Attorneys for a Chicago-area man charged with trying to join the Islamic State group in Syria are seeking the dismissal of the charges.
Lawyers for 19-year-old Mohammed Hamzah Khan also filed a motion Friday in U.S. District Court in Chicago seeking to suppress statements he made to law enforcement.
In seeking to dismiss the charges, Khan's attorneys contend the desire he expressed to "emigrate" to an "Islamic state" was just an expression of his religious freedom. They say a letter to his parents is evidence of his intent to emigrate, not to supply material support to the group.
Khan's lawyers also say his statements to investigators were made prior to his receiving a Miranda warning. They say his post-Miranda statements should be suppressed because they resulted from the previous statements.
