Appeals Court Reverses Convictions in Kidnapping and Terrorism Case Involving 3-Year-Old Boy's Death
The court found insufficient evidence for kidnapping and a jury-instruction error, while sending terrorism and material-support counts back for retrial.
- On Tuesday, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed kidnapping convictions for Hujrah Wahhaj, Subhanah Wahhaj, and Lucas Morton, ruling prosecutors failed to prove the child was taken unlawfully because the father held legal custody.
- Authorities raided the remote Amalia, New Mexico, compound in 2018, discovering 11 children and the remains of 3-year-old Abdul Ghani, who died during religious rituals intended to rid him of evil spirits.
- Writing for the court, Judge Gregory Phillips noted that while the situation was an "unattractive immoral situation," the trial judge misled the jury by implying the mother's lack of consent satisfied the legal requirement for kidnapping.
- The appeals panel also vacated terrorism-related convictions for Siraj Ibn Wahhaj and Lucas Morton, ruling the trial court "breached the men's Sixth Amendment rights" by excluding the self-represented defendants from critical jury discussions.
- Prosecutors are now barred from retrying the kidnapping charges, though the court remanded the remaining terrorism and material-support counts against Ibn Wahhaj and Morton to the district court for potential new trials.
11 Articles
11 Articles
Appeals court reverses convictions in kidnapping and terrorism case in
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A federal appeals court has vacated kidnapping convictions in a case involving the death of a 3-year-old boy who went missing from Georgia in 2017 and later turned up dead at a squalid
Appeals court reverses convictions in kidnapping and terrorism case involving 3-year-old boy's death
A federal appeals court has vacated kidnapping convictions in a case involving the death of a 3-year-old boy who went missing from Georgia in 2017 and later turned up dead at a squalid compound in New Mexico.
Convictions reversed for 4 people tied to Taos compound
TAOS COUNTY, N.M. (KRQE) – KRQE News learned of a significant development in the case of a militant compound in northern New Mexico. The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the kidnapping convictions of three people, Hujrah Wahhaj, Sbhanah Wahhaj, and Lucas Morton, linked to a terrorist compound near Taos. The court also vacated conspiracy [...]
10th Circuit vacates family convictions in 3-year-old’s desert compound death
(CN) — The 10th Circuit vacated on Tuesday the kidnapping convictions of family members of a father who took his 3-year-old to a remote compound in New Mexico, where the child died during an exorcism ritual intended to rid him of evil spirits. The appellate panel also vacated the convictions of the father, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, and his brother-in-law, Lucas Morton, of conspiracy to provide material support to kill federal officers, as well as actual…
Life Sentences Tossed: Appeals Court Scraps Verdicts In Bizarre New Mexico Compound Exorcism Case
A federal appeals court on Tuesday threw out all convictions tied to a remote northern New Mexico compound where a 3-year-old boy died in 2017 and adults engaged in tactical firearms training. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the kidnapping convictions against Hujrah Wahhaj, Subhanah Wahhaj, and Lucas Morton, barring prosecutors from retrying […] Life Sentences Tossed: Appeals Court Scraps Verdicts In Bizarre New Mexico Compound E…
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