'Trailer park Mata Hari' case: Bomb trial wrapping up

PHOENIX?? Attorneys are expected to give their final arguments Tuesday in the trial of two white supremacist brothers accused of bombing a city official in Arizona because he is black.

After attorneys give their closing statements, the jury will deliberate about whether to convict identical twin brothers Dennis and Daniel Mahon of Illinois.

The 61-year-old brothers are accused of sending a package bomb to Don Logan almost eight years ago to the day, on Feb. 26, 2004. Logan, 54, is black and was the diversity director for the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale at the time.

Logan was hospitalized for three days after the bombing and needed four surgeries on his hand and arm. The bombing also injured a secretary.

Recordings
The trial, which began Jan. 10, has been filled with drama as a female government informant dubbed by defense attorneys as a "trailer park Mata Hari" ? a reference to the Dutch exotic dancer convicted of working as a spy for Germany during World War I ? took the stand for several days, and Logan himself described the bombing in detail for the jury.

Jurors also have heard recordings of the Mahons using racial epithets for black and Hispanic people and saying violence is the only answer for white men.

The brothers have pleaded not guilty to one count each of conspiracy to damage buildings and property by means of explosive, malicious damage of building by means of explosive, and distribution of information related to explosives.

Since the Mahons were arrested in June 2009 at their home in Davis Junction, Illinois, their attorneys have unsuccessfully tried to get some or all of the charges against them dropped for various reasons, including allegations that the informant and federal investigators engaged in "outrageous conduct" that amounted to entrapment and coercion.

Defense attorneys also have argued that a more likely suspect in the bombing would be someone who worked in the city of Scottsdale and knew about its intraoffice mail, since the package was found in the city library and routed to Logan ? not sent in the mail.

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The Mahons were living in the Phoenix area at the time of the bombing but left days afterward.

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Prosecutors argued during the trial that the brothers belonged to a group called the White Aryan Resistance, an organization that encourages members to act as "lone wolves" and commit violence against non-whites and the government to get their message across.

They played for jurors hundreds of hours of video and audio surveillance of the brothers interacting with the government informant, identified in court records as Rebecca Williams.

Racy photos
Investigators chose the woman, who is a civilian, for her good looks and had her dress in revealing clothes and send the brothers racy photos to get them to open up to her.

Williams gave hours of testimony in the case, telling jurors that the brothers fell so hard for her, Dennis Mahon said he wanted to marry her and father her children.

Dennis Mahon's attorney told jurors that her client exaggerated to Williams to impress her and get her into bed, while Daniel Mahon's attorney painted her client as a hard-working man who had no time or desire to plot a bombing.

Prosecutors told jurors that although Williams flirted with the brothers, she never had sex with either of them.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46462126/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

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