U.S. counterterrorism officials have called LaRose's 2009 arrest evidence of a new and alarming threat - an American-born woman's joining an Islamic terrorist conspiracy.
LaRose and Paulin-Ramirez began e-mailing each other in August 2009. According to the indictment, LaRose wrote that she was moving to Europe "to join the brothers and sisters," and Paulin-Ramirez responded, "I would love to go over there."
The women first met a month later, when, the government alleges, they arrived in Ireland to meet up with terrorists. As part of the plot, prosecutors said, Paulin-Ramirez married a co-conspirator the day she arrived in Ireland, a man she had never met.
Paulin-Ramirez's lawyer, Jeremy H.G. Ibrahim, said his client played a lesser role than LaRose.
"A common misconception is that she was a cohort of LaRose," Ibrahim said. "But when you look at the maximums, LaRose is facing life in prison, and Jamie is charged with just one count that carries a potential maximum of 15 years."
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer A. Williams declined to comment on Tuesday's hearing.
If Paulin-Ramirez pleads guilty, U.S. District Judge Petrese B. Tucker is likely to sentence both women this summer.
Contact staff writer John Shiffman at 301-320-6655 or jshiffman@phillynews.com.Follow the Inquirer at www.Twitter.com/PhillyInquirer and www.Facebook.com/PhillyInquirer
