By Joyce Kryszak
Buffalo, NY – U.S. Magistrate H. Kenneth Schroeder issued only one "get out of jail card" in the case of the alleged Lackawanna Six sleeper cell. Sahim Alwan is considered the lucky one to be granted bail pending his trial. But his conditional release will make him a veritable prisoner in his own home.
The conditions of Alwan's release are many, they're strict, and they're costly. First he must raise $600,000 bond, in either cash or equivalent property. Family and friends have pledged to get that together probably within a week. But there are fifteen other conditions.
Among them is a Global Positioning System, or GPS, to track Alwan's every move. The problem is the sophisticated system hasn't been used here for prisoners yet. So, Alwan will have to wait until authorities get one. UB law professor Lee Albert is a former federal prosecutor who's seen just about everything over the course of his career. But he says Judge Schroeder's managed to surprise him.
"The GPS device I'm not familiar with, but certainly, in this day and age, you can put a GPS device on," said Albert. "Well, the other conditions are fairly standard. The no use of computers, electronic devices, PDA's, that's a little bit of a reach. But it's certainly lawful as a condition of bail."
Judge Schroeder ordered the extraordinary security measures to reassure the community. And he ordered Alwan to pay for them. According to his attorney James Harrington, that could cost Alwan as much as $40 a day. That's almost $15,000 for a year of surveillance, the time estimated it will take before the case reaches trial. But Harrington says Alwan, who currently is suspended from his job, might not be able to pay. And that could mean the government would pick up the tab.
"If he can't meet the payments, then that's a situation we'll have to go back to the judge and discuss," said Harrington. "Normally, in cases where electronic monitoring is imposed, where someone doesn't have the resources to pay for it, the court directs that the probation department has to provide it anyway. If we reach that point, we'll have to go back to the judge and discuss it with him."
Harrington says Alwan may also be asking the probation department for some leniency on travel restrictions if he has to find another job, to pay his new bills.