Fort Dix Terror Plotters Want Convictions Tossed

CAMDEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) - Two brothers convicted of planning to attack military personnel on installations in New Jersey and elsewhere are asking a judge to vacate their convictions, saying their lawyers made key mistakes in their defense.

Eljvir and Dritan Duka were among five foreign-born Muslims convicted in 2008 of planning attacks, including on Fort Dix.

They are serving life sentences. Eljvir Duka is in federal prison in Terra Haute, Ind., and Dritan Duka is in Florence, Colo.

In court papers filed last week, the two men argue that their lawyers were wrong to advise them not to testify and not to fight to admit recorded conversations that they say would have cleared them.

A court has previously denied an appeal and the U.S. Supreme Court did not consider it.

None of the five testified at their federal trial.

The five men were convicted for conspiring to kill American soldiers. Two informants helped the government build its case against the plotters.

You May Also Be Interested In These Stories

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)