Attorneys hope Cdn. Supreme Court will help defend him against U.S. charges

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OTTAWA - Lawyers for accused terrorist Omar Khadr are expressing guarded optimism that Canada's top court will heed his plea for help in defending himself against a U.S. murder charge.

"We got a fair hearing," Dennis Edney, one of Khadr's legal team, said yesterday after a three-hour session at the Supreme Court of Canada.

"Some very pertinent questions were asked. The court were alive to conditions in Guantanamo Bay, they were alive to the conduct of Canadian officials."

The Canadian-born Khadr, currently languishing in a cell at the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo, Cuba, is facing trial before a military tribunal there for allegedly killing an American soldier in a firefight in Afghanistan in 2002.

He wants the Supreme Court to order the Canadian government to release documents to him that he hopes will aid his defence -- a demand so far stoutly resisted by Ottawa.

Justice Department lawyer Rob Frater insisted yesterday the Charter of Rights can't be used to compel the disclosure Khadr wants because the charges he's facing were laid outside Canada.

The nine judges, who put searching questions to both sides, reserved decision at the end of the hearing. It can often take six months or more for the court to hand down a ruling, but Khadr's lawyers hope the process can be expedited since he could face trial at Guantanamo by July.

Khadr's mother, two sisters and younger brother, all of whom were in the courtroom yesterday, steered clear of journalists and left without comment.