Hashmi has no criminal record and no history of committing acts of violence.
In court in January 2009, Hashmi's lawyer called the restrictions on Hashmi too severe and asked a federal judge to lift some of them, perhaps allowing Hashmi to have a cellmate or to exercise infresh air . But the judge, Loretta A. Preska, a George H. W. Bush appointee, denied a motion to consider the psychological impact of solitary confinement and ease the conditions of his detention.Hashmi's trial is set for November 30, 2009.
Hashmi's friend Babar has pleaded guilty to five counts of material support of Al Qaeda and has agreed to serve as a government witness in terrorism trials in Britain, Canada, and at Hashmi's trial. The Justice Department says Babar is the "centerpiece" of its case against Hashmi. In return, under a plea bargain, Babar will likely get a reduced sentence. If Hashmi is convicted, he may be sentenced to 70 years behind bars.
Under CIPA, much of the evidence against Hashmi is classified. His lawyers have received CIA-level clearance to view it but may not discuss it with Hashmi or with other uncleared experts.
Sean Maher, his attorney, has told the media that he is under "severe limitations on what I can and can't say." Civil rights lawyer Lynne Stewart was convicted in 2005 for providing material support to a terrorist conspiracy for releasing a statement by imprisoned Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman to his followers in the outlaw Islamic Group. She is now appealing her conviction. Hashmi's lawyer is under the same restrictions.
Asked why Hashmi's trial has taken so long to begin, Maher said, "One of the reasons why this case has taken so long to go to trial is the complex issues that go with these types of charges. There's classified information in this case, so the defense attorneys had to go through a background security check, the equivalent of a CIA officer. That takes time. It takes time to go through all the materials."
Maher also raised the issue of secrecy in federal court. During preliminary court proceedings, U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska has closed some of the proceedings to the public and reporters, having ruled that some of the evidence is classified. "And any litigation is done behind closed doors," he says, adding:
"One of the paramount issues that this case brings up, without talking about any specifics in this case, is the use of secrecy in modern courtrooms. And in our Article III court, which we're all trying to get people in Guantanamo to, what is the role of secrecy? And what will secrecy's role play in these cases that President Obama says he might bring into these courts? "
As U.S. trials of GITMO detainees move closer to reality, these questions are likely to attract far wider interest. As Prof. Corey Robin, one of Hashmi's teachers at Brooklyn College, told IPS, "The conditions of his confinement have not been changed since President Obama took office. As the nation looks backward to the Bush Administration, it is imperative that we draw attention to abuses -- particularly those within our federal prisons and courts -- that continue under the Obama Administration."
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