"Wilk ends testimony about why he killed Broward deputy"

Kenneth Wilk testified for seven days! The Sun-Sentinel reports: "At times during his testimony, the 14 jurors -- 10 women and four men -- looked intrigued. At other times, they looked bored. They are expected to start deliberating early next week."

Padilla's prints

Yesterday, the government and defense debated the significance of Jose Padilla's fingerprints on an al-Qaida training camp application. His prints are found only on the first and last pages, so the defense was able to establish that it was consistent with Padilla being handed the form. To add to their theory, the prints weren't tested until August 2006, after he was already in the brig for quite some time. If he was asked about the form in the brig, he may have handled it. Of course, the government will argue that the prints demonstrate that it was Padilla who filled out the form. Here's the AP coverage of the testimony.

Today, one of the New York men who pleaded guilty to terrorism support charges is expected to testify. Yahya Goba has said he filled out an identical form for the same al-Qaida training camp Padilla is accused of filling out a form for. Goba is serving a 10-year prison sentence and is cooperating with federal prosecutors.

Civil trial

A helpful reader has sent me the following email:

You're missing out on the big civil trial going on right now in front of Judge Altonaga. In 2005, the M/V Norwegian Dawn sailed into a storm off the coast of South Carolina while en-route from the Bahamas to NYC. A class action was brought against NCL, but Judge Altonaga denied certification. The case has proceeded with 400 named plaintiffs. After initially granting plaintiffs' motion for bifurcation, then reversing herself, Judge Altonaga ordered that all 400 cases be tried, five plaintiffs at a time.

The first trial commenced today, and it's expected to last at least three weeks.

The attorneys are Curtis Mase and Richard Lara for NCL; Brett Rivkind and Nicolas Sakellis for the plaintiffs.

Yikes. 400 plaintiffs, 5 at a time is 80 trials. 80 trials at 3 weeks a piece is 240 weeks or 4 1/2 years. I'm sure Judge Altonaga goes home every night and prays to the settlement gods.

Robin Rosenbaum in the DBR

Julie Kay follows up on our scoop here that Robin Rosenbaum in the new Ft. Lauderdale Magistrate.

Tom Langston?

That's the name used by the CIA agent who testified in disguise during yesterday's proceedings in Jose Padilla's trial. Jay Weaver reports:

The man who appeared in Miami federal court on Tuesday hid his identity as a CIA officer by using the alias ''Tom Langston'' and wearing a discreet disguise -- black-rimmed glasses along with a closely cropped beard.
Testifying as a witness in Jose Padilla's terror trial, he told jurors that only three months after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, an unnamed man in Afghanistan gave him a blue binder with dozens of documents.
Among them: a five-page form written in Arabic that would eventually lead federal investigators to conclude that Padilla had applied to join the al Qaeda terror network.

Here's the AP and the Sun-Sentinel report on the bizarre beginning to the trial.

They let this guy testify in disguise and I can't even bring my phone into the courtroom (it has a camera and is allowed in the building and in every other courtroom) or my briefcase (because it had a newspaper in it). I understand we need security but the lawyers are officers of the court.

My prior coverage of the disguise ruling can be read here. Judge Cooke has had another run-in with a witness wanting to wear an odd item to court. I loved how she handled that one!