Image 01 Image 03

Rasmieh Odeh Tag

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, in an Opinion released today (full embed at bottom of post), remanded the immigration fraud case of Rasmea Odeh to the District Court on the issue of whether Rasmea should have been permitted to present expert testimony. The Appeals court did not rule such evidence admissible, and did not order a new trial. Rather, the Appeals Court ruled the trial court should have at least held a hearing on the issue of expert testimony. It is possible the trial court rejects such evidence after hearing under the strict requirements for expert evidence in federal court, in which case the conviction stands. Or after hearing rules the evidence should be admitted, in which case there will be a new trial. Rasmea was convicted of immigration fraud in federal court in Detroit in November 2014 for failing to disclose her 1970 conviction in Israel for the 1969 bombing of a supermarket, which killed two university students (Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner), and attempted bombing of the British Consulate. Rasmea contends that she was convicted in Israel solely because of a false confession extracted from her after 25 days of sexual torture. In fact, as we have proven, she confessed just one day after arrest, there was substantial other evidence of her guilt, and even her co-conspirator decades later explained on video that Rasmea was the mastermind. She also received a trial in Israel that an observer from the International Red Cross termed fair.

This is one of those things that just leave you shaking your head. And it's an important lesson of why Israel can't lose any war -- there would be no mercy shown on the Jews. In early September we covered the anniversary of the 1972 Munich Massacre, in which 11 Israelis were murdered by PLO terrorists who took them hostage in the Olympic Village. Mahmoud Abbas, current President of the Palestinian Authority, reportedly financed the operation. https://youtu.be/4nOnRbTlWs0?t=32s Here are the images of the Israelis who died:

Rasmea Odeh is the supermarket bomber who killed Hebrew University students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner in 1969, served 10 years in Israeli prison before being released in a prisoner exchange, and then made her way to the U.S. in the mid-1990s. Rasmea then lied on her visa (1994) and naturalization (2003) applications, among other ways, by denying that she ever had been charged, convicted or imprisoned. Rasmea was convicted in federal court in Detroit in November 2014 of immigration fraud, sentenced to 18 months in prison, and ordered deported. We have covered many times how Rasmea is being treated as a hero by the anti-Israel activist community, The Sickening Deification of Rasmea Odeh. That despite the fact that the evidence of her guilt in the bombing and the immigration charge is overwhelming. Today Rasmea's appeal was argued in the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. I had hoped to attend, but was unable. Fortunately the audio of the oral argument is posted online (and at the bottom of this post).

Rasmea Odeh is the supermarket bomber who killed Hebrew University students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner in 1969, served 10 years in Israeli prison before being released in a prisoner exchange, and then made her way to the U.S. in the mid-1990s. Rasmea then lied on her visa and naturalization applications, among other ways, by denying that she ever had been charged, convicted or imprisoned. Rasmea was convicted in federal court in Detroit in November 2014 of immigration fraud, sentenced to 18 months in prison, and ordered deported. Rasmea danced in the aisle of the bus back to Chicago after sentencing. Rasmea is out on bond pending appeal, which will be argued in Cincinnati before the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals on October 14, 2105.

The Mythology of Rasmea's Innocence

We have covered many times how Rasmea is being treated as a hero by the anti-Israel activist community, The Sickening Deification of Rasmea Odeh. That despite the fact that the evidence of her guilt in the bombing and the immigration charge is overwhelming. That hero status is based in part on her claim that her Israeli conviction was solely because she falsely confessed after 25 days of sexual torture.  In fact, Rasmea confessed just one day after arrest, there was substantial independent evidence, and even a Red Cross observer said she received a fair trial. Rasmea’s co-conspirator decades later would brag on video about how Rasmea planned the whole thing.

