California: Murder of Muslim woman was honor killing, not hate crime
Posted on April 4, 2014 by creeping
And terror-linked, honor-killing deniers at CAIR tried to blame it on Americans.
Prosecutors say Kassim Alhimidi beat spouse to death because she wanted divorce; defense says he would not harm wife
via Accused sobs as his murder trial opens | UTSanDiego.com.
EL CAJON — In the spring of 2012, Shaima Alawadi wanted out of her marriage.
The 32-year-old mother had obtained paperwork to file for divorce, and at least two of her five children were aware that separation could be imminent. So was her husband.
And that, prosecutors contend, may be what led to her death.
Kassim Alhimidi, 49, is now on trial in El Cajon Superior Court charged with murder. He sobbed loudly and repeatedly Tuesday as a prosecutor delivered his opening statement, laying out much of the evidence the attorney said would point to guilt.
“She believed that the defendant had cheated on her and she was done,” said Deputy District Attorney Kurt Mechals, contradicting Alhimidi’s statements to police that his wife wasn’t serious about divorce.
A defense lawyer told the jury Tuesday that Alhimidi, who immigrated from Iraq with his wife, did not want her to end the marriage, but he would not harm her.
“There is going to be no evidence of domestic violence in this trial at all…,” Gilliland said in his opening statement. “He loved his wife very dearly and that’s why he didn’t want the divorce.”
Surveillance video shows a person parking a minivan that looked like Alhimidi’s 1996 Nissan Quest in an area near the family home, walking away from the vehicle and returning sometime later.
Mechals said a family member would testify that Alhimidi asked his wife for forgiveness when she was still in the hospital, and later admitted that if she were to wake up, she might claim that he “did this to her.”
Gilliland, one of the defense lawyers, said Alhimidi may have asked his wife for forgiveness, in keeping with his Muslim faith, but it did not mean he killed her. He said the statement from the family member, related by marriage, shows his hatred for the Alhimidi family.
“He wants to see Kassim crash and burn,” Gilliland said.
The attorney said Alhimidi cooperated with police when his wife was injured and throughout the nearly eight months before his arrest. He even returned early after burying his wife in Iraq to meet again with investigators.
Gilliland said there was no evidence of blood or broken glass on any of Alhimidi’s clothes or in his minivan. At some point during the investigation, Alhimidi tossed a hammer out of his van because he had heard that something like it was used in the attack.
“It’s because he’s scared,” the attorney said. “It also goes to show that he didn’t know what the murder weapon was.”
That makes no sense. He knew exactly what the weapon was and that’s why he threw that one specific item out.
Gilliland said investigators received a break in the case when the couple’s eldest daughter, the same one who made the initial 911 call, contacted police unexpectedly and pointed the finger at her father. He said the daughter had a relationship with a Chaldean boy, which had caused conflict with her mother.
“The evidence will lead you to the truth,” Gilliland said.
If convicted of first-degree murder, Alhimidi could face 26 years to life in prison.
http://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2014/04/04/california-murder-of-muslim-woman-was-honor-killing-not-hate-crime/
