Monday, July 23, 2012
By FREDERIC J. FROMMER
The judge overseeing the case of a Somali man accused of negotiating a ransom payment during a 2008 pirate takeover of a Danish merchant told prosecutors they had engaged in "inexcusable behavior."
U.S. District Judge Ellen Huvelle also said the government will have a hard time winning a conviction.
She was furious after prosecutors told her at a status conference hearing last Friday that the alleged pirate, Ali Mohamed Ali, had been in international waters for only 24 to 28 minutes.
Huvelle said she found that astounding, adding that she felt like prosecutors had misled her. That from a court transcript.
Ali's trial is scheduled to start next week.