Arkansas to pay part of accused shooter's bill

 An Arkansas judge on Monday ordered the state’s Public Defenders Commission to pay some of the legal bills for a man who says he killed a soldier outside a military recruiting center in retaliation for U.S. military action in the Middle East.

Abdulhakim Muhammad testified he has no money to pay for experts or investigators who might help defend him against charges of capital murder and attempted murder in the June 1 attack outside the Army-Navy Career Center in a west Little Rock shopping center. Judge Herbert Wright said the state should pay part of the bill for Muhammad’s private attorney.

Muhammad could face the death penalty if convicted of capital murder.
Death penalty cases are extraordinarily expensive, and Muhammad can’t pay for expert witnesses, mental health examinations or other costs related to his defense, said his attorney, Claiborne Ferguson. Ferguson said he was hired by Muhammad’s family but because Muhammad himself can’t afford the cost of a defense, he should be entitled to funding from the public defender’s commission.

Didi Sallings, executive director of the Arkansas Public Defender Commission, said Wright was setting a ‘‘dangerous precedent’’ by allowing Muhammad to use state funds for his private defense.

Ferguson ‘‘is asking the state to subsidize his private practice,’’ Sallings said.

In ruling from the bench, Wright said the issue was whether Muhammad was indigent and unable to pay for legal representation.

‘‘As the Legislature defines indigent, I think Mr. Muhammad qualifies,’’ Wright said Monday after a short hearing in which Muhammad testified that he had no job, car or investments and he was making $1,200 a month when he was arrested. Muhammad has been jailed since the June 1 shootings.

Ferguson has requested up to $30,000 from the commission for Muhammad’s defense. A trial is set for June 7.

Muhammad, a Muslim convert who moved to Little Rock from Memphis, Tenn., last year, has pleaded not guilty in the death of Pvt. William Long and the wounding of Pvt. Quinton Ezeagwula. He told The Associated Press last year the shootings were justified because of U.S. military action in the Middle East.


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