Lynne Stewart

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Lynne Stewart
Lynne Stewart
Born
Lynne Irene Feltham

(1939-10-08)October 8, 1939
Brooklyn, New York, United States
DiedMarch 7, 2017(2017-03-07) (aged 77)
Brooklyn, New York, United States
EducationRutgers School of Law–Newark
OccupationDefense attorney
SpouseRalph Poynter
Children1

Lynne Irene Stewart (October 8, 1939 – March 7, 2017) was an American defense attorney and convicted criminal. She was known for representing controversial, poor, and often unpopular defendants. She was convicted of helping pass messages from her client, Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, an Egyptian cleric convicted of planning terror attacks, in 2005.

Stewart was called a "radical-leftist American lawyer" by The New York Times.[1]

Early life[change | change source]

Stewart was born in Brooklyn, New York. She was raised in Queens, New York. She studied at Wagner College and at Rutgers University in Newark, New Jersey.

Prison years[change | change source]

Stewart was convicted on charges of conspiracy and providing material support to terrorists in 2005,[2] and sentenced to 28 months in prison. Her felony conviction led to her being automatically disbarred. She was convicted of helping pass messages from her client, Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, an Egyptian cleric convicted of planning terror attacks, to his followers in al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, an organization designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the United States Secretary of State.

She was re-sentenced on July 15, 2010, to 10 years in prison in light of her perjury at trial.[3] She served her sentence at the Federal Medical Center, Carswell, a federal prison in Fort Worth, Texas.[4]

Stewart was released from prison on December 31, 2013 on a compassionate release order because of her terminal breast cancer diagnosis.[5][6][7]

Death[change | change source]

Stewart died at her home in Brooklyn, New York from a stroke and complications of breast cancer, aged 77.[1]

References[change | change source]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Fried, Joseph P. (8 March 2017). "Lynne Stewart, Lawyer Imprisoned in Terrorism Case, Dies at 77". The New York Times.
  2. "Lynne Stewart still combative after terror verdict". Thevillager.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2010.
  3. Staff, Post (2010-07-15). "Attorney who helped terrorist gets 10 years in prison | New York Post". Nypost.com. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  4. "Inmate 53504-054". Archived from the original on 2012-09-20. Retrieved 2017-03-08.
  5. "NY judge orders 'compassionate release' of terror lawyer Lynne Stewart". Fox News. December 31, 2013.
  6. "BREAKING: Lynne Stewart Freed From Prison, Granted "Compassionate Release"". Democracy Now!. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  7. Ferrigno, Lorenzo (2014-01-01). "Dying defense lawyer Lynne Stewart released from jail". CNN.com. Retrieved 2016-01-01.