Because of the unusual circumstances of Mr. Ghailani’s case, the prosecution faced significant legal hurdles even getting his case to trial. On the eve of the start of his trial in October, month, the government lost a key ruling that may have seriously damaged its chances of winning convictions. In the ruling, the judge,
Lewis A. Kaplan of Federal District Court in Manhattan, barred prosecutors from using
an important witness against Mr. Ghailani because the government had learned about the man through Mr. Ghailani’s
interrogation while he was in C.I.A. custody,
where his lawyers say he was tortured.