U.S. District Judge Vernon Broderick has ordered prosecutors to petition the U.S. State Department to let the parents and sisters of Sayfullo Saipov into the US to testify. Saipov is the Uzbecki man charged with mowing eight people down with a truck on a New York City bike path on October 31, 2017.
The State Department refused them entry, as they had no visas. While Judge Broderick has no authority to overrule the State Department, but he can order the prosecutors to petition. If the State Department denies such a petition, Judge Broderick says “alternative arrangements” should be used to have the family’s testimony in court, reports Brendan Pierson, for Reuters.
The trial is scheduled to begin on April 13, 2020.
The accused has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of murder, 18 counts of attempted murder, and counts of providing material support to the terrorist group ISIS.
