After delays of legal representation, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) declared on Monday that they will be temporarily representing Ahmad Khan Rahami, the NYC and NJ bomber who injured 31 people.

On Monday, ACLU lawyer Alexander Shalom filed a notice of appearance as counsel for Rahami in federal court in Newark. His filing comes as prosecutors and federal public defenders in New York and New Jersey squabble over when Rahami will get a court-appointed legal counsel.

In a statement on Monday, the ACLU said the U.S. Justice Department and the Prosecutor’s Office in Union County, New Jersey, continue to improperly deny Rahami the right to an attorney.

For example, the ACLU also said that the Union County prosecutor prevented Rahami’s local public-defense counsel from checking on Rahami’s condition because the prosecutor said an arrest warrant had not yet been executed. – Reuters

Editor cartoon courtesy of Robert L. Lang