[NYTr] Defense opens case in Liberty City 7 "terrorism" trial

[All the News That Doesn't Fit]

sent by Steven Robinsin - activ-l

[This is the silly Chicago entrapment case - NYTr]

AP - Nov 6, 2007
http://www.bradenton.com/331/story/191556.html

Defense opens case in Liberty City 7 terrorism trial

By Curt Anderson
The Associated Press

Miami --The leader of a group of men on trial for allegedly plotting
terror attacks took the witness stand in his own defense Tuesday,
describing his financial struggles to build a construction business and
saying he wanted to uplift people in the downtrodden Liberty City
neighborhood.

Narseal Batiste, 33, referred only in passing to the terrorism
allegations, which include an alleged conspiracy to topple Chicago's
Sears Tower and bomb FBI offices in several cities. Batiste was to
continue testifying Wednesday and could directly address the
prosecution case, which is based on dozens of FBI audio and video tapes.

Batiste said Tuesday he was unsuccessful at attracting financial
support for his purported outreach program - a nonprofit entity called
Universal Divine Saviours - and suggested this failure was at the root
of his legal troubles.

"Quite frankly, if we had received donations, I probably wouldn't be
sitting here right now," Batiste said on the witness stand while being
questioned by his attorney, Ana M. Jhones.

A key defense claim is that the so-called "Liberty City Seven" only went
along with talk of terror plots in hopes of getting thousands of dollars
from the man they knew as "Brother Mohammed" and who had promised to
help them.

The alleged conspiracy never got beyond the initial stages, but Batiste
and his six codefendants were videotaped by the FBI taking an oath to
al-Qaida led by a government informant posing as an emissary from Osama
bin Laden's terror organization. All seven face up to 70 years in
prison if convicted of all four terrorism-related conspiracy charges.

But Batiste said he never asked a convenience store operator he knew as
Abbas - another FBI informant - to use connections in Yemen to obtain
money in fall 2005 from al-Qaida or its leadership. Abbas previously
testified that such a request was made.

"I never asked him for Osama bin Laden to give me any money whatsoever,"
Batiste testified. "The only thing I knew about Osama bin Laden was
that I read on the news - that he was affiliated with the al-Qaida
terrorist organization."

Batiste said he and the other six men sunk most of their savings into a
dilapidated building they repaired and dubbed "The Embassy," which
Batiste said he intended to make into a "temple" and center for his
supposed outreach program. Batiste said his religious interest came
from a long line of family members who were pastors, including his
mother.

"That was the spark to the level of inspiration that I had, that I
carried throughout my life," he said.

Batiste was leader of a Miami chapter of a religious sect known as the
Moorish Science Temple, which among other things does not recognize the
authority of the U.S. government.

Earlier Tuesday, several witnesses described Batiste as a hardworking
and trustworthy construction contractor.

Witness Michael Sharpe testified that he hired Batiste several times to
do work at his Fort Lauderdale home, including removal of an enormous
ficus tree downed by Hurricane Wilma in October 2005.

Sharpe described Batiste and the men working with him as steady and
respectful, adding that he had no problem leaving them unsupervised at
times.

"I was quite comfortable with the situation," Sharpe said. "They just
got it done."

Sharpe said he could not identify any of the other men who came to his
home, but Batiste said all six codefendants worked with him.

Under cross-examination by prosecutors, the witnesses who worked with
Batiste acknowledged they knew little about his personal life and that
they never socialized with each other. Several said they had never
heard of the Moorish Science Temple.

Xavier Smith, a minister at the United Christian Outreach Ministry
located close to a headquarters used by Batiste, said his only contact
with the group occurred when they were fixing up the property. They
didn't discuss religion or politics, he said.

"They were doing a beautiful job renovating the building," Smith said.