By Jonathan Stempel
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A U.S. federal appeals court on Wednesday threw out what it called a “shockingly low” four-year prison term for a Brooklyn woman who admitted to supporting Islamic State, and ordered that she be resentenced.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said late U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein abused his discretion in finding Sinmyah Amera Ceasar’s need for educational and mental health support after a lifetime of emotional, physical and sexual abuse justified the sentence.
While “not without sympathy” for Ceasar, Circuit Judge Robert Sack said the four-year term “shocks the conscience,” failing to balance her need for rehabilitation against the needs to ensure just punishment and promote respect for the law.
“We further conclude that in comparison with sentences for similar terrorism crimes, Ceasar’s sentence of 48 months’ imprisonment was shockingly low and unsupportable as a matter of law,” Sack wrote for a three-judge panel.
Prosecutors had sought a 30- to 50-year prison term, calling the 26-year-old Ceasar a “committed recruiter” for Islamic State who, using the name “Umm Nutella,” tried to connect supporters in the United States with operatives in other countries.
Ceasar was sentenced in June 2019, and has been free since July 2020 after receiving credit for time served.
A public defender representing Ceasar did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The office of Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn Kasulis in Brooklyn declined to comment.
Ceasar was arrested in November 2016 at New York’s Kennedy Airport while preparing to leave the country.
She began cooperating with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.
Ceasar was freed on bail in April 2018, but bail was revoked three months later after she resumed reaching out to Islamic State supporters.
Prosecutors said Ceasar lied in a subsequent FBI interview about her communications and use of Facebook and email.
Weinstein, known for his independent streak, died in June. A different judge will resentence Ceasar.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Howard Goller)
