Chicago: A US court today postponed till
tomorrow the sentencing of IIT alumnus Vikram Buddhi, who has
been in prison since 2006 for posting hate messages against
the then President George W Bush.
Senior Judge James T Moody postponed the sentencing
till tomorrow after seven hours hearing, saying there are
certain other legal issues that need to be addressed.
38-year-old Phd student of Purdue University, Buddhi
fired his lawyer and represented himself during the hearing.
Buddhi appeared in an Indiana court near here and said
he wants to fire his lawyer Arlington Foley and would
"involuntarily represent himself".
Literally fighting his own battle, Buddhi said Foley
"did not discuss the case properly with him but only touched
upon some issues superficially. He also did not discuss with
me what he is going to present in court and did not do any
meaningful research".
Foley was the second attorney appointed for Buddhi in
June 2009 after he removed his first lawyer. Foley, however,
said "in my opinion we have discussed the case".
The indictment alleged that Buddhi made threats
against the then US president, Vice President Dick Cheney and
their wives, and called for bombings of US infrastructure.
Buddhi, wearing an orange prison jumpsuit and shackled
at the legs, informed the court that he could never reach his
lawyer over phone and had left a message with Foley's
secretary that he did not want him to be his lawyer any more.
PTI
First Published: Saturday, December 12, 2009, 00:42