Carla Martin

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Carla J. Martin is an American lawyer.

1 Background
2 Moussaoui trial
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Background

Carla J. Martin graduated from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville cum laude in European History and German. After graduation, she received a graduate fellowship in the University of Tennessee's Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages, where she taught first year and honors German. Ms. Martin earned her law degree from the Washington College of Law at American University in Washington D.C. in 1989.

Martin was admitted to the bar in Pennsylvania in 1990. She began working at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) during law school. While working as a trial attorney for the FAA, Martin developed policies ensuring that sensitive aviation security information would be protected from public disclosure in civil and criminal litigation.

Martin's case, Public Citizen, Aviation Consumer Action Project, and Families of Pan Am 103 v. FAA, 988 F.2d 186 (D.C.Cir. 1993) is one of the seminal federal cases cited for the protection and non-disclosure of sensitive security information (SSI). Martin was also responsible for the Pan Am Flight 103/Lockerbie case for several years.

[edit] Moussaoui trial

While working for the Federal Aviation Administration, Carla Martin was assigned to the case of United States v. Zacarias Moussaoui and continued her work on that case after transferring to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in 2002. In June 2002, Ms. Martin assisted in drafting a motion and protective order to protect sensitive security information from being disclosed to defendant Moussaoui. See, Motion by USA as to Zacharias Moussaoui for Protective Order Prohibiting Disclosure of Sensitive Aviation Security Information to Defendant.

During the sentencing trial in March 2006 when Judge Leonie Brinkema learned that Martin may have improperly coached seven FAA witnesses. Martin was placed on paid administrative leave on March 16, 2006 and Brinkema told her she could be charged with civil or criminal contempt of court. Brinkema later said that Martin appeared to have violated rules of legal ethics, which could lead to Martin being fined, disbarred or imprisoned, or some combination of those.

Martin denied any wrongdoing in connection with her work on the Moussaoui trial. Ultimately, federal prosecutors declined (without elaboration) to bring criminal charges against her. Although The Washington Post reported in July 2006 that the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania had opened an investigation into her conduct, as of March 2007 no disciplinary action had been taken against her.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Lockerbie: The Story and the Lessons. Rodney Wallis. Westport, Connecticut: Praeger/Greenwood, 2000. ISBN 0-27596-493-0.

Moussaoui Trial Docket # 174 June 11, 2002. Motion by USA as to Zacharias Moussaoui for Protective Order Prohibiting Disclosure of Sensitive Aviation Security Information to Defendant.

Sensitive Security Information Delegated. Public Citizen vs. Federal Aviation Administration, January 2005. Coalition of Journalists for Open Government.