Every Family Has One

U.S. v. Stand, Squillacote & Clark

Kurt Stand, Theresa Squillacote and Jim Clark were arrested in October 1997, framed up by the government and charged under the Espionage Act. They were accused of spying for East Germany, which was not a country in 1997. To convict them the government used secret investigative tools (of the sort later enacted in the Patriot Act) and manipulated the facts of their political views and affiliations, and their personal circumstances. They are serving federal prison terms of 17 years, 21 years and 12 years, respectively.

In April 2003, Judge Claude Hilton in U.S. District Court in Alexandria rejected Kurt's motion for a new trial. In August 2004, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals granted his request to appeal the decision on the motion. In April 2007, the Appeals Court remanded the matter for a hearing in the District Court, ordering a finding on effectiveness of previous counsel, and inviting further review of evidence tending to exonerate Kurt. The hearing, in January 2008, brought out evidence that Kurt did not have effective counsel in his defense in the first trial. Nonetheless, without considering the potential new evidence, Judge Hilton ruled against Kurt, yet again, in July 2009. Kurt decided not to pursue any further legal appeals.