Below is my column in the Hill newspaper on the Manafort trial and why Manafort is pursuing a high-risk litigation strategy over a plea deal. The strategy looks strikingly like a pardon pitch and it could be working. President Donald Trump took the rare step of commenting on a case at trial to not only praised Manafort but analogized his case to the treatment of Al Capone. He tweeted that “Looking back on history, who was treated worse, Alfonse Capone, legendary mob boss, killer and ‘Public Enemy Number One,’ or Paul Manafort, political operative & Reagan/Dole darling, now serving solitary confinement – although convicted of nothing? Where is the Russian Collusion?” Of course, both could well be guilty and both could find that a criminal count with a ten year sentence is just about the same as another in terms of its impact on your life.\
Here is the column: Continue reading “Playing The House: Why Manafort May Have Taken The Highest Risk Option”
Lost in the mix of Manafort and other news, there is a significant development in Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. Mueller has referred a number of cases to the Southern District of New York for possible prosecution, including reportedly case involving longtime Democratic lobbyist Tony Podesta and his work for his former firm, the Podesta Group and former Obama White House counsel Greg Craig, a former partner at law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. It is not clear if charges would emerge from these cases but the referral further decentralizes the investigation.
There are patdowns and then there are patdowns. This one was particularly memorable for North Carolina sheriffs after they found 
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Philadelphia has
Below is my column in the Hill newspaper on the implications of Michael Cohen accusing Donald Trump of lying about his lack of prior notice of the meeting at Trump Tower with Russians offering dirt on Hillary Clinton. Cohen’s allegations present an obvious risk not only to Trump but himself. What is most striking is that Cohen is alleging that specific people were in the room during Trump’s briefing and his approval of the meeting. That is an unnecessary risk to take if you are lying about the meeting as opposed to alleging a one-on-one conversation with Trump. Thus far, no one has corroborated his story while 
Below is my column in the Hill newspaper on the calls for the impeachment of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. While the key sponsors have indicated that they may be willing to delay this effort, many continue to advocate for a vote on articles of impeachment. 
Below is my column in the Hill newspaper on release of the first Cohen tape and rumored seizure of many more such tapes by federal prosecutors. I have previously stated that the secret taping of Donald Trump was, in my view, flagrantly dishonest and disloyal in dealings with a client. While the American Bar Association relaxed the rule against secret taping from being per se unethical, few lawyers would contemplate what Cohen did to his client. Indeed, New York is a jurisdiction that looks with disfavor on such taping as a routine matter. Unless done for some clear societal benefit, it is a serious potential unethical act. Michael Cohen continues to be an embarrassment to the profession in his low level of legal judgment and even lower professional standards of conduct.
We earlier discussed the dropping of the highly dubious charges brought against Stormy Daniels in Columbus, Ohio. The arresting officials insisted that they were at the Sirens strip club on an undercover mission entirely separate from the appearance of Stephanie Clifford, aka Stormy Daniels. Emails now appear to contradict that account — raising not only the question of selective enforcement but political bias. There is also the question of the false statements allegedly made to investigators. 
Many civil libertarians long objected to the reliance on local policy on money and property seized in drug stops and raids. 
Eric Stagno, 34, insisted that he was only enjoying Planet Fitness’s policy of being a “Judgment Free Zone” . . . when he walked around naked and started doing exercises on the yoga mats.