Defense attorney's Fritz Scheller, left, Charles Swift and Linda Moreno for Noor Salman react to a question during a news conference Friday, March 30, 2018 after the jury acquitted Noor Salman, Friday, March 30, 2018 in Orlando, Fla. Salman, widow of Omar Mateen, the gunman who slaughtered 49 people at a gay Orlando nightclub in 2016 was acquitted of helping to plot the attack and lying to the FBI afterward, a rare and stinging defeat for the U.S. government in a terrorism case. (Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel via AP)
Republished March 30, 2018 - 2:51 PM
Original Publication Date March 30, 2018 - 6:56 AM
ORLANDO, Fla. - The Latest on the trial of the widow of the Orlando nightclub shooting that killed 49 people in 2016 (all times local):
1:15 p.m.
The widow of the gunman who killed 49 people at an Orlando nightclub has walked out of jail after she was acquitted hours earlier in federal court.
Noor Salman left the building around 1 p.m. Friday, about two hours after a jury found her not guilty of helping her husband commit the Pulse nightclub attack and lying to the FBI.
She didn't answer questions from the media, and hung onto the arm of her attorney as they walked to a waiting car.
A jury found her not guilty of obstruction and providing material support to a terrorist organization.
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11 a.m.
The hands of the widow of the gunman who killed 49 people at a gay Orlando nightclub were shaking in the moments before a jury acquitted her of all charges.
WKMG TV reported that Noor Salman's family gasped Friday when a court official said aloud that she had been found not guilty of lying to the FBI and helping her husband plan the attack. She had faced life in prison if convicted.
After the verdicts were read, Salman began sobbing with joy and her family held each other. On the other side of the courtroom, the families of the victims of the Pulse shooting sat stone-faced and silent.
Outside the courthouse, Salman's family said they were eager for her to be able to see her young son again. She has been in jail for the past two years awaiting trial.
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10:30 a.m.
The widow of the gunman who killed 49 people at a gay Orlando nightclub has been acquitted on charges of lying to the FBI and helping her husband in the 2016 attack.
Noor Salman was found not guilty of charges of obstruction and providing material support to a terrorist organization.
Salman was married to Omar Mateen when he attacked the Pulse nightclub.
Prosecutors say Salman knew about Mateen's guns, his affinity for violent Muslim extremist videos and his intention to attack a location, but did nothing to stop him.
Defence attorneys described Salman as a simple woman with a low IQ who was abused by her husband, and who didn't know of his plans because he concealed much of his life from her.
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9:45 a.m.
Jurors have reached a verdict in the trial of the widow of the Orlando nightclub shooter who killed 49 people in 2016.
Officials from U.S. District Court in Orlando said Friday that the jury had reached its decision and it will be announced in about 30 minutes.
Noor Salman is charged with obstruction and providing material support to a terrorist organization. She faces life in prison if convicted.
Salman was married to Omar Mateen when he attacked the gay nightclub.
Prosecutors say Salman knew about Mateen's guns, his affinity for violent Muslim extremist videos and his intention to attack a location, but did nothing to stop him.
Defence attorneys described Salman as a simple woman with a low IQ who was abused by her husband, and who didn't know of his plans because he concealed much of his life from her.
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11:25 p.m.
Jurors in the trial of a woman accused of aiding her husband's terrorist attack against an Orlando nightclub will deliberate her fate for a third day.
Noor Salman is charged with obstruction and providing material support to a terrorist organization. She faces up to life in prison if convicted of all charges.
Salman's husband was Omar Mateen, who shot and killed 49 people in the Pulse nightclub in June 2016. Police killed him after the attack.
Prosecutors say Salman knew about Mateen's plans and did nothing to stop them. Her lawyers say she had no knowledge of them and was mentally and physically abused by him. They say she wasn't an Islamic extremist.
News from © The Associated Press, 2018