UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. ERICK JAMAL HENDRICKS - Articles

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. ERICK JAMAL HENDRICKS

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Feb 19, 2020

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ON BRIEF: Christian J. Grostic, FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellant.

Attorneys 2: ON BRIEF: Matthew W. Shepherd, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellee.

Judge(s): SILER, GIBBONS, and READLER, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio at Cleveland

JULIA SMITH GIBBONS, Circuit Judge. A jury convicted Erick Jamal Hendricks of attempting and conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He raises three issues on appeal. First, Hendricks argues that the trial evidence was insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he attempted or conspired to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Second, Hendricks argues that, for substantially the same reason, the district court abused its discretion by denying his motion for a new trial. Finally, Hendricks argues that the district court abused its discretion by partially closing the courtroom during testimony from an undercover FBI agent. We find that the government presented sufficient evidence for a rational juror to find each element of the charged offenses beyond a reasonable doubt. We also find that the district court properly denied Hendricks a new trial and adequately justified its partial closure of the courtroom. We therefore affirm Hendricks’s convictions.

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