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By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Maxwell Book

SDNY COURT EXCLUSIVE, Oct 28 -  In the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on December 2, a detention or bond proceeding was held by Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron on a man charged with selling guns to two men already in state custody for plans to "shoot up a synagogue," Christopher Brown, 21, and Matthew Mahrer, 22.

  Presented in Federal court on December 2 was defendant / gun-seller Jamil Hakime, who works with detained youth at the NYC Administration for Children's Services. Inner City Press was present, the only media (and only non-involved person) there. Live-tweeted thread (more on Patreon here) vlog here

Jump cut to January 24, 2023: the case has been indicted, and wheeled out to Judge Analisa Torres. She held a proceeding, and Inner City Press attended. Discovery is ongoing; the AUSA said the phones of the two co-conspirators are being reviewed and Hakime will get some but not all of it.

The Federal Defender said the proposed protective order is disputed; he will abide by it while Judge Torres considers the issue.

On March 13, Judge Torres docketed an order that Hakime is set to change to plea - that is, to guilty - on March 14: "ORDER as to Jamil Hakime: The Court shall hold a change of plea hearing for Defendant Jamil Hakime on March 14, 2023 (Signed by Judge Analisa Torres on 3/13/2023)."

Inner City Press went to the charge of plea proceeding. The sentencing guideline agreed to is ten to sixteen months. Hakime described driving his co-conspirators to Pennsylvania to get the gun. The AUSA said the Pennsylvania house is co-owned by Hakime. There was not mention of what the gun was to be used for. Sentencing was set for July 18.

On July 14, the US Attorney's Office which agreed to the plea with the 10 to 16 month guideline wrote that "the Court should impose the statutory maximum sentence of five years imprisonment."

On July 17, Hamike's Federal Defender replied that Hakime didn't know the purpose that Brown had for the gun - and that Brown just "meant to be provocative." Cited in support is Hakime's partner Ms. Market; "their home in the Poconos is filled with Judaica," the Federal Defender writes, saying the crime is serious "without being further larded up by the Government."

  Now, delay for clarification of lard: "ORDER as to Jamil Hakime: the Court shall hold an evidentiary hearing to resolve these factual disputes.

On September 20, the prosecutors turned in their list of exhibits for the October 5 hearing, including a jail call of November 18, 2022, tweets from the month, a swastika armband and Google search history.

On September 27, Judge Torres docketed that the sentencing itself is postpone sine die: "ORDER as to Jamil Hakime: The sentencing of Defendant Jamil Hakime currently scheduled for October 5, 2023, is ADJOURNED sine die. The Court shall schedule a date for sentencing following the October 5, 2023 evidentiary hearing. SO ORDERED. (Terminated Sentencing as to Jamil Hakime) (Signed by Judge Analisa Torres on 9/26/2023)

On October 27, after the Fatico hearing, Federal Defenders wrote in to argue that the US "has provided no reliable evidence to support its assertion that Mr. Hakime 'knew or should have known that Brown and Mahrer intended to use the firearm for an act of mass violence,' in particular, an attack aimed at Jews in NYC."

On November 3 the prosecutors replied, citing Hakime's calls with Luther Wright ("the defendant's light-hearted and laid-back tone in these recorded jail calls demonstrates his complete disregard for the dangerous activities in which he was freely engaged") and with Mahrer.

Inner City Press will continue to cover the case.

   Back from December 2, the thread.

The case is now US v. Hakime, 22-cr-699 (Torres)
Complaint on Inner City Press' Patreon here

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