Category: Criminal law

Columns, Congress, Criminal law, Politics

The Media Brushes Over Mueller Contradictions After “Blockbuster” Turns Into Bomb

Below is my column in the Hill Newspaper on the aftermath of the Mueller hearings. This week, the Democrats belatedly moved to get a court order to release Grand Jury material withheld in the Mueller Report. That material represents a tiny percentage of text and the request is months too late. I testified many weeks ago that, if the Democrats were really serious about impeachment, they would have filed soon after the report was issued. Every indication remains that the Democratic leadership is still running out the clock on impeachment while trying to convince voters that they really do want to impeach Donald Trump.

Democrats are now insisting that it was not Mueller but really McGahn that they expected to put away Trump. It would be a sequel to a colossal flop and they are not exactly moving with dispatch . . . as time ticks by.

Here is the column:

Continue reading “The Media Brushes Over Mueller Contradictions After “Blockbuster” Turns Into Bomb” →
Criminal law, International, Media, Politics

Trump: Sweden “Let Our African American Community Down”

President Donald Trump has caused considerable confusion in Sweden by first requesting “bail” (which does not exist in Sweden) for rapper A$AP Rocky in this assault case and then accusing Sweden of letting “our African American community down” by not freeing him. Trump’s intervention in the case was both highly ill-informed and inappropriate in tying U.S. foreign policy to the handling of a celebrity’s routine criminal case.

Continue reading “Trump: Sweden “Let Our African American Community Down”” →
Bizarre, Criminal law, Society

D.C. Police Post Video Of Savage Attack On Tourist At The Washington Hilton

The Washington Hilton Hotel (where Ronald Reagan was shot) was the scene of a savage beating of a tourist by a dozen youths at the entrance of the hotel in broad daylight. The brazen attackers exhibited little concern that they would be stopped, let alone arrested, as they took turns kicking, hitting, and spitting on the man. Police have released pictures and the video in the hopes of identifying the attackers.

Continue reading “D.C. Police Post Video Of Savage Attack On Tourist At The Washington Hilton” →
Columns, Congress, Criminal law, Justice, Society

The Mueller Hearing And The Theater Of The Macabre

Below is my column in The Hill on today’s hearing with former Special Counsel Robert Mueller. The hearing will no doubt be lively as a couple dozen members of the House Judiciary Committee struggle to stand out in less than five minutes to make the cut for a clip on evening news. That means that you have to be more outraged than every member who came before you. It should all prove to be a true theater of the macabre. I will be covering the hearing for CBS News and BBC.

I have previously published 3 questions, 5 questions, and 20 questions for Mueller. You can choose but none are likely to be answered.

Adding to the drama is the disclosure of a demand by Mueller that an aide be sworn in and allowed to testify with him. The move drew vocal objections from Republicans who suggested that Mueller may not have a good handle on the Report — reinforcing claims that his key staff aides actually controlled the investigation. It also has been reported that it was Mueller who asked for the letter limiting his testimony.

Here is the column:

Continue reading “The Mueller Hearing And The Theater Of The Macabre” →
Criminal law, International, Media

Terrorist Attack Kills Canadian Journalist Who Returned To Somalia To Show Its Beauty
YouTube Screenshot

There was an incredibly sad story last week. A terrorist attack in Somalia killed 27 people in the port city of Kismayo. Among the dead was Canadian-Somali journalist Hodan Nalayeh, who was an inspiration for not just Somalians but women around the world who have grown up in highly restrictive religious nations. Nalayeh dedicated her life to showing the beauty of her native country, which is all too often in the news for terrorist attacks and extremists. She moved back to Somalia to work to facilitate the continued development of Somalia.

Continue reading “Terrorist Attack Kills Canadian Journalist Who Returned To Somalia To Show Its Beauty” →
Bizarre, Criminal law

Court Denies Epstein Bail [Updated]

Jeffrey Epstein’s effort to be released pending trial took a major hit before a court ruled against bail. It was reported earlier that Epstein’s safe in his New York mansion was found with a huge amount of cash, diamonds, and a false passport. Now prosecutors have disclosed that Epstein actually used the passport to travel internationally. This follows a disclosure that Epstein was accused of “improper sexual contact” during his prior criminal sentence. That makes for a bad bail case that is steady getting far worse.

Continue reading “Court Denies Epstein Bail [Updated]” →
Criminal law, Free Speech

Virginia Beach Employee Arrested For Telling Supervisor That She Is The Type Of Boss Who Pushes Employees To Violence

There is a disturbing case out of Virginia Beach where city employee Elizabeth Mann, 48, was fired and then arrested for telling Wendy Swallow, a supervisor, that she is the type of boss who pushes people to violence. She was referencing the recent shooting spree of DeWayne Craddock, 40, an engineer with the city’s Public Utilities division, that killed 12 people and wounded several others. It was a uniquely stupid thing to say but Mann’s arrest raises serious constitutional concerns.