In early September 1972, Palestinian "Black September" terrorists seized the Israeli Olympic team at the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany. By the time it was over, 11 Israeli athletes and one German policeman would be dead. Before the deadly conclusion, Black September demanded the release of the notorious German "Red Army Faction" terrorists Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhoff as well as 234 prisoners held in Israeli prisons. Included on that list was a name that probably meant little to people outside Israel - Rasmieh Odeh. The name Rasmieh (Rasmea) Odeh meant a lot to Israelis because Rasmea and her co-conspirators were convicted in 1970 of the 1969 bombing of the SuperSol Supermarket in Jerusalem, which killed university students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner. A second bomb placed in the SuperSol supermarket timed to go off when first responders arrived, was disarmed moments before it was to explode. As I reported when I met the families of Edward and Leon in Israel, the SuperSol bombing was scorched into the memories of Israelis because it was the first major post-1967 attack on Israeli civilians, and the funeral was a national event. Rasmea also was convicted of the attempted bombing of the British Consulate.

Rasmea Odeh is the supermarket bomber who killed Hebrew University students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner in 1969, served 10 years in Israeli prison before being released in a prisoner exchange, and then made her way to the U.S. in the mid-1990s. Rasmea then lied on her visa and naturalization applications, among other ways, by denying that she ever had been charged, convicted or imprisoned. Rasmea was convicted in federal court in Detroit in November 2014 of immigration fraud, sentenced to 18 months in prison, and ordered deported. Rasmea danced in the aisle of the bus back to Chicago after sentencing. Rasmea is out on bond pending appeal. We have covered many times how Rasmea is being treated as a hero by the anti-Israel activist community, based in part on her claim that her Israeli conviction was solely because she falsely confessed after 25 days of sexual torture. In fact, Rasmea confessed just one day after arrest, there was substantial independent evidence, and even a Red Cross observer said she received a fair trial. Rasmea's co-conspirator decades later would brag on video about how Rasmea planned the whole thing. [caption id="attachment_106215" align="alignnone" width="600"]http://www.investigativeproject.org/4634/part-3-spinning-a-terrorist-into-a-victim-rasmieh (Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner)[/caption] In our analysis of Rasmea's initial Appeal Brief, we noted Rasmea Odeh Appeal has fundamental inconsistency:

Rasmea Odeh is the supermarket bomber who killed Hebrew University students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner in 1969, served 10 years in Israeli prison before being released in a prisoner exchange, and then made her way to the U.S. in the mid-1990s. Rasmea then lied on her visa and naturalization applications, among other ways, by denying that she ever had been charged, convicted or imprisoned. Rasmea was convicted in federal court in Detroit in November 2014 of immigration fraud, sentenced to 18 months in prison, and ordered deported. Rasmea danced in the aisle of the bus back to Chicago after sentencing. Rasmea is out on bond pending appeal. We have covered many times how Rasmea is being treated as a hero by the anti-Israel activist community, based in part on her claim that her Israeli conviction was solely because she falsely confessed after 25 days of sexual torture. In fact, she confessed just one day after arrest, there was substantial independent evidence, and even a Red Cross observer said she received a fair trial. Decades later, after they all were out of prison, Rasmea's key co-conspirator credited Rasmea with being the mastermind of the supermarket bombing. http://youtu.be/v0Va7-cNxf8 The fêting of Rasmea has picked up steam. She appeared at a fundraiser attended by 500 or so people at the University of Illinois - Chicago, in a joint appearance with Angela Davis:

Rasmieh (Rasmea) Odeh is the convicted bomber of the SuperSol supermarket in "West" Jerusalem in 1969 which killed Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner.   The evidence of Rasmea’s guilt was and is overwhelming, and has grown more so over the years. See my prior posts on the case: Rasmea had a lawyer in the Israeli trial, and engaged in extensive pre-trial litigation and trial that stretched over the better part of a year. An International Red Cross observer termed the trial to be fair. While Rasmea would claim that the conviction was the result of her confession coerced through 25 days of sexual torture, in fact Rasmea confessed the day after arrest and there was evidence independent of the confession. Moreoever, years later, after they all were out of prison, Rasmea's main co-conspirator would credit Rasmea with being the mastermind. Rasmea was sentence to life in prison, then was released in 1979 in a mass prisoner exchange for an Israeli soldier captured in Lebanon.  She eventually made her way to the U.S. in the 1990s In November 2014, Rasmea was convicted in federal court in Detroit of lying on her immigration and naturalization forms, by falsely denying she ever had been arrested, convicted or imprisoned. Rasmea was sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered deported. She is free on bond pending appeal.

