U.S. Lawyer in Terrorism Trial Suggests She Didn’t Act Alone

Government lawyer Carla J. Martin suggested Thursday that she did not act alone in allegedly tampering with government witnesses in the sentencing trial of terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui.

Martin -- speaking on the issue for the first time, through a statement by her attorney -- did not address the accusation by prosecutors and the presiding judge in the case that she had violated a court order by aggressively coaching seven Federal Aviation Administration officials on how to testify in the trial.

But her Washington lawyer, Roscoe C. Howard Jr., said that when the time comes to explain her actions, “her response will show a very different, full picture of her intentions, her conduct and her tireless dedication to a fair trial.”

The Transportation Security Administration said Martin, 51, had been placed on paid leave until her legal situation was resolved.

She may face civil or criminal contempt charges for sending trial transcripts and e-mails criticizing the prosecutors’ opening statements to prospective witnesses in Moussaoui’s trial and then coaching them on what to say, in violation of a court order.

Disclosure of her actions Monday prompted the judge to ban all aviation testimony from the trial, all but gutting the prosecution’s case.

The trial is being held to determine whether Moussaoui, who was in jail at the time of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks but has pleaded guilty to conspiring with the hijackers, should receive the death penalty or spend life in prison.

Howard, in his statement Thursday, said his client had been “viciously vilified” by prosecutors who “had asserted that she had acted entirely alone.”

Prosecutors, seeking to distance themselves from Martin’s actions, castigated her as a “lone miscreant” and said she acted “essentially as outside counsel” in coaching the witnesses.

But Moussaoui’s lawyers, in legal papers filed Thursday, said Martin had worked closely with prosecutors.

“The government attempts to minimize Ms. Martin’s involvement in this case, reducing her to virtually the status of a messenger,” they told the judge. “It is worth noting that Ms. Martin, at least, has worked on the prosecutorial team itself, as well as with the aviation witnesses.”

Federal prosecutors have urged U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema to reverse or narrow her order banning aviation-related testimony. They contended that the FAA witnesses said to be coached by Martin represented the heart of the government’s case, which was that the government could have prevented the attacks if Moussaoui had cooperated with the FBI.