Mehanna challenges terrorism charges

Attorneys for a Sudbury man facing terrorism-related charges have asked a federal judge in Boston to drop parts of the charges, arguing that some of the alleged acts cited in the indictment are protected by the First Amendment. Lawyers for Tarek Mehanna said in documents filed yesterday that some of his actions, including translating a document written by someone else and readily available on the Internet, are protected free speech and cannot support charges that he conspired to provide aid to terrorists. Mehanna’s attorneys also wrote that some charges that he made false statements to federal agents cannot stand, because the statements in question were not material and were not statements to agents as defined by law. Mehanna is facing charges that he conspired to provide material support to Al Qaeda and tried to join a terrorist training camp in Yemen, among other violations.