Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Justice, Politics

Craig and Jefferson: Congressional Investigations and The Need for Congressional Restraint

Published in Roll Call September 13, 2007

Cases Offer Insight On Congressional Investigations

For most of their careers, there were two men in Congress who could not be more different geographically, culturally or politically than Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) and Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.). Yet, both men are now making arguments to their respective houses that are virtually identical: Congress has no right to investigate or to punish them for their alleged misconduct outside of Congress. Putting aside the vitriol following their arrests, both men have actually raised some compelling arguments that have been largely ignored by the press. Continue reading “Craig and Jefferson: Congressional Investigations and The Need for Congressional Restraint” →

Bizarre, Justice

Video of police officer’s meltdown highlights abusive traffic stops

The recent video of an officer melting down in a traffic stop and abusing a driver should serve to draw attention to this form of abuse. The officer taunts the driver that he can just make up a violation and send him to jail. I have had a steady stream of such complaints from citizens who are arrested for merely objecting to policy conduct. They are thrown into jail and the charges eventually dropped. The officers are never punished in such cases. Perhaps this officer will be different. There is no reason why this individual would be allowed to remain on the force. For the video, click here

Columns, Justice, Lawyering

The Spector of Celebrity Trial

September 11, 2007 Los Angeles Times

In his closing argument last week in the murder trial of pop music legend Phil Spector, prosecutor Alan Jackson encouraged jurors to ignore the experts who testified for the defense because, he said, “if you hire enough lawyers who hire enough experts who are paid enough money, you can get them to say anything.” He went on to inform the jury that “Phil Spector thinks if he throws enough money at a problem, he can solve the problem.”

It was a highly unprofessional argument that encouraged jurors to dismiss the opinions of any experts who appear on behalf of wealthy defendants as, in effect, purchased testimony. Yet the fact is that such witnesses are not only available to the rich; even a public defender is allowed to call such witnesses, at public expense, who would probably have made the same arguments. Continue reading “The Spector of Celebrity Trial” →

Bizarre, Lawyering

Lawyer Found Naked with Minor in Courthouse Pleads No Contest

Philadelphia criminal defense attorney Larry Charles was found by security naked with a minor in the lawyers lounge of the Courthouse. He has pleaded no contest to the charges and stands accused of repeated cases of statutory rape with various underaged girls. For the story, click here Given the common increases for aggravating factors such as the abuse of positions of authority, Charles is looking at some very serious time.

Congress, Justice, Lawyering, Politics

Craig Papers: Senator Seeks to Undo Plea with Manifest Injustice Claim

The papers of Craig to withdraw his guilty plea are now public. For the papers, click here As expected, they argue that Craig’s decision (despite many days of consideration) was made without counsel and sufficient thought. This falls under the category of more stupidity and manifest injustice. The officers clearly misled Craig on the strength of the evidence but Craig is now trying to address a self-inflicted wound.

Bizarre

Burger Mishap Leads to Police Misconduct

In what appears to be a clear case of abusive by a police officer, a women was arrested at a McDonald’s after serving a police officer a burger that was over-salted. The officer said that he became sick and accused the woman of adding the salt and pepper on purpose. She spent the night in jail despite the fact that she explained that an entire batch was oversalted by accident. The arrest of an individual out of personal outrage is a classic form of police abuse. The fact that the arrestee spent the nighti in jail shows how a citizen can be punished by an angry officer even without a meritorious charge. For the story, click here