November 2011
1 post
Feeling Sad for Joe Paterno
News broke tonight that the Penn St. Board of Trustees fired Joe Paterno and relieved him of his duties as head football coach of the Nittany Lions. Seems as if the entire news media agrees with this sudden turn of events. Every sports radio talk show host, sports writer and TV personality I’ve heard, read or seen has called for Paterno’s firing and parroted one another’s...
October 2011
2 posts
US Government: Judge, Jury & Executioner of Anwar...
In May, the US government executed Osama Bin Laden without any notion of due process, engaging in what I dubbed “Batman Justice“ (see my blog post on the subject). The assassination received critical acclaim; even Muslim civil rights and religious organizations welcomed the killing, despite the glaring civil rights deprivations undertaken by our government. CAIR issued a press...
I Stand Informed on the Irvine 11
Last week, I shared my thoughts on the infamous Irvine 11 trial. Much of my post centered on hypotheticals and assumptions, specifically the inference that the Orange County DA’s office offered the Irvine 11 community service for a dismissal. Fortunately, one of the defense attorneys, Tarek Shawky, read my post and was kind enough to respond (see his comments below my original Irvine 11...
September 2011
1 post
Debriefing the Irvine 11 Trial & Verdict
Dozens of thoughts cycled through my mind today as I anticipated and then heard the Orange County jury’s verdict for the Irvine 11 (although only 10 were tried). The Orange County District Attorney charged the 10 students, for those unfamiliar with the case, with a misdemeanor violation of California Penal Code Section 403 which states in part, “Every person who, without authority...
May 2011
2 posts
Muslims & Criminal Law.
Growing up part of a relatively affluent, educated, immigrant, practicing Muslim community in the Bay Area, I noticed a sense of immunity and invincibility amongst us. Our brethren felt above issues that dogged and burdened society and other communities, specifically domestic violence, drugs and all things criminal. When these topics would arise, our Muslims would create two camps, us and...
OBL's Death: Batman Justice
As details emerged about Osama Bin Laden’s death and after listening to President Obama’s address, it became clear that the US Government and military acted as the prosecution, jury, judge and executioner in the “trial,” or lack thereof, of Osama Bin Laden. The goal of the military mission was to kill, not capture, OBL.
Everyone accused of a crime, no matter how heinous...
November 2010
5 posts
Mean Kids →
I make my debut in one of Sabir Pirzada’s many awesome short films.
Johannes Mehserle, Oscar Grant and the Law.
This post comes a bit tardy, but still relevant (hopefully). The trial and sentencing of BART police officer Johannes Mehserle evoked tremendous emotions and debate, so I thought I’d chime in with my perspective.
Charge
The fact that the Alameda County District Attorney charged Mehserle with a crime, let alone murder, should be considered a victory for those who cry afoul at police...
Legendary Hair
Legendary Hair
Prickly
Black hairs scatter across the sink and
Bathroom floor
A mess my sister deplores
One by one, they descend from
My face to the drain
A beard takes form on my skin,
Fuzz that traces its history
Through generations of hair
A storied past of strong men with
Paramount belief
The hair upon my face
Connects to that of my brother,
Both which extend
From the follicle roots of my...
Ode to Toilets
Ode to Toilets
God
Created you and I of
Different color and creed
You white
Me born brown
Yet we coexist without conflict
Survive the
Shit
That shackles other friendships
You sometimes
Run
Your mouth
butt
You stand as a sanctuary still
Source of release
Relief from impurities that reside within me.
I constantly inconvenience you with
Crap
Yet you
Flush
It all away
free of frustration
You...
Aap Kya He?
Was browsing through my old emails and unearthed some poetry I wrote back when I was a student back at Cal. Will post some from time to time.
Aap Kya He?
Asked aapka nam kya he?
My mind sifts through Desi memories
scrambles for words to answer
in Urdu:
Mera nam Sajid he
But my American tongue slips:
My name is Sajid
Kya haal he beta?
