In a 272-page ruling, U.S. District Judge William Yohn said the former cab driver, radio journalist and Black Panther is entitled to a new sentencing hearing. He said there was potentially misleading language in the instructions to the jury that could have prevented it from considering evidence helpful to the defendant.

When first informed by the Daily Times about the decision at his job early yesterday afternoon, the victim's youngest brother, Ken, of Delaware County, said, "it hit me hard."

All four surviving brothers of the 25-year-old murdered Philadelphia officer live in Delaware County.

Several hours later, Ken Faulkner said he had calmed down and was awaiting more information on the judge's lengthy decision and how he came to it.

Despite his deep dissatisfaction with the judge's ruling, Faulkner said, "we are very pleased that he upheld that," referring to Yohn's refusal of a request for a new trial.

He was also assured by District Attorney Lynne Abraham's statement the prosecution will appeal the latest decision.

However, Faulkner said he was still angered that the judge threw out Abu-Jamal's death sentence yesterday.

"Twenty years later, another holiday of ours gets destroyed, another Christmas -- knowing that justice is not going to be served as this time," he said.

He sympathized with the grief and outrage expressed by Daniel Faulkner's widow, Maureen. On Dec. 9, she had attended the dedication of a bronze plaque on the spot where her husband was gunned down 20 years ago in the city.

He cited the "insensitiveness of this judge -- telling us that no victim should ever look for justice.

"How can you turn a death sentence in 20 years when no one else ever saw anything wrong in prior appeals?" Faulkner asked.

"He's had this case in his hands for two years and this is the only thing he can come up with? It's ludicrous as far as I'm concerned.

"I think he's a coward and couldn't do his job ..he had to find something to cause a controversy," Faulkner said.

"I was in the courtroom. I heard the charges (instructions). I understood it. And every juror understood it. They would have questioned it if they didn't understand it."

Ken Faulkner was 27 years old when his youngest brother Daniel was killed just 12 days before his 26th birthday. Daniel was Ken's best man at his wedding and his daughter's godfather.

Abu-Jamal is ".. cold-blooded murderer -- he (the judge) says that in his opinion he will not get a new trial, but yet he had to do something so he turned over the death sentence," he said. "And that bothers me..

"We're here to get justice for Danny, that's all. Just like we have the past 19 years."

If a new death-penalty phase jury is selected, he said, "I don't believe any juror's going to understand or feel the horror that went through Danny that night ..knowing the facts that he was on the ground and shot between the eyes."