LOUISVILLE — An Iraqi refugee and former Bowling Green resident serving a life sentence for federal terror-related offenses testified in federal court Tuesday morning that his former attorney assured him he would get a lesser sentence if he pleaded guilty.
Mohanad Shareef Hammadi, 28, has sought to have his sentence vacated on the grounds that his court-appointed lawyer, James Earhart, was ineffective.
Hammadi pleaded guilty in 2012 to all charges in a 12-count indictment that accused him of attempting, with fellow Iraqi refugee and Bowling Green resident Raad Alwan, to provide weapons, explosives, money and other resources to al-Qaida in Iraq on multiple occasions in 2011.
No written plea agreement was entered in Hammadi's case, and he contends that Earhart should not have allowed him to plead guilty without a written agreement in place.
Alwan pleaded guilty prior to Hammadi and is serving a 40-year prison sentence.
Hammadi also admitted to lying on U.S. immigration paperwork about his involvement in Iraqi insurgent operations against American troops.
Court-appointed lawyer Patrick Renn is representing Hammadi for his current appeal.
Appearing in a prison jumpsuit and leg restraints in U.S. District Court in Louisville, Hammadi testified on Tuesday that he had very little knowledge of the legal process or the English language while his case was pending, affecting his ability to understand the evidence gathered against him.
Hammadi said he was "suprised" when U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Russell imposed a life sentence in 2013 and had anticipated a sentence closer to the mandatory minimum of 25 years, based on discussions he had with Earhart on the day of the sentencing.
"I asked him if I was going to get life and he said no," Hammadi said. "Based on my knowledge and understanding, there was supposed to be a plea agreement ... if I got a trial I would get no worse than life."
Renn also went over several documents that noted interviews Hammadi had with federal authorities before and after the guilty plea.
Through questioning of Hammadi, Renn attempted to make the case that Hammadi was cooperative enough with law enforcement for the government to move to reduce his punishment at the sentencing.
Earhart, who was called as a witness by Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Cushing, said he was also taken by surprise when his client received the maximum punishment after pleading guilty.
Earhart testified that negotiations with federal prosecutors did not produce a recommended sentence, and with no leverage on Hammadi's side other than taking the case to trial, he advised his client to plead guilty.
"It was probably one of the least complex cases with a consequence so severe," Earhart said.
Earhart did not recall having many difficulties communicating with Hammadi and said he was present for at least two of Hammadi's interviews with federal authorities in which Hammadi proffered information about people he claimed to know who were involved in terrorist acts and the locations of such events.
"I advised him that the government was going to be asking for life and hopefully we could avoid that," Earhart said.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Brent Brennenstuhl will issue a ruling at a later date.
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— For more information, see Wednesday's Daily News.
