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**milfovoxapl** · 01-13-2010, 01:27 AM

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — An Arkansas judge on Monday ordered the state's Public Defenders Commission to pay some of the legal bills for a man who says he killed a soldier outside a military recruiting center in retaliation for U.S. military action in the Middle East.

Abdulhakim Muhammad testified he has no money to pay for experts or investigators who might help defend him against charges of capital murder and attempted murder in the June 1 attack outside the Army-Navy Recruiting Center in a west Little Rock shopping center. Judge Herbert Wright said the state should pay part of the bill for Muhammad's private attorney.

Muhammad, a Muslim convert who moved to Little Rock from Memphis, Tenn., last year, has pleaded not guilty in the death of Pvt. William Long and the wounding of Pvt. Quinton Ezeagwula. He said last year the shootings were justified because of U.S. military action in the Middle East.

"Yes, I did tell the police upon my arrest that this was an act of retaliation, and not a reaction on the soldiers personally," Muhammad told the AP in an interview two weeks after the shootings. He called the attack an "act, for the sake of God, for the sake of Allah, the Lord of all the world, and also a retaliation on U.S. military."

A trial is set for June 7. Muhammad could face the death penalty if convicted of capital murder.

Wright ruled Monday that Muhammad can appear in regular clothing — not prison garb — whenever a jury is present. Wearing a navy jail jumpsuit, Muhammad fidgeted before his hearing with the leather strap connecting his handcuffs and leg shackles.

Long, 23, of Conway, had just completed basic training and was volunteering at the recruiting office before starting an assignment in South Korea. He and Ezeagwula, 18, of Jacksonville, had never seen combat.

Muhammad was arrested about 8 miles away, on Interstate 630, shortly after the shootings. Police said they recovered Molotov cocktails, three guns and ammunition from his pickup truck. An internal law enforcement memo says Muhammad may have considered other targets, including military sites and Jewish organizations in the Southeast.

A law enforcement official said in June that Muhammad had been under investigation by an FBI-led terrorism task force since he returned to the U.S. from Yemen in 2008. Muhammad, who was born Carlos Bledsoe, had moved to Little Rock to work in his father's Memphis-based tour bus company as it branched out.

Article: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2010/0...s_shot_011110/

01-13-2010, 01:27 AM	#1
milfovoxapl Join Date Dec 2005 Posts 563 Senior Member	Abdulhakim Muhammad: Recruiter shooting suspect seeks plea change LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — An Arkansas judge on Monday ordered the state's Public Defenders Commission to pay some of the legal bills for a man who says he killed a soldier outside a military recruiting center in retaliation for U.S. military action in the Middle East. Abdulhakim Muhammad testified he has no money to pay for experts or investigators who might help defend him against charges of capital murder and attempted murder in the June 1 attack outside the Army-Navy Recruiting Center in a west Little Rock shopping center. Judge Herbert Wright said the state should pay part of the bill for Muhammad's private attorney. Muhammad, a Muslim convert who moved to Little Rock from Memphis, Tenn., last year, has pleaded not guilty in the death of Pvt. William Long and the wounding of Pvt. Quinton Ezeagwula. He said last year the shootings were justified because of U.S. military action in the Middle East. "Yes, I did tell the police upon my arrest that this was an act of retaliation, and not a reaction on the soldiers personally," Muhammad told the AP in an interview two weeks after the shootings. He called the attack an "act, for the sake of God, for the sake of Allah, the Lord of all the world, and also a retaliation on U.S. military." A trial is set for June 7. Muhammad could face the death penalty if convicted of capital murder. Wright ruled Monday that Muhammad can appear in regular clothing — not prison garb — whenever a jury is present. Wearing a navy jail jumpsuit, Muhammad fidgeted before his hearing with the leather strap connecting his handcuffs and leg shackles. Long, 23, of Conway, had just completed basic training and was volunteering at the recruiting office before starting an assignment in South Korea. He and Ezeagwula, 18, of Jacksonville, had never seen combat. Muhammad was arrested about 8 miles away, on Interstate 630, shortly after the shootings. Police said they recovered Molotov cocktails, three guns and ammunition from his pickup truck. An internal law enforcement memo says Muhammad may have considered other targets, including military sites and Jewish organizations in the Southeast. A law enforcement official said in June that Muhammad had been under investigation by an FBI-led terrorism task force since he returned to the U.S. from Yemen in 2008. Muhammad, who was born Carlos Bledsoe, had moved to Little Rock to work in his father's Memphis-based tour bus company as it branched out. Article: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2010/0...s_shot_011110/
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