WICHITA, Kan. — A federal judge is due to hear arguments about whether to allow victim…
WICHITA, Kan. — A federal judge is due to hear arguments about whether to allow victim impact statements from Somali immigrants at the sentencing hearing for three Kansas militia members convicted of plotting to bomb a mosque and an apartment complex where the immigrants live.
The hearing is scheduled to take place Monday before U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren in Wichita.
Attorneys for Patrick Stein, Gavin Wright and Curtis Allen contend that the immigrants aren’t victims because no one was hurt. Prosecutors say the defendants are trying to de-personalize their crimes and that federal law guarantees every victim the right to be heard at sentencing.
The defendants were convicted of conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction and conspiring to violate civil rights. Wright was also convicted of lying to the FBI.
