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Last Updated: Oct 28th, 2008 - 17:57:18 |
CAMDEN, New Jersey (Reuters) - Jury selection began on Tuesday for five Muslim men accused of plotting to attack a New Jersey army base out of a large pool of 1,500 people in the hopes of finding 18 unbiased jurors.
U.S. District Judge Robert Kugler decided upon the unusually large size of the jury pool, concerned that people had made up their minds about the alleged plot due to extensive media coverage, fear of terrorist attacks and anti-Muslim sentiment.
Opening arguments are expected on about October 20.
The five men, all born outside the United States, were charged in May 2007 with planning but not executing an armed attack on the Fort Dix army base, about 40 miles east of Philadelphia.
According to prosecutors, the men wanted to kill soldiers at the base and were inspired by the idea of holy war against the United States but had no ties to any international militant group.
The group was infiltrated by two paid FBI informants who spent 16 months with the alleged plotters, compiling dozens of tapes recording the defendants planning their attack, prosecutors said.
After eliminating about 1,200 of the original jury pool because of bias or hardship, the court approved seven out of 11 potential jurors early on Tuesday. They will be among a group of about 85 from which the final jury of 12, plus six alternates, will be selected.
The judge admonished defense attorneys to speed up the selection and abandon any idea that they might find jurors who had no preconceptions.
"HARD TIME WITH THIS CASE"
"Anyone who serves on this jury is going to have a hard time with this case," Kugler said.
The defendants include Yugoslav-born ethnic Albanian brothers Eljvir, Dritan and Shain Duka, all illegal immigrants who ran a roofing business in Cherry Hill, New Jersey; Mohamad Shnewer, a Jordanian-born taxi driver from Philadelphia; and Serdar Tatar, a Turkish-born convenience store clerk.
They attended Tuesday's hearing dressed in suits or casual clothes rather than the prison uniforms they have worn to previous court sessions since their arrest in May 2007. But they were still shackled at the ankles.
Among the questions asked to potential jurors in a 41-page questionnaire included whether they believe Islam endorses violence, who they think was responsible for the September 11 attacks in 2001 and whether they are familiar with al Qaeda.
Richard Sparaco, attorney for defendant Serdar Tatar, 24, said the case's national publicity and serious charges would make it hard to find unbiased jurors.
"This is the case that hit home with just about every American, especially in New Jersey," Sparaco told reporters. "That would make it very difficult for people to be unbiased and fair."
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