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A jury trial will be held in January for Robert Neil Joos, a self-proclaimed white supremacist church leader from rural Powell.
Attorneys for Joos, 56, and federal prosecutors announced last week they were ready for trial during a pretrial conference. A two-day trial has been set for Jan. 11 in federal court in Springfield.
Joos has been held in federal prison since June on charges of being a felon in possession of firearms.
Joos has pleaded not guilty to federal weapons charges and is being held without bond. He was arrested in late June as part of an investigation into a 2004 mail bombing in Scottsdale, Ariz., that injured a black city official.
Federal prosecutors say an investigation found that people involved in the white supremacist movement in the U.S. met for survival training at Joos’ property in McDonald County.
Two twin brothers, Dennis and Daniel Mahon, were arrested at their home in Davis Junction, Ill., in late June in connection with the bombing. A probable cause affidavit filed to support the arrest alleges the first call Dennis Mahon made after the bombing was to a cell phone registered to Joos. One of the Mahons has described Joos as “an expert on weapons, explosives, bomb making and general survival skills,” according to a probable cause affidavit.
Joos is also seeking some $23 million in damages from the federal government for alleged constitutional rights violations.
A jury trial will be held in January for Robert Neil Joos, a self-proclaimed white supremacist church leader from rural Powell.
Attorneys for Joos, 56, and federal prosecutors announced last week they were ready for trial during a pretrial conference. A two-day trial has been set for Jan. 11 in federal court in Springfield.
Joos has been held in federal prison since June on charges of being a felon in possession of firearms.
Joos has pleaded not guilty to federal weapons charges and is being held without bond. He was arrested in late June as part of an investigation into a 2004 mail bombing in Scottsdale, Ariz., that injured a black city official.
Federal prosecutors say an investigation found that people involved in the white supremacist movement in the U.S. met for survival training at Joos’ property in McDonald County.
Two twin brothers, Dennis and Daniel Mahon, were arrested at their home in Davis Junction, Ill., in late June in connection with the bombing. A probable cause affidavit filed to support the arrest alleges the first call Dennis Mahon made after the bombing was to a cell phone registered to Joos. One of the Mahons has described Joos as “an expert on weapons, explosives, bomb making and general survival skills,” according to a probable cause affidavit.
Joos is also seeking some $23 million in damages from the federal government for alleged constitutional rights violations.