Continue reading “Virginia Beach Employee Arrested For Telling Supervisor That She Is The Type Of Boss Who Pushes Employees To Violence” →
Criminal law, Media

Washington Attacker On Immigration Center Was An Antifa Member and Featured On CNN

Various news organizations are reporting that the man who threw “incendiary devices” at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington was an Antifa member and appears to have been featured on CNN’s “United Shades of America” with W. Kamau Bell as “one of the good guys.” Police shot and killed Willem Van Spronsen at the scene. However, there has been little coverage of his background or the CNN feature. That is curious given the steady coverage of how right-wing groups are being pushing to violence by the Trump Administration and “alt right” sites. This is not to say that CNN encouraged violence but rather that the level of coverage (and presumed connection with political or media sources) is different.

Continue reading “Washington Attacker On Immigration Center Was An Antifa Member and Featured On CNN” →
Criminal law, Lawyering, Media, Torts

Dershowitz Moves To Dismiss Defamation Case Over Epstein Allegations

Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz is back in the news in connection to allegations that he was one of the men who had relations with underaged girls during trips with Jeffrey Epstein. New evidence has been released in the case that have rekindled the allegations against Dershowitz. Moreover, Dershowitz (who invited a defamation suit by the woman accusing him with having sex with her as a minor) is now seeking to dismiss the action and thus avoid discovery. Additionally, an early interview has been uncovered with what may be the single worst line since Bill Clinton’s “I experimented with marijuana a time or two, and didn’t like it. I didn’t inhale and I didn’t try it again.” When confronted on whether he did in fact accept a message from one of the women at Epstein’s mansion, Dershowitz admitted that he did but insisted “I kept my underwear on.”

Continue reading “Dershowitz Moves To Dismiss Defamation Case Over Epstein Allegations” →
Bizarre, Criminal law, International

The Crime Of “Affecting Human Subconscious”: Russians Arrest Reporter For Referencing Orwell Under A Truly Orwellian Law

Even in the authoritarian era of Vladimir Putin, the arrest of Mikhail Romanov, a reporter for the Yakutsk Vecherniy, was notable.  Romanov has been accused of “controlling minds” by merely referencing George Orwell’s novel “1984.”

Continue reading “The Crime Of “Affecting Human Subconscious”: Russians Arrest Reporter For Referencing Orwell Under A Truly Orwellian Law” →
Columns, Criminal law, Politics

SIX DEGREES FROM JEFFREY EPSTEIN: WASHINGTON GRAPPLES WITH A WEB OF EMBARRASSING ASSOCIATIONS

Below is my column on the charging of Jeffrey Epstein and the complex connections raised by his prosecution. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta gave a press conference where he attempted to show that 2007 was a different century where victims rights did not exist and transparency was just a word used in window glazing. It was a ridiculous performance as Acosta sought to justify a sweetheart deal that has been universally condemned. Acosta attempted to shift the blame to state prosecutors who came out after the press conference to angrily contest his account. Previously, in 2011, Acosta insisted he yielded in the case because of  “a year-long assault on the prosecution and the prosecutors” by “an army of legal superstars” like Dershowitz and Starr.  He also wrote “The defense strategy was not limited to legal issues. Defense counsel investigated individual prosecutors and their families, looking for personal peccadilloes that may provide a basis for disqualification.”  That is bizarre. Most prosecutors would have the backbone to double their efforts in the face of such pressure. Instead, Acosta’s defense came off as a whining or whimpering excuse for letting these big bad lawyers scare him off.

Here is the column:

Continue reading “SIX DEGREES FROM JEFFREY EPSTEIN: WASHINGTON GRAPPLES WITH A WEB OF EMBARRASSING ASSOCIATIONS” →
Bizarre, Criminal law

Illinois Woman Arrested After Driving With Two Children In An Inflatable Pool On Car Roof

 

(Dixon PD)

Jennifer A. Janus Yeager, 49, may have the distinction of the most reckless driving incident in recent memory.  She was pulled over in her Audi Q5 at Dixon, Illinois with an inflatable pool having two children inside.  When asked to explain herself, Yeager said that the two children were helping hold the pool to the top of the car.

Continue reading “Illinois Woman Arrested After Driving With Two Children In An Inflatable Pool On Car Roof” →

Courts, Criminal law, Lawyering, Media, Politics, Society

Flynn Takes Sudden Turn Against Government In Pending Case

440px-Michael_T_FlynnWhile the headlines have been occupied with the Epstein matter and the other news, there is something curious happening in federal court with Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser.  Flynn was just listed as an unindicted co-conspirator by the Justice Department. That itself is odd since Flynn is a cooperating witness facing sentencing before a fairly hostile federal judge.  Nevertheless, Flynn now says that the government was trying to get him to give false evidence in the the trial of a former business partner, Bijan Kian, who is accused of violating foreign lobbying disclosure laws.  The move by Flynn (following his replacement of counsel) could indicate an “all in” position for a pardon.

Continue reading “Flynn Takes Sudden Turn Against Government In Pending Case” →