My departure to Scotland has been delayed due to the weather in Syracuse and I wrote this letter yesterday (see below). As we approach the fourth anniversary of Dr. Dhafir’s arrest and incarceration please consider sending the letter below to your local newspaper. I have sent it to the two Syracuse newspapers, the Post-Standard and the New Times.

Thank you,
Katherine
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Dr. Rafil Dhafir, founder of the Help the Needy charity, is an esteemed member of the Muslim community of Syracuse, New York. Arrested on February 26th, 2003, this American citizen of almost 30 years was deprived of civil liberties cherished by us all.

He was held without bail for 31 months; denied access to his own records and counsel; and although the government repeatedly pitched his case as having national security implications he was charged for only white-collar crime. Despite this the “national security threat” charge was brought to his sentencing and Dhafir received 22 years in prison for a crime he was never charged with in a court of law.

The government still hounds Dhafir. It recently overturned an appeals court decision to grant Dhafir transcripts at the expense of the court. Transcripts are essential to an appeals process and without them it cannot move forward. As fighting this decision would be too costly and time consuming the Dr. Dhafir Support Committee is urgently asking for donations toward purchase of transcripts that will cost around $22,000.

If you care about our Constitution’s civil liberties please help us protect them by sending a donation for any amount, no matter how large or small, to: Dr. Dhafir Appeal Fund, c/o Peter Goldberger, Esq., Attorney at Law, 50 Rittenhouse Place, Ardmore, PA 19003. Make checks payable to “Dr. Dhafir Appeal Fund.” Please note that donations are not tax deductible.

For more information go to: www.dhafirtrial.net.

243 words

Katherine Hughes
For the Dr. Dhafir Support Committee
P.O Box 5789
Salinas CA 93915