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Megahed Released To Parents' House With Monitoring

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By ELAINE SILVESTRINI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 5, 2008

TAMPA – Nine months after he was arrested in South Carolina, former University of South Florida student Youssef Megahed walked out of a federal courthouse Monday, free to live in his parents' house while prosecutors appeal an evidence ruling.

Megahed's release was vigorously opposed last September by prosecutors who argued he was a danger to the community. But on Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hoffer did not argue against letting Megahed out of jail on $200,000 bail, $100,000 to be secured by a check from Megahed's
parents and the rest by a signature bond, signed by the parents.

Megahed is to live in his parents' house under GPS monitoring.

As he walked from the U.S. Courthouse on North Florida Avenue, Megahed had no comments, except to say he felt "good." His smiling father, Samir, said, "I'm very happy. This is a second birth for him."

Megahed was arrested in South Carolina on Aug. 4 along with Ahmed Mohamed after deputies found what prosecutors say were explosive materials in the trunk of their car. Mohamed faces trial in July.

Under the court's order of release, Megahed is to leave the family home only for meetings with his lawyer, court appearances and preapproved religious services and medical appointments. The entire family was required to turn over all passports, and the home's Internet access was to be removed.

Megahed was scheduled to go on trial today, but the trial was delayed after prosecutors appealed an evidence ruling issued Friday by U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday.

Merryday had said that if the trial were delayed, he would consider releasing Megahed, because he has served the majority of the likely 10-16-month prison sentence he would receive if convicted.

Merryday issued an order this morning telling U.S. Magistrate Elizabeth Jenkins to establish Megahed's conditions of release. In September, Jenkins ordered Megahed released on bail, but Merryday overruled her order.

On Friday, Merryday said prosecutors had missed a court deadline for sharing evidence with the defense, and he barred the government from using files taken from the Megahed family home computer.

The prosecution wants to use 36 files it describes in court papers as containing "images of a number of improvised explosive device attacks against military forces in the Middle East. One such video shows the explosion of a military vehicle and then depicts the damaged parts of that vehicle strewn across the roadside. Close-up shots depict parts of what appears to be the military vehicle, with English writing on it and information printed on the damaged pieces to reflect their manufacture in the United States."

Other videos show "the firing of Qassam-style rockets in what appears to be the Middle East, with audio and written text that extols their use," according to the prosecution.

Merryday said he had no reason to conclude that prosecutors acted in bad faith, but he added that he didn't understand why the government had not done everything possible to find all relevant evidence before the court-imposed deadline for turning over information to the defense.

Jeffrey Brown, a defense lawyer who is not involved in the case, said the fact that the prosecution did not oppose Megahed's release today "speaks volumes" about how badly they want to use the computer evidence. "I think they realize that they really need that video," Brown said. "I think they recognize there's a great chance they'd lose the case without that."

Brown said the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals could act pretty quickly, possibly as quickly as a day or two, on the prosecution's appeal.

The prosecution argued in court on Friday that instead of barring the use of the evidence, the court could delay the trial to give the defense time to analyze it.

By appealing and putting the trial on hold, the prosecution could argue that the defense wasn't harmed by prosecution's delay in turning over evidence. But Brown said, "There has to be some sort of penalty for not complying with the rules. The government is always saying you have to follow the law. They're always the one saying there are rules, we all have to live by them. And if you violate the rules, then there's a penalty. Yet they want an exception when it's them."

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