BOSTON (AP) - A Massachusetts man accused in a terror plot to
kill Americans should be detained in a federal jail away from other
inmates while he awaits trial on terror charges because his actions
have demonstrated ongoing support for terrorism and he is a flight
risk, a federal judge ordered Wednesday.

Tarek Mehanna of Sudbury was arrested a year ago and charged
with lying to the FBI. New, more serious charges were added last
month, when Mehanna was accused of conspiring with two other men to shoot shoppers at U.S. malls and to kill two unnamed prominent U.S.
politicians as well as American soldiers in Iraq.

Authorities said he and the other men never came close to
pulling off an attack but did seek training at terrorist camps in
the Middle East. The men allegedly told friends they were turned
down for terrorist training because of their nationality, ethnicity
or inexperience, or that they were unable to make contact with
people they hoped would get them into such camps.

The men abandoned plans to attack malls because their weapons
contact said he could find only handguns, not automatic weapons,
prosecutors allege.

Defense attorney J.W. Carney Jr. had asked that Mehanna be
released to home confinement while awaiting trial, saying
prosecutors have built their case against the 27-year-old suspect
based on anti-American statements he made from 2002 to 2006, when
he was in college.

But Magistrate Judge Leo Sorokin ruled Wednesday that
prosecutors have presented evidence that "reveals a strong
allegiance to terrorists and al-Qaida, as well as a strong desire
to leave the United States."

"This evidence of another side to Mehanna, in the form of his
own recorded words and deeds, shows Mehanna promoted terrorist
activities, encouraged others to engage in terrorism, recruited
others to participate in terrorism, and protected, or attempted to
protect, a terrorist from law enforcement scrutiny," Sorokin said.
"Over a sustained period of time, Mehanna has demonstrated his
ongoing support of terrorism both by his own recorded statements
and by investing his time and effort in promoting terrorism."

Sorokin rejected arguments from Mehanna's attorney who had said
in court that his client's anti-American statements, though
unpopular, are protected by the First Amendment.

"The Court has detained Mehanna because the evidence
establishes that he poses both a risk of flight and that he poses a
danger to the community. This ruling presents no First Amendment
concerns," Sorokin said in his ruling.

Carney did not immediately return phone messages Wednesday
afternoon.
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AP Legal Affairs writer Denise Lavoie contributed to this
report.