Chicago: To serve on jury of accused Mumbai jihad mass-murder plotter, you have to respect Islam

Chicago: To serve on jury of accused Mumbai jihad mass-murder plotter, you have to respect Islam

"In his reply to a questionnaire that was distributed among the potential 100 jurors May 16, this particular juror reportedly wrote 'Terrorists are mainly Muslims, or am I wrong?' He was promptly excused by the judge in the interest of a fair trial for Rana....Juror number 15, apparently of South East Asian origin, was also excused because she said she could not be fair given her strong views about Islam."

But on what basis does Judge James Leinenweber think that a rosy, fact-free belief in Islam as a Religion of Peace and a "respect" for Islam will help ensure that Tahawwur Hussain Rana will get a fair trial? Why should this make any difference one way or the other? If a juror who knows that jihadists use Islamic texts and teachings to justify violence and supremacism would be more likely to convict Rana, why wouldn't it also be true that a juror who thinks that Islam is a peaceful religion that has been hijacked by a Tiny Minority of Extremists be more likely to acquit Rana?

Courtroom dhimmitude: "Rana jury selection faces bias against Muslims," by Mayank Chhaya for IANS, May 18 (thanks to Twostellas):
Chicago, May 18 : From a tooth and shoulder pain to displaying a clear bias in favour of the government, there was a diversity of reasons why some 20 potential jurors were excused May 17 by a federal judge here from participating in the trial of Mumbai terror plot suspect Tahawwur Hussain Rana.

Judge James Leinenweber spent the entire day questioning possible jurors, keeping the main thrust of his inquiry on establishing whether they had demonstrably negative views about Islam as a religion and Muslims as a community. While by and large the jurors said they had no particular antipathy towards either, some, such as juror number 14, said he did not respect Islam.

In his reply to a questionnaire that was distributed among the potential 100 jurors May 16, this particular juror reportedly wrote "Terrorists are mainly Muslims, or am I wrong?" He was promptly excused by the judge in the interest of a fair trial for Rana.

Jurors are identified only by their numbers in order to guard their privacy as well ensure personal safety. Juror number 15, apparently of South East Asian origin, was also excused because she said she could not be fair given her strong views about Islam. [...]

Rana is a Chicago businessman charged with providing a cover to his Pakistani-American high school friend David Coleman Headley for scouting targets for the Mumbai terrorist attack that left 166 people dead. [...]