Home | Business News | Browse by Publication | N | NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs

CUBA NEWS IN BRIEF.

Article Excerpt
Instead of passing sentence on defendants in the James Sabzali case, the trial judge threw out the convictions citing unsupported and inflammatory arguments by the federal prosecutor. Sabzali and others were convicted of violating the US embargo against Cuba. The first sugar harvest since the reorganization and downsizing of the industry is one of the smallest in decades. The American Library Association (ALA) has tabled a motion to condemn Cuba for persecution of the independent librarians. An ALA report claims they are US- financed dissidents.

Judge overturns conviction in James Sabzali case

On June 16, US District Court Judge Mary McLaughlin threw out the conviction of Bro-Tech Corp. of Philadelphia, James Sabzali, Bro-Tech's marketing director, and the company's vice president Donald B. Brodie. They were convicted in April 2002 on charges of conspiracy and violating the 1919 Trading with the Enemy Act by selling some US$2 million in water- purification chemicals to Cuba for use in hospitals and factories (see NotiCen, 2002-04-11).

Sabzali originally faced 205 years in prison and a US$5 million fine. The government said the case involved national- security issues. Prosecutors eventually asked for prison sentences of up to 62 months for him and Brodie.

The case became notorious in Canada because Bro-Tech is an Ontario-registered company and Sabzali is a Canadian citizen who transferred to Philadelphia in 1996 to work at Bro-Tech's subsidiary there.

Defense attorneys argued that, since many of...