Umar…
Van September 13th, 2010
I knew there was a joke there somewhere…I just had to wait for it. In this case, the joker is Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab otherwise known as the “underwear bomber.” Wouldn’t you just love to have that moniker hanging around your neck for the rest of history? We’ve had the “shoe bomber,” now comes…the “underwear bomber.”
For those who may not recall, this is the 23 year old Nigerian national, who tried to light his fully loaded underpants on Christmas day last year on Northwest Airlines flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit. He happened to be wearing a set of boxers, or briefs, we can’t and don’t want to be any more sure of which, made of plastique, or also known by the generic designation of PETN. And for those who are not familiar, this is some pretty nasty stuff. For further information on PETN click here.
Just to bring everyone up to speed, in case you’ve been living under a rock or on another planet, this guy was stopped by other passengers on the plane seeing him use a lighter and trying to light something sticking out of his pants. I’m thinking to myself, why is it, when I came back from Canada 2 years ago, did I have to let Mr. Customs practically feel my junk in order to get on the plane, and this guy waltzes on a trans-Atlantic flight with plastique in his pants. I still have nightmares about that trip. Anyway, back to business here. In any case, he got on and nearing landing tried to light up, which was seen by other passengers, who then heroically jumped him and subdued him.
So Umar, has been charged with several nasty sounding charges, including “Attempted Use of a Weapon of Mass Destruction” and “Willful Attempt to Destroy an Aircraft” among others and is looking at probably several life sentences. What do you suppose will be his greeting upon entering the federal lockup. “Hey, is that plastique in your pants, or are you just glad to see me?” He can only hope it will be that kind.
So the joke is, he fired his lawyers today and will be representing himself in court. U.S. District Judge, Nancy Edmonds, almost pleadingly asked him if he was familiar with the US legal system, and court procedures, to which he answered, of course, NO, and he even admitted that English was not even his first language. Per Umar, “I prefer to represent myself. Any representation I have, there will always be a conflict of interest…any representation I get would present me in a way that is not in my best interest.” Amazing. Finally and it seems almost desparate, the judge assigned standby counsel for the accused to answer questions he may have during the court proceedings.
He did ask the judge a question, and I can’t figure out if it’s shrewd or stupid, “If I want to plead guilty to some counts, how would I go?” To which the judge wisely answered, that’s the reason he has standby counsel. What’s most amazing is this incredible legal system of ours that seems to really try to protect the rights of the accused.
Well, if you’ve tried to get on a plane wearing plastique pants, don’t call us. However, if you’ve gotten a ticket, or you have warrants outstanding, or there’s some criminal charges looming for which you need representation, please DO call us. Once you call, we’ll do more than standby, we’ll get right into your case and bring things to a conclusion. We’re Ticket Busters at 666-6666 and The Defenders at 333-3333. We are standing by, just waiting for your call.
