The Sting

His Government charged him with money laundering -- acting as a conduit for cash sent to terrorists that had attacked his country. As far as he knew, the charges cwere the result of a sting operation involving agents of his Government who pretended to be interested in sending money to terrorists.

Believing in his constitutional right to confront his accusers and review the evidence against him, and assuming that he would be afforded the opportunity for a fair trial, he hired a good lawyer to defend himself in his Government's Federal Courts.

Upon reading a story in the New York Times suggesting that his Government's case was based upon evidence obtained illegally by eavesdropping on his telephone calls, his lawyer asked the his Government's Federal Court to dismiss the charges if his Government had acted illegally.

And then things got really weird.

First his Government held a secret meeting with the Judge of his Government's Federal Court. His Government had evidence, it said, that had to be kept secret in order to protect the people from terrorists. Neither he nor his lawyer were allowed to attend the meeting between his Government and the Federal Judge, and they were prohibited from ever seeing the evidence his Government said it had.

As a result of the evidence that only his Government and the Federal Judge knew about, his motion to dismiss his Government's charges against him was denied and the Federal Judge ordered the trial to go forward. But even the order of the Federal Judge was sealed, preventing the man and his lawyer from ever knowing the reasons why the Federal Judge and his Government denied his request.

Is this America?

Judge Won't Drop Charges in Mosque Sting -- New York Times