On a windswept hillside terrace in the massive Har HaMenuchot Cemetery on the western edge of Jerusalem, 1969 terror victims Edward Joffe and Leon ("Arie") Kanner are buried together, next to Edward's parents Roslyn and Hyman Joffe. The cemetery itself reflects the history of the conflict. Har HaMenuchot was opened in 1951, after Jordanian troops seized "East" Jerusalem after Israel declared Independence in 1948. Jordan's conquest included not only the Jewish Quarter of the Old City but also the Mount of Olives Cemetery, the traditional Jewish burial ground. The Jewish Quarter was ethnically cleansed of Jews and its Jewish landmarks, while Mount of Olives Cemetery was ransacked, its tombstones used for building projects and many of its graves paved over for roads. Har HaMenuchot was built in response. [caption id="attachment_130311" align="alignnone" width="600"]Har HaMenuchot Cemetery Jerusalem [Har HaMenuchot Cemetery, Jerusalem][/caption]  My wife and I visited the Joffe and Kanner graves at Har HaMenuchot on June 1, 2015. [Featured Image] The cemetery is so huge, so seemingly discombobulated, so logistically impenetrable even when armed with plot and section numbers, that it took us almost an hour to find the graves.  We were accompanied by a local Rabbi who helped us say prayers. We placed small stones on the graves, in the Jewish tradition. And we were overcome with emotion. The inscriptions on the graves are simple, and nearly identical. Edward's brother Harold provided the translation: [caption id="attachment_130324" align="alignnone" width="600"][Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner Headstones] [Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner Headstones][/caption]

My wife and I are back, after an intense two weeks in Israel. From the Lebanese to Gaza borders, from the Mediterranean Sea to Judea and Samaria, from the cool evenings of Jerusalem to the heat of the Negev Desert, from an apartment in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem to Bedouin villages in the north and south, from university campuses to military bases, from faculty to students, from Jews to Muslims ... I can't say we saw it all, but we saw a lot. I've documented most of our big events in daily posts, with the exception of our emotional meetings with the families of Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner, students killed in the 1969 Supersol supermarket bombing by Rasmea Odeh; that post is coming, but I still have new photos, documents and information I have to work through. Here are my 5 Big Takeaways from the trip:

1. Our Revenge Is That "We Are Still Here"

Near the start of our trip, we visited Moshav Avivim on the Lebanese border, where we met Shimon Biton, a survivor of the 1970 bazooka attack on a school bus by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Biton, who was six and one-half years old, lost his father in the attack, and himself was shot point blank range by the terrorists when they realized he survived the bazooka attack.  Ten days before we met Biton, he was reunited for the first time in 45 years with the nurse who helped save him.  (Featured Image)

We reported last week that supporters of convicted terrorist and immigration fraudster Rasmea Odeh were protesting a Justice Award to U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade, Rasmea Odeh Prosecutor to get Justice Award. For background on the case, see Rasmea Odeh rightly convicted of Israeli supermarket bombing and U.S. immigration fraud. The Justice Award was given by the Michigan-based Arab-American Civil Rights League (ACRL) among other groups, including the local NAACP chapter. Rasmea's supporters were furious, demanding that the Justice Award be revoked. They launched a social media campaign encouraging people to dall the ACRL, and issued veiled threats of retaliation. Many of the tweets were what we have come to expect in the case, a complete distortion of the reality of Rasmea's guilt: It didn't work. ACRL and the other groups gave McQuade the Justice Award Friday night, May 1, 2015, as planned. McQuade was celebrated for her work, and appeared among many area Arab-Americans to accept the award.

