The Latest in Kurt's Appeal
July 31, 2009. Kurt's motion for a new trial was denied.
January 7, 2008. Kurt's hearing was held today before Judge Hilton in the federal district court for the Eastern District of Virginia. It lasted about 3 hours. About a dozen friends and supporters were there. The hearing, which was ordered by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals last April, was to present evidence that Kurt's attorney in the trial phase had a conflict of interest which disadvantaged Kurt. Essentially, Kurt's attorney at the time had a relationship with his co-counsel (Terry Squillacote's lawyer) that led to certain investigative, strategic and tactical decisions, in the course of a questionable joint defense, that were not in Kurt's interest. Testimony in the hearing today brought out the particulars as to the conflict and as to lines of defense in Kurt's interest that were not pursued on his behalf.
Kurt's current attorney Leonard Weinglass, with co-counsel Marvin Miller, called two of the lawyers who previously worked on the case, including the principal attorney who represented Kurt up to and during the 1998 trial. Kurt himself also testified today, for about 45 minutes, about his knowledge of the circumstances concerning the conflict and about the trial attorney's failure to present certain available and necessary defenses. The government cross-examined each witness but did not call its own witnesses.At the end of the hearing, the lawyers for both sides agreed to file post-hearing papers within 60 days. Judge Hilton will make a ruling sometime after that. An unfavorable ruling could be appealable back to the 4th Circuit.
November 9, 2007. Kurt's hearing has been ordered for January 7, 2008.
Posted October 29, 2007. Kurt's hearing has been postponed. Proposed new dates are currently under consideration.
Posted August 16, 2007. Letters from Kurt Stand and Friends of Kurt Stand
Posted July 29, 2007. Kurt's hearing date has been set for November 19-20, 2007.
Posted April 18, 2007. On April 13, 2007, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, remanded Kurt's post-conviction appeal for an evidentiary hearing in the District Court, Alexandria, Virginia. The District Court is charged with hearing evidence and deciding whether Kurt's defense lawyer in the trial phase "labored under a conflict of interest tht adversely affected his performance." An affirmative finding under this standard could lead to a new trial for Kurt.
The appeals court also noted, without ordering, that the District Court could also consider the relevance of a certain piece of new evidence that had been submitted in the post-conviction appeal. That evidence is a statement of a key witness with knowledge of the lawful nature of Kurt's activities in East Germany.
Kurt's lawyer Leonard Weinglass has begun to prepare for the hearing, which has not been scheduled. It is certain that Judge Claude M. Hilton will preside over this matter, as he did in the trial and subsequent post-conviction proceedings at the District Court level. He has generally been disposed favorably to the government throughout.