Courts / Waterford / Report
Judge in Ali Damache case seeks clarification
Summary
In an appeal-stage proceeding, Ms Justice Aileen Donnelly sought clarification regarding the case of Ali Charaf Damache, an Algerian-born Irish citizen wanted in the US for conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and attempted identity theft. The judge requested up-to-date US statistics on how many individuals convicted of similar Islamist terrorism offences are transferred to the ADX Supermax Prison in Florence, Colorado, and their progression through the system. This inquiry follows concerns raised about the prison's conditions, including solitary confinement and barriers to religious observance. The matter was adjourned and placed on the extradition case list for mention on February 3, with Damache remanded in custody until then. The court noted that if convicted in the US, Damache could face up to 45 years in jail. The US alleges he conspired with Colleen LaRose, who pleaded guilty to a plot to murder cartoonist Lars Vilks and was sentenced to ten years, and Jamie Paulin Ramirez, who pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists and was sentenced to eight years. Separately, Damache had previously pleaded guilty in Ireland to sending a menacing phone call to US activist Majed Moughni in January 2010, for which he was sentenced to three years.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Judge in Ali Damache case seeks clarification. Charges or matters: providing material support to terrorists; sending a menacing phone call to US Muslim activist Majed Moughni in January 2010. Procedural stage: appeal
When:
- March 2011 Hearing Or Sentence
- February 3 Adjournment
- September 13, 2009 Other
- March 2013 Incident
- January 2010 Incident
- 2015-01-20 Publication
Why: The High Court has heard the conviction of a terrorism crime is claimed to be sufficient reason for the transfer to the maximum security ADX Supermax Prison in Florence, Colorado, where prisoners can be held in solitary confinement for up to 22 hours a day and where conditions were described by a former warden as a "clean version of hell". CNI source report
Case subjects
Appellant
Charges: providing material support to terrorists; sending a menacing phone call to US Muslim activist Majed Moughni in January 2010 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: In January of 2014 LaRose was jailed for ten years by a Philadelphia judge, having admitted her involvement in a plot to murder Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, who sparked an international controversy by depicting the Prophet Mohammed on the head of a dog. Ramirez was sentenced in the US to eight years, after pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists.; Also the statistics in regarding how many people convicted of this kind of alleged offence in relation to Islamist terrorism, just how many have ended up in the ADX Supermax prison. "I want to know how people progressed through the system and how many ended up in ADX" said Ms Justice Donnelly. "There has been a number of issues raised of how up to date statistics were for US authorities, I'm askin
Places mentioned
- High Court
- Supreme Court
- The Supreme Court
- Ireland. The High Court
- The High Court
- ADX Supermax Prison
- Waterford
- Waterford Courthouse
Topics
Stage Appeal Theft Violent Crime
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