believed the Tsarnaev brothers would never have committed the bombing and presumably was hoping to clear their names when he contacted the Braintree, Massachusetts police department and offered to give them whatever information he had, which was limited to their names and addresses, because he had no information whatsoever about the brothers being involved in the bombing. A few days after it happened he had even invited them for dinner at a local restaurant, something you don't normally do if you think a person might be a dangerous criminal hiding from authorities. The police contacted the FBI, who contacted Matanov approximately 24 hours later.

Instead of thanking him for the information, the FBI then started an intense investigation on Matanov. They conducted many interviews with him over the next year or so, in addition to both overt and covert surveillance. The most obvious surveillance was reported to the media by neighbors: an unmanned aircraft circling around his home. The only surveillance FBI Agent Timothy McElroy, who was on the witness stand for the majority of Matanov's bail hearing, admitted to was what he called "bumper log surveillance" - following Matanov around in black, unmarked government vehicles, keeping him in sight at all times. Manatov was also contacted via his attorney and told to stay away from Boston's July 4 and Patriots Day celebrations, to which he complied.

The hearing focused on his money transfers overseas and the fact that he had asked a friend to dispose of some cell phones, knowing the FBI would be on their way.

The majority of the money was sent to his family but there were 15 people in 6 countries whom he wired money to that did not share his last name, some of whom he used false aliases to contact, for example he sent an undisclosed amount of money as Ali Hasan to Kamoliodin Niiazaliev. The defense argued that he operated an illegal business selling stolen cell phones overseas, and that these wire transfers had nothing to do with terrorism. The FBI testimony was deliberately vague and allowed court reporters to insinuate that the purpose of the money transfers was related to terrorism in order to create a media buzz.

Attorney Hayden told Elena Teyer that he will try to find out if Matanov could be released to her home or to that of another person in Massachusetts who volunteered their home, as well as the amount of bail. A commissary account is being opened for Matanov's needs in prison by members of the Free Jahar movement. It is hoped that once he understands that he is not alone, Matanov will stand up and fight for his rights instead of bowing his head in fear.

Updates on Jahar's friends

Fallout from Marathon bombing case: Innocents snared and Imprisoned 

Updates on Jahar's friends 
Karin Friedemann
Matanov Commissary Fund Started

An account has been opened for Khairullozhon Matanov's commissary fund. He will need money to buy things like soap, toothpaste and snacks. Elena Teyer, Ibrahim Todashev's mother-in-law, made a donation of $50.

If you would like to deposit money into Khair's commissary fund, just click the link, register and you can enter either his last name or his register number. The facility is Plymouth County Sheriffs Dept. It is very simple. Thank you so much for anything you can do to help this young man, but do not send large amounts of money or else it could be used to deny him access to his government-appointed lawyer.

https://www.accesscorrections.com/index.php 

To write to Mr. Matanov, address letter to:

Khairullozhon Matanov # 65363?, Unit GSE, Room # 107, ?PCCF, ?26 Long Pond Road, ?Plymouth, MA 02360

Matanov Neighbor Speaks Out

"We would always say hi to each other in the hallway or parking lot!" stated Aurora, a woman who lived in the same apartment building as Khair.

"I have to say, he is a kid with a big smile, full of life and very presentable. He's not the average 23 year old guy, very classy person, and cleaned up, very high maintenance. I really hope everything sorts out and this kid gets his life back! We need intelligent people walking on the street, not bums or thugs... He is innocent till proven guilty!"

"I knew him a bit, just hi and hello cause I always worked and so did he, so we barely even saw each other in the building, but he always was friendly and never gave me the impression that he was being watched. He was always happy, a kid!

She also mentioned that Khair's roommate hasn't been seen since Khair's arrest. This is somewhat worrying since all of the other Russian-speaking friends of friends of Jahar or Tamerlan Tsarnaev - even those who didn't even know the Tsarnaevs - have been detained and/or deported from both Massachusetts and Florida.

Bayan Kumiskali to testify at roommate Azamat Tazayhakov's trial

The government plans to call Bayan Kumiskali, the long time (six years) partner of Dias Kadyrbayev, as a witness for the upcoming trial of UMass student Azamat Tazayhakov, who rented a room in their apartment. She received immunity in exchange for her testimony. She was already called in front of the Grand Jury before. The defense once mentioned that Bayan said she had seen cameras and they had recorded their interviews, so her testimony may be helpful to the defense.

Dias and Azamat Separated

Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazayhakov, who have been sharing a cell at the Essex County Jail in Middleton, MA will return to their former separate cells that they were put in when first arrested. Dias is in unit 120a Cell 115 and Aza is unit 120a Cell 110. The judge said in the beginning that they would be separated again closer to trial, as they are being tried separately, so this was expected.

Azamat Defense Proposes Jury Instruction

In a highly creative move, Attorney Nicholas Wooldridge submitted 41 statements that the defense asks to be shown to the jury as additional instruction.

"Since the indictment is not evidence and since it does not purport to prove or even indicate evidence against the defendant, you are to give no weight whatsoever to it. Every defendant begins trial with an absolutely clean slate and without any evidence against him. Remember that those are merely accusations. What matters is the evidence, or lack thereof, that you heard in the trial," reads a document presented by Azamat Tazayhakov's defense team.

"A person has no legal obligation to voluntarily provide information or things requested by investigators," it reads.

Most of the document has a very general tone instructing jurors on the concept of US Law but Request #21 gets so specific to the case it's inflammatory!

"Caution as to Witness Who Received Immunity: "You have heard the testimony of Bayan Kumiskali. She provided evidence under an immunity agreement with the government. Some people in this position are entirely truthful when testifying. Still, you should consider the testimony of this individual with particular caution given that she was given an agreement from the government not to be prosecuted for her role in the alleged conduct. They may have had reason to make up stories or exaggerate what others did because they wanted to help themselves."

This entire document seems like a very unique approach to attempting to publicize the defense point of view. See:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/229013545/Doc-239-Proposed-Jury-Intructions-on-Behalf-of-Azamat-Tazhayakov-060914 

2014-06-15 Sun 08:10:04 cdt 
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