Judge sets terrorism trial date for Albany mosque leaders News
Judge sets terrorism trial date for Albany mosque leaders

[JURIST] A federal judge set a trial date for early next year in the case of two Albany men accused of money laundering and supporting terrorism. Yassin Aref, 35, is imam at the Masjid as-Salam mosque [mosque website] in Albany and Mohammed Hossain, 50, a mosque founder who owns a restaurant, was freed on bail [JURIST report] in August last year. The FBI says [CNN report] the two participated in a plot to acquire a shoulder-fired missile and assassinate a Pakistani diplomat. The plot was an FBI sting operation. Evidence questions now loom as doubts exist about a note found at a terrorist camp [JURIST report] and the government reviews what evidence to ask the judge to keep secret for security reasons. Evidence filings are expected to wrap up by October 11, when a schedule for pretrial motions will be announced. AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Georgia became first US state to ban lynching

On December 20, 1893, Georgia became the first state in the Union to pass a law against lynching, making the act punishable by four years in prison. The statute was not particularly effective—read the text of the 1899 pamphlet Lynch Law in Georgia by anti-lynching activist Ida Wells-Barnett.