Rasmea Odeh was convicted in Israel in 1970 of the 1969 supermarket bombing that killed two students, Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner.   The evidence of Rasmea's guilt was overwhelming, as we documented.  Rasmea was released in a prisoner exchange in 1979, and eventually made her way to the U.S. in the mid-1990s. [caption id="attachment_115293" align="alignnone" width="600"]Rasmea Odeh Protest Vigil DePaul 2-3-2015 Student Holding Photos [Vigil Remembering Victims of Rasmea Odeh, DePaul University 2-3-2015][/caption] Rasmea flat-out lied on her immigration and naturalization papers, when she denied that she ever had been convicted or incarcerated. Rasmea was prosecuted in federal Court in Detroit for immigration fraud by prosecutors in the office of U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade. Rasmea's excuses for lying were lacking any credibility, and the jury took only 2 hours to convict her. Rasmea was sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered deported after that. As we have reported before, Rasmea has been turned into a hero of the anti-Israel activist community, based in large part on her claim that the Israeli conviction was based on a confession extracted after 25 days of sexual torture. In fact, the documentary evidence shows Rasmea confessed just one day after arrest, was implicated by others as the mastermind, and the conviction was supported by other evidence, such as bomb-making material found in her bedroom.

Yesterday, March 12, 2015, Rasmea Odeh was sentenced to 18 months in prison, stripped of her U.S. citizenship, and ordered deported. None of that will take effect until her appeal is concluded, and she is free on bond pending appeal. There was a "national mobilization" to bus supporters to the court, and an organized letter writing campaign to the Judge. The supporters apparently filled the court room and designated overflow room, but as this video indicates, their protests were pretty lacking: (language warning) Rasmea's crime for which she was sentenced was unlawfully procuring naturalization by falsely stating on her immigration and naturalization applications that she never had been convicted of a crime or been incarcerated. In fact, Rasmea was convicted in 1970 in Israel of a 1969 supermarket bombing in which two students -- Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner -- were killed, and other terrorist activity including the attempted bombing of the British Consulate. The evidence of Rasmea's guilt on both the immigration and terrorism charges was overwhelming. Rasmea's supporters continue to claim that Rasmea was found guilty in Israel only because she confessed to the bombing after 25 days of sexual torture. In fact, Rasmea confessed one day after arrest, there was substantial other evidence against her, and years later her co-conspirators gave interviews to pro-Palestinian filmmakers highlighting that Rasmea was the mastermind of the bombing.

[Note: We will add video and a report from a Legal Insurrection correspondent at the court house as an Update later.] (Video here) Rasmea Odeh was convicted in Israel of the 1969 bombing of the Super Sol supermarket in Jerusalem, in which Hebrew University students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner were killed, in addition to the attempted bombing of the British Consulate. Rasmea served 10 years of a life sentence before being released in a prisoner exchange in 1979 for an Israeli soldier captured in Lebanon. Rasmea later immigrated to the United States, where she has made Chicago her home since the mid-1990s. In November 2014, Rasmea was convicted in federal court in Detroit of falsely procuring naturalization, by concealing her Israeli convictions and incarceration. The evidence supporting both the Israeli and Detroit convictions is overwhelming and from multiple sources, as I demonstrated in Rasmea Odeh rightly convicted of Israeli supermarket bombing and U.S. immigration fraud. Rasmea's claim that she confessed to the bombing only after several weeks of sexual torture was contradicted by the fact that she confessed one day after arrest, and by corroborating evidence including a filmed interview years later with a co-conspirator. The prosecution sought a 5-7 year sentence on the immigration charge, well beyond the 12-21 month guidelines, based in part of Rasmea obstructing justice in the case by lying during testimony and disobeying the Judge's instructions not to testify as to her alleged torture. The families of the bombing victims submitted letters to the court, one of which called the Judge's attention to my post documenting Rasmea's guilt in the bombing and false claims as to the confession. The Judge just ruled this morning, sentencing Rasmea to 18 months in prison, revocation of citizenships plus judicially-ordered deportation at the end of prison to Jordan, and fines. (See Twitter stream below)

