In an order signed March 22, District Court Judge William H. Yohn denied Mumia's petition to amend his petition for habeas corpus relief to include as a separate issue Judge Sabo's refusal to allow John Africa to sit at the defense table as an advisor in Mumia's original trial.
In denied the petition, Judge Yohn wrote: "Petitioner on numerous occasions, demanded that the state court allow John Africa, a non-lawyer, to represent or assist him at trial. Petitioner seeks leave to amend his petition to raise a Sixth Amendment challenge to the trial court's denial of petitioner's request for the assistance of John Africa. Because the court interprets petitioner's original claim number eleven to include implicitly this Sixth Amendment challenge, petitioner's application to amend his petition to include this additional claim will be denied as moot."
a PDF facsimile of the order is available here
[updated 4/19/01]
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