Bahoth acha houn
I would reply if I were
Sajid born in...
October 2010
3 posts
Too young to vote, but old enough to go to prison....
As a law student, I interned for a public defender who handled homicides. The first case I worked on involved a high school student, not yet sixteen, accused of shooting his father and then burning his house down. The District Attorney’s office charged the student as an adult rather than as a juvenile. The young man, not old enough to drive, faced life in prison (rather than death,...
The Formula.
Trial? Plea bargain? The working formula I suggest my clients utilize in making this life-altering decision:
Weigh the consequences and implications of the DA’s offer vs. the strength of the DA’s case vs. the weaknesses of the DA’s case including potential defenses vs. the risk of trial (maximum penalty and consequences if found guilty of one or all the charges) vs. the...
Bill Simmons: The Redemption of Michael Vick →
Amazing article on something I touched on in a previous post: Redemption. Bill Simmons with some amazing insight on Michael Vick and his recent success.
Couldn’t have put it better myself: “If Vick didn’t pay a reasonable price for his sins, it would be one thing. But he torched his career, blew a lucrative contract, went bankrupt, spent 19 months in prison and became a...
September 2010
10 posts
A Public Defender Love Story
Growing up, I aspired to be a lawyer to strive for social change, ironically inspired by Malcolm X, a non-lawyer. I went to law school with the intention of working in the generic “civil rights” field, helping people afflicted by discrimination and prejudice. Perhaps working with the EEOC fighting bigotry in the workplace, maybe combating housing inequities, possibly preventing...
9/11/01. Everyone remembers where they were, what they were doing when they first saw those shocking images. Here’s my 9/11 story, or at least what I remember of it. What’s yours?
Ironically, today, I spent the afternoon with my brother in Berkeley watching Cal play Colorado at Memorial Stadium. Nine years ago to the day, I was in Berkeley as well, a UC Berkeley student when...
Eid Mubarak!
Eid Mubarak (aka Happy Eid) to one and all.
Turns out there was no September 11th Eid (most, if not all, Muslims celebrated Eid on Friday, September 10), so my last post on that possibility has become somewhat moot. But as my friend Khaled pointed out, the same veiled demonization and vilification that prompted the opposition to Muslims enjoying themselves on 9/11 seems to be at the root of the...
Eid on September 11th
For most American Muslim communities, Ramadan’s last day falls on Thursday, September 9th with the Eid holiday (commemorating the end of Ramadan) celebrated on Friday the 10th. There remains a possibility for some Muslims that Eid could land on Saturday, September 11 based on their communities’ interpretation of the lunar calender. With the looming chance of Eid coinciding with...
A small town answers a hate crime with solidarity;... →
“I’ve seen these Muslim doctors help people who have no money, no health insurance; start free clinics; run food drives. Dr. Anwar is my boss, my friend and a caring person. I feel like I would lay down my life for him.”
Kill 'Em With Kindness
Prior to my current position, I worked as a public defender in Contra Costa County with a friend named Matt. Matt represented a young African-American client charged with unlawful possession of firearm based on an incident where police in Richmond, CA found him with a gun during a car stop.
The young man insisted that he had confiscated the gun from a child he coached in youth football and...
Redemption
I once spoke to a client’s grandmother about my client and his case. He was a young man, barely twenty years old, charged with a fairly significant felony. It was a defensible case, and the charge significant enough to fight to avoid being saddled with that scarlet letter on his record for his remaining years.
His grandmother spoke of all the problems and heartache my client had...
August 2010
1 post
Sajid A. Khan, Deputy Public Defender
Crack cocaine possession. Marijuana sales. Domestic violence. The usual cases I handled on my first go at being a felony trial attorney. That was until last week, when one of my first sex cases appeared on my desk. My client is accused by his biological daughter of repeatedly orally copulating her and having her orally copulate him. He’s staring down a potential life prison sentence if...