Rasmea Odeh is the Chicago resident who was convicted of a supermarket bombing in Jerusalem in 1969 that killed Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner, two university students. Despite claims from Rasmea's supporters, the evidence of her guilt was overwhelming, as set forth in my post, Rasmea Odeh rightly convicted of Israeli supermarket bombing and U.S. immigration fraud. That evidence was bolstered even further with additional bombing evidence revealed in the Sentencing Memorandum filed by prosecutors in a criminal case in Detroit, in which Rasmea was found guilty in November 2014 of immigration fraud for concealing her Israeli conviction and imprisonment. Sentencing is March 12, 2015. Claims that Rasmea only confessed after several weeks of sexual torture are belied by the fact that she gave a detailed confession just one day after arrest in 1969. That confession was further confirmed decades later in pro-Palestinian documentaries in which Rasmea's co-conspirators confirmed Rasmea's leadership role in the bombing. Nonetheless, Rasmea has been turned into a hero of the American anti-Israel activist community. A Justice4Rasmea shirt even was worn by a protester at the anti-AIPAC protest led by Code Pink and others. In court proceedings, Rasmea remains defiant, alleging a conspiracy against her, acknowledging responsibility for nothing. Rasmea's mendacity on the witness stand, in which she not only lied but defied the Judge's orders, forms part of the basis why the government is seeking a 5-7 year sentence, almost three times the sentencing guidelines. We have focused, to date, on Edward Joffe, including statements by Edward's brother and niece, and a video of Edward's mother reflecting on the loss of her son:

Rasmea Odeh was convicted in Israel in 1970 of the 1969 supermarket bombing that killed students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner. She was convicted again in Detroit in November 2014 of falsely procuring naturalization, by concealing her conviction and incarceration in Israel on U.S. immigration and naturalization applications. Rasmea has become a hero in the anti-Israel activist community and among groups like Students for Justice in Palestine, on the narrative that her original Israeli conviction was unjust as it was the result of a confession extracted after several weeks of horrific sexual torture. The trial judge ruled any such evidence inadmissible, as the immigration charge had to deal with concealment of the conviction and incarceration, not whether Rasmea was guilty of the bombing charges. Rasmea is due to be sentenced on the immigration charge on March 12, 2015. While she faces 10 years in prison it is highly unlikely she will receive anywhere near that much time. The prosecution has not yet filed its sentencing request (or if it did, it's not on PACER yet). In the run up to sentencing, Rasmea's supporters have organized fundraisers, livestream events, and letter writing campaigns urging the Judge to show leniency. There are dozens of groups organizing the effort: http://uspcn.org/2015/02/16/court-denies-motions-from-palestinian-activist-rasmea-odeh-supporters-mobilize-for-march-12-sentencing-in-detroit/ There are campus events sponsored by groups such as the Middle East Studies Association at Loyola University in Chicago:

Basil Joffe is the brother of Edward Joffe, who was killed in the 1969 Super Sol supermarket bombing in Jerusalem for which Rasmea Odeh was convicted. The evidence of Rasmea's guilt is overwhelming. When she immigrated to the U.S., Rasmea concealed her conviction in Israel and her 10-year incarceration (her life sentence was commuted in 1979 in a prisoner swap for an Israeli soldier captured in Lebanon.) Rasmea was convicted in November 2014 in federal court in Detroit of unlawfully procuring naturalization. She faces sentencing on March 12, 2015. The evidence of Rasmea's guilt for both the bombing and the immigration fraud is overwhelming, as detailed in Rasmea Odeh rightly convicted of Israeli supermarket bombing and U.S. immigration fraud. Rasmea's supporters have launched a national letter writing campaign to the Judge asking for leniency. As happened at the trial, Rasmea's supporters are planning protests and demonstrations leading up to and at the sentencing. Basil and his daughter, Terry Benaryeh, attended the trial. Terry wrote a guest column at Legal Insurrection, Rasmea Odeh is no hero:
It is with much sadness, disappointment, and frustration that I write to you today. I spent last week attending the Immigration Fraud Trial in Detroit of Rasmieh Odeh. I sat in that courtroom with my father (alone in our row) surrounded by supporters of Odeh. We endured days of hateful looks and the rehashing of a traumatic event that changed my family forever.