By Basil Katz
NEW YORK, Nov 5 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Monday
upheld the conviction and 86-year prison sentence of a Pakistani
neuroscientist for shooting at FBI agents and soldiers after her
arrest in Afghanistan.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York said a
lower court judge had not erred in allowing Aafia Siddiqui, 40,
to testify in her own defense at trial and in allowing certain
evidence against her.
Siddiqui, whose conviction was widely criticized in
Pakistan, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard Berman in
September 2010. She was convicted by a New York federal jury of
attempted murder, armed assault and other charges.
She was arrested in July 2008 by Afghan police, who said she
was carrying two pounds (900 grams) of sodium cyanide and
crumpled notes referring to mass casualty attacks and New York
landmarks.
The day after her arrest, she grabbed an M-4 rifle in her
interrogation room and started shooting while yelling "death to
America," the trial jury heard.
No U.S. agents or soldiers were hit, but Siddiqui was shot
and wounded in response, according to U.S. prosecutors.
Siddiqui's defense lawyers, three of whom were paid by the
Pakistani government, argued that their client had shot at the
U.S. officials in a panic and said the crime lacked any
connection to terrorism.
On appeal, her attorneys challenged her conviction and
sentence on many grounds. They said the judge improperly allowed
jurors to consider the crumpled notes, and that the judge should
never have allowed Siddiqui to decide whether to take the stand.
"The district court went to extraordinary lengths to ensure
that Siddiqui understood the implications of testifying and had
the capacity to testify," the opinion said.
Dawn Cardi, an attorney for Siddiqui, was not immediately
available to comment.
The appeals court also sided with Berman in finding that
Siddiqui had likely premeditated the attack, and that terrorism
sentencing requirements were applicable because of her
willingness to harm Americans.
For the government: Jenna Dabbs, Assistant U.S. Attorney for
the Southern District of New York.
For Siddiqui: Dawn Cardi of Dawn Cardi & Associates.
Follow us on Twitter @ReutersLegal | Like us on Facebook