By Larry Neumeister
The Associated Press
July 6, 2006, 7:55 PM EDT
NEW YORK -- Attorneys for civil rights lawyer Lynne Stewart have asked a judge to spare her a prison sentence for her conviction in a terrorism case despite a recommendation by the federal probation department that she serve 30 years.
The attorneys filed papers Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan asking that the judge take into consideration Stewart's bout with breast cancer, her age, 66, and three decades of selfless service as a lawyer in sentencing her on Sept. 25.
One lawyer, Elizabeth Fink, called a U.S. Probation Department pre-sentencing report that recommended Stewart serve the maximum possible sentence of 30 years "draconian, inhumane and ludicrous."
A message left with a spokeswoman for the federal prosecutors' office was not immediately returned Thursday.
Stewart was convicted in February 2005 of providing material support to terrorists by releasing the statement of a notorious imprisoned client who was convicted a decade earlier of approving plans to blow up five New York City landmarks. She was diagnosed with breast cancer last year, and her sentencing has been delayed while she undergoes treatment.
In her court papers, Fink quoted the nonpublic pre-sentencing report as saying: "We hope that this sentence of 30 years will not only punish Stewart for her actions but serve as a deterrent for other lawyers who believe that they are above the rules and regulations of penal institutions or otherwise try to skirt the laws of this country."
Pre-sentencing reports are advisory documents prepared by court employees and considered by judges before they determine sentences.
Fink said lawyers for criminal defendants perform their constitutional duties every day under difficult and depressing circumstances and for little money.
"The deterrence they want to accomplish here is to frighten lawyers into submission and destroy zealous advocacy," she wrote.
Fink said the conviction, disbarment and a non-prison sentence would serve adequate deterrence to other lawyers.
"To put Lynne Stewart in prison in order to teach criminal lawyers how to behave is outrageous," she said.
The lawyer wrote that there was no question that Stewart made a serious mistake "and by doing so, ruined her life."
But Fink added that Stewart improved the lives of thousands during three decades of practicing law and "restored faith in America and its justice system to thousands of people."
Stewart was convicted along with Mohamed Yousry, an Arabic interpreter, and Ahmed Abdel Sattar, a U.S. postal worker.
Yousry and Stewart, both convicted of providing material support to terrorists, face up to 30 years in prison. Sattar, convicted of conspiracy to kill and kidnap people in a foreign country, could face life in prison.
The three will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl. He already has upheld the jury verdict, rejecting Stewart's claim that her client, Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, was engaging in protected speech when he expressed his opinion about a cease fire by Islamic militants in Egypt that Stewart passed along in a 2000 press release.
Besides the material support conviction, Stewart also was convicted of defrauding the government and making false statements for breaking her promise to abide by special rules the government imposed on the sheik to prevent him from communicating with his followers.
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