Rana to appear before a US court on May 11

Yoshita Singh
Chicago, May 9 (PTI) Pakistani-Canadian terror suspect
Tahawwur Rana under investigation for his role in the 26/11
Mumbai attacks, has stuck to his 'not guilty' plea to terror
charges and is headed for trial, will appear before a US court
here on May 11 for a status hearing in the case.
Patrick Blegen, lawyer for the 48 year-old city
businessman, told PTI that "during the status hearing, the
judge is going to rule on some pre-trial motions".
Blegen reiterated that there will not be any change
in Rana's not guilty plea, which he had entered in the US
District court in January.
He however did not comment on when he expects the
trial in the case to start.
Rana's May 11 status hearing is scheduled before US
Judge Harry Leinenweber.
Days after co-accused LeT operative David Coleman
Headley had pleaded guilty in March to plotting the Mumbai
terror attacks, Blegen had said his client would not be
changing his not guilty plea and go ahead for a trial, which
he hoped would start "sooner rather than later".
Blegen had said he feels he still has a "strong
case".
Rana's trial process is expected to start only after
September, till when federal prosecutors would work on what
evidence gathered against him can be used at trial.
Chicago's top federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald,
who is personally handling the case, had told the court he
hopes to declassify evidence gathered in the terror
investigation in the next few months.
Blegen and prosecutors agreed on a six-month schedule
- April 5, June 1, July 1, August 2, September 13 - for
carrying out provisions of the Classified Information
Procedures Act (CIPA), which allows prosecutors to take
extraordinary measures to prevent classified information from
leaking to the public.
According to the calender in the case, the government
will provide classified discovery by June 1 and Leinenweber
has set a date of September 20 for a hearing to determine what
classified information can be admitted as evidence at trial.
(MORE) PTI YAS
MYR


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