Deal reached on evidence in terror case
Prosecutors and defense attorneys have reached an agreement on how to handle sensitive, unclassified material in the case of seven Triangle-area men accused of plotting terrorist acts.
Posted — Updated
Daniel Patrick Boyd, 39, his sons, Dylan Boyd, 22, and Zakariya "Zak" Boyd, 20, and four other men – Hysen Sherifi, 24, Mohammad Omar Aly Hassan, 22, Ziyad Yaghi, 21, and Anes Subasic, 33 – were indicted in July on charges that they plotted to murder, kidnap, maim and injure people overseas. They are being held without bond at a prison in Virginia.
An eighth suspect, Jude Kenan Mohammad, 20, is believed to be in Pakistan.
Daniel Boyd and Sherifi also are charged with planning an attack on the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Va.
Chief U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan has given prosecutors until Dec. 17 to declassify documents and other evidence they plan to use in the case so that defense attorneys can begin reviewing it and preparing their case.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys have haggled for weeks over information that isn't classified for national security reasons but is still considered sensitive. Prosecutors wanted to know with whom defense attorneys were sharing the information, but defense attorneys said that would interfere with their planning and strategy.
They decided to have designated government officials create a record when defense attorneys use sensitive information with witnesses. Those officials aren't allowed to talk about the requests with prosecutors.
Under the agreement, if concern over certain documents arises, both sides will hold a telephone hearing on a classified line.
Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
