On February 28, 2007, UC Davis NLG was honored to host a discussion presented by former attorney and current activist, Lynne Stewart, as part of her Fighting Back Tour in the Bay Area. For those of us who need reminding, Lynne was a prominent defense attorney who represented numerous controversial and often unpopular, defendants, including black nationalists, members of the Weather Underground, Mafia figures, and convicted terrorists. In 2005, Lynne Stewart was accused of helping pass messages from her client, Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, an Egyptian cleric convicted of planning terror attacks, to his followers in al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, an organization designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the United States Secretary of State. On February 10, 2005, after a nine-month trial and 13 days of jury deliberations, Lynne was found guilty of conspiracy, providing material support to terrorists and defrauding the U.S. government. Her conviction meant automatic disbarment, and on October 16, 2006, judge John G. Koeltl sentenced Lynne to 28 months in prison.

Lynne Stewart's most outspoken support before, during, and after her trial came, of course, from the National Lawyers Guild of which she was a member. Many of Lynne's wide group of supporters expressed concerns that the prosecution for zealous defense tactics could cause attorneys to become fearful of defending alleged terrorists and deprive individuals of their constitutional right to due process. At a press conference at the courthouse following her conviction, Stewart stated, "I hope it will be a wakeup call to all of the citizens of this country and all of the people who live here that you can't lock up the lawyers."

Lynne is currently free on bail pending the appeal of her case. Continuing her efforts as an activist, Lynne spends much of her time speaking to groups like ours about her personal experiences as well as larger ongoing struggles.