Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

3 days ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

4 days ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

4 days ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

4 days ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

4 days ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

4 days ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

5 days ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

5 days ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

5 days ago
A Loophole Could Keep Young Terror Suspects out of US Courts
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
May 7, 2019

Share

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department’s ability to charge minors for supporting terrorist groups has been hampered by a 2018 Supreme Court decision, forcing prosecutors to hand off at least one such case to local authorities in a state without anti-terrorism laws.

In most cases like this, federal prosecutors would have brought terrorism charges. But U.S. prosecutors in Texas didn’t charge Azizi-Yarand because he was 17 at the time and considered a minor under federal law.

The court’s decision in a case unrelated to terrorism opened a loophole that could allow young supporters of groups like the Islamic State to skate on charges from the federal government.

The legal gap was highlighted by the case of Matin Azizi-Yarand, who was sentenced in a Texas state court last month after plotting to shoot police officers and civilians at a suburban shopping mall in an Islamic State-inspired rampage planned to coincide with the Muslim holiday of Ramadan.

In most cases like this, federal prosecutors would have brought terrorism charges. But U.S. prosecutors in Texas didn’t charge Azizi-Yarand because he was 17 at the time and considered a minor under federal law.

Federal law allows prosecutors to charge anyone supporting or working with a State Department-designated terror group, even if the person was not in contact with the group. But to charge a juvenile with providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, the attorney general would have to determine that the suspect committed what’s known as a “crime of violence” under federal law.

It Isn’t Clear How Many Cases the Justice Department Has Handed Off

The Supreme Court struck down part of that law last year, finding it too vague to be enforced in the case of a Philippine man who was facing deportation over burglary convictions. Justice Neil Gorsuch joined the court’s more liberal judges, finding that the law crossed constitutional boundaries and that the law was not specific enough because it failed to adequately define what would be a violent crime.

“Vague laws invite arbitrary power,” Gorsuch wrote.

Facing only state charges, Azizi-Yarand struck a plea deal and was sentenced to 20 years in prison with the possibility of parole after 10. Prosecutors presented the case as an example of local and federal collaboration, but also said that the criminal charge that would have best fit Azizi-Yarand’s acts is unavailable in state court.

A charge of supporting a terror group “would’ve fit this crime better than the laws that we used,” Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis said in April.

After the Supreme Court ruling, the Department of Homeland Security said the decision “significantly undermines” its ability to deport people convicted of “certain violent crimes,” but the implications for terror cases weren’t immediately apparent.

It isn’t clear how many cases the Justice Department has handed off or dropped because of the Supreme Court ruling. The agency did not comment in response to multiple inquiries from The Associated Press.

Trying terrorism cases in state court can be problematic. Many states, including Texas, have no criminal statute against aiding a foreign terror organization. And, where such laws do exist, bringing state charges can complicate federal investigations.

Prosecuting Juveniles for Terrorism Is Rare

Handling a case connected to terrorism can be a challenge for state prosecutors unschooled in radical ideologies, according to Seamus Hughes, deputy director of George Washington University’s Program on Extremism. “For state prosecutors it’s a learning curve,” he said. “You have to understand the nuances of ISIS ideology.”

[“This leaves federal law enforcement] in this strange limbo where either they kick it to a state level case or they track that individual until they turn 18.” — Seamus Hughes, deputy director of George Washington University’s Program on Extremism

This leaves federal law enforcement “in this strange limbo where either they kick it to a state level case or they track that individual until they turn 18,” Hughes said.

Prosecuting juveniles for terrorism is rare and the Supreme Court decision may have little impact on overall terror prosecutions because the decision makes it difficult to bring “a very narrow band” of terror cases, said Nick Lewin, a defense attorney and former federal prosecutor.

Davilyn Walston, a spokeswoman U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas, said depending on the facts of a case minors could be prosecuted as adults under other parts of federal law.

But “unless and until” Congress changes how “crime of violence” is defined in federal law the Supreme Court decision could continue to affect prosecutions, she said.

There’s no indication a change in legislation is imminent.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

DON'T MISS

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

DON'T MISS

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

DON'T MISS

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

DON'T MISS

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

DON'T MISS

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

DON'T MISS

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

DON'T MISS

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

DON'T MISS

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

UP NEXT

US Proposes Rules That Could Boost Oil, Gas Output in US West

UP NEXT

Man Dead After Firing at US Border Patrol Station in Texas

UP NEXT

Texas Girls’ Camp Mourning Dozens Dead in Floods as Search Teams Face More Rain

UP NEXT

Death Toll From Texas Floods Reaches 78, Trump Plans Visit

UP NEXT

Death Toll From Texas Floods Reaches 59, Including 21 Children

UP NEXT

Fresno Crash Involving Unlicensed Teen Driver Sends Woman to Hospital

UP NEXT

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

UP NEXT

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

UP NEXT

Poorest Americans Dealt Biggest Blow Under Senate Republican Tax Package

UP NEXT

Poll: Most Americans Say National Divide, Political Violence Threaten Democracy

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

5 hours ago

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

5 hours ago

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

5 hours ago

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

5 hours ago

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

5 hours ago

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

5 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

5 hours ago

July 4 Weekend Was No Picnic for Fresno-Area Firefighters. How Bad Did It Get?

7 hours ago

Tulare County Seizes 300 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks Over Fourth of July

7 hours ago

US Proposes Rules That Could Boost Oil, Gas Output in US West

7 hours ago

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

WASHINGTON – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday told President Donald Trump he had nominated him for the Nobel Peace ...

4 hours ago

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks on during a bilateral dinner with U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured), at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
4 hours ago

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
4 hours ago

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

A wind farm is shown in Movave, California, U.S., November 8, 2019. (Reuter File)
4 hours ago

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon testifies before a Senate Appropriations hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump's budget request for the Department of Education, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 3, 2025. (Reuters File)
5 hours ago

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

United States Department of Veterans Affairs logo and U.S. flag are seen in this illustration taken April 23, 2025. (Reuters File)
5 hours ago

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

A group of search and rescue workers paddle a boat in the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Sergio Flores)
5 hours ago

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

5 hours ago

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

Attendees visit the 23andMe booth at the RootsTech annual genealogical event in Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S., February 28, 2019. (Reuters File)
5 hours ago

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend