Overview
- The Justice Department filed the first-ever petition in the Alien Terrorist Removal Court and officials arrested Nazira Haji Zada before her public initial hearing was held on Thursday in Washington, D.C.
- The court, created in 1996 but never used until now, permits judges to review classified evidence in closed sessions while the public record is limited to an unclassified summary.
- Government filings allege Zada supported an ISIS-inspired Election Day 2024 plot linked to her son and son-in-law, who were arrested in October 2024, pleaded guilty and face prison terms and removal orders.
- Zada has not been criminally charged and has no known criminal history, but her lawyers argued at the hearing that the ATRC’s secrecy and restricted access to evidence violate her constitutional due-process rights.
- Legal experts say the case could set precedent for how the government balances protecting intelligence sources and methods with defendants’ rights and is likely to prompt further litigation and appeals to the D.C. Circuit.