A man accused of setting bombs in the New Jersey and New York seven months ago, injuring dozens of people, asked a judge on Wednesday to move his trial to the Vermont to avoid the possibility potential jurors have been influenced by the prejudicial publicity about case.
The lawyers for Ahmad Khan Rahimi, an Afghanistan-born U.S. citizen, said in the court papers that he would get a fairer trial in the Burlington, Vermont. They said an expert analysis shows that the media coverage of his case in Manhattan newspapers was twice as heavy as occurred in the Washington, D.C., and five times as much as in the Burlington publications.
Rahimi, who lived with his family in the Elizabeth, New Jersey, is charged with detonating a pipe bomb along a charity race in the Seaside Park, New Jersey, and planting two pressure cooker bombs in the Manhattan on September 17th.
One device did not explode, but the other one detonated in the Chelsea neighborhood, injuring 30 people.
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Rahimi, who has pleaded not guilty, is detained without a bail.
Defense lawyers said their analysis shows that about 90 percent of the respondents to their survey were aware of Rahimi's case and that those who answered the questions had a "comparatively strong presumption of guilt."
They also said a high number of the respondents told that they were in the Chelsea neighborhood at the time of the attacks or knew someone who was there at the time. The lawyers wrote that the prejudicial information which reached some respondents included reports of a confession, a near singular focus on the Rahimi, inflammatory information and also demonization of Rahimi as a terrorist.
They also cited numerous statements by the government and also tweets by the former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara about Rahimi and other aspects of his prosecution. Prosecutors declined to comment on the request.
Rahimi was hospitalized for weeks for the treatment of wounds suffered in a police shootout during his Sept. 19 capture outside a bar in the Linden, New Jersey. In the New Jersey, he is charged with the attempted murder for gunbattle with five officers.
His Manhattan federal trial is scheduled for the October.
Lawyers in terrorism cases over the past few decades in the Manhattan have frequently asked judges for a change of the venue, but none has been granted. Typically, the judges assume that the potential jury pool has heard of the event and questions possible jurors individually to ensure that they can still be fair.
Mrudula Duddempudi.
