California Man Sentenced to 30 Years for Conspiring to Support Islamic State Anaheim resident was convicted in connection with helping co-defendant get to Syria By John R. Emshwiller
http://www.wsj.com/articles/california-man-sentenced-to-30-years-for-conspiring-to-support-islamic-state-1476909683
LOS ANGELES—A Southern California man convicted of conspiring to provide support to the terrorist organization Islamic State was sentenced to 30 years in prison Wednesday by a federal judge in Santa Ana, Calif.
Muhanad Badawi, a 26-year-old resident of Anaheim, in Orange County, was convicted in connection with his efforts to help his co-defendant in the criminal case, 26-year-old Nader Salem Elhuzayel, get to Syria to fight for Islamic State, also known as ISIL.
In September, Mr. Elhuzayel was sentenced to 30 years in prison by U.S. District Judge David Carter, who also handed down Mr. Badawi’s sentence.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles, which prosecuted the two men, had recommended a 30-year sentence for Mr. Badawi. Through words and action, Mr. Badawi “demonstrated his deep commitment to the ISIL ideology and his corresponding antagonism to the fundamental values of the U.S.,” said one government court filing.
“Badawi and Elhuzayel wanted to fight for ISIL, desired to become so-called martyrs and supported ISIL’s terrorist activities. Prosecutions such as this are critically important to our national security,” Eileen M. Decker, the U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, said in a statement.
Mr. Badawi’s attorneys had recommended a sentence of no more than 15 years. Such a sentence “achieves the goals of deterrence, incapacitation and rehabilitation. A greater sentence does not achieve a greater level of justice,” said a defense court filing.
At a hearing Monday, Judge Carter had raised the possibility of assigning Mr. Badawi to a program aimed at “de-radicalizing” individuals who have become followers of terrorist groups. A federal judge in Minnesota has been exploring the use of such a program for defendants facing terrorism-related charges.
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