In a strongly worded and remarkable opinion, Gate Guard Services v. Thomas Perez, 14-40585-CV0, a panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, today ordered sanctions against the Department of Labor (DOL) for government misconduct, and remanded the case to the district court for an award to the private litigant of attorney’s fees because of the government’s “bad faith.” Writing for the unanimous Panel which included Judge Catharina Haynes and District Judge Marcia Crone, sitting by designation, Judge Edith Jones began:
It is often better to acknowledge an obvious mistake than defend it. When the government acknowledges mistakes, it preserves public trust and confidence. It can start to repair the damage done by erroneously, indeed vindictively, attempting to sanction an innocent business. Rather than acknowledge its mistakes, however, the government here chose to defend the indefensible in an indefensible manner. As a result, we impose attorneys’ fees in favor of Gate Guard as a sanction for the government’s bad faith. 28 U.S.C. § 2412(b).
The creativity of prosecutors who know no bounds never ceases to amaze me. Finally, thanks to a Freedom of Information Act request by the New Orleans Advocate, we have access to a 150 plus page report of the Office of Professional Responsibility within the Department of Justice addressing the astonishing conduct of former senior federal prosecutors in New Orleans in several high profile cases-including the Danzinger Bridge case and the River Birch matter.
Even though it is heavily redacted, the report excoriates former First Assistant United States Attorney Jan Mann and former AUSA Sal Perricone, both of whom resigned in disgrace, after a target of their investigation sued them for posting slanderous comments online using aliases. Compounding their misconduct, Ms. Mann even lied to her superiors and judges about it all.
The Louisiana Bar has done nothing yet-it’s only been three years! For the details, please see my article in the New York Observer.
Meanwhile, LICENSED TO LIE: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justicerepeatedly hits #1 Amazon best-seller in Law/Ethics, Judicial Branch, and True Crime/White Collar.
The Los Angeles Time just printed this editorial, harkening back to the case in the Ninth Circuit on which we broke the news for the New York Observer. The Los Angeles Times recognition of the case and the problem will shine additional light on this crucial issue.
Ninth Circuit Judges Kozinski, Fletcher and Wardlaw clearly made an impression on the California Attorney General. The case has been resolved without the need for an opinion by the court. The oral argument is worth watching. The fun starts at about 16 minutes into the tape.
My most recent article for the New York Observer is here. It is the first in a series of at least three articles on a case against Bradley Stinn-a young father of three who has served six years in prison with six more to go on trumped up fraud charges. The only money or property that he stole? His salary and bonus one year. The case exemplifies everything wrong in our justice system now. The case was prosecuted in Loretta Lynch’s office, and she’s turned a blind eye to the misconduct at every level.
For a new twist on misconduct by Justice Department lawyers, take a look at the “Moonlight Fire” case and the recent developments in the state and federal courts in California. To catch you up, read my articles on the New York Observer and on Fox News.
A former Assistant United States Attorney blew the whistle on the possible suppression and/or distortion of evidence by state and federal fire investigators and the attorneys for each who pursued a massive multi-million dollar action to recover “costs” and penalties from Sierra Pacific-one of the largest land-holders in the country. Sierra Pacific, upon discovering new evidence, is turning the tables on the Department of Justice. A state court judge has awarded $32 million against CAL fire-the state investigative agency. Now the feds are back in court and on the ropes to defend their actions.
Sierra Pacific is due to file an additional brief on January 15, 2015, to explain to senior federal District Judge Shubb how the government has committed what amounts to a fraud on the court. The government has 30 days to respond, and then Sierra Pacific has until March 9 to reply.
Judge Shubb largely ignored the Department’s outrageous attempt to knock all of the defense lawyers off of the case because they had read the affidavit and allegations of government attorney misconduct. He vacated an order for a hearing on the government’s motion. In a fair and measured approach, he wants to determine first that Sierra Pacific can seek to set aside the original settlement under the Federal Rule 60(d)(3). Stay tuned. . . .
Article corrected for due date of briefing @ 1:10 p.m. on 12/5 and further editted
In an exhaustive indictment of government discovery and Brady/Giglio gamesmanship, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, Judge Catherine Friend Easterly [great judicial name], recently ordered a new trial for DC Inmate Carl Morton in United States v. Vaughn et al. Morton and co-defendant Alonzo Vaughn were convicted for (1) aggravated assault and (2) assault on a law enforcement officer in connection with an incident at the D.C. Jail in which a group of men attacked a fellow inmate and a corrections officer who came to that inmate’s aid. Unbeknownst to either defendant, the government’s, Assistant United States Attorneys Mary Chris Dobbie and Reagan Taylor, primary and strongest identifying witness, presented to the jury as “Officer” Angelo Childs, had recently been adjudged to have made demonstrably false allegations regarding an earlier inmate assault. “Officer” Childs was subsequently demoted from Lieutenant to Sergeant as a result of that false testimony.
In a Department of Corrections Office of Internal Affairs (OIA) “Final Report,” Childs and other officers were shown to have falsely reported a separate incident regarding alleged inmate assault. In the relevant portion of this report — which the government suppressed — the investigator concluded that Childs’ report was, in fact, contradicted by video footage taken of the scene. Instead of turning the entirety of the report over to defendants, or to the court, the government prosecutors strategically excised the damning portions and submitted only the innocuous and inconclusive portions (sound familiar):
the government submitted to the trial court ex parte what it said was the OIA Final Report, but in fact was only the first five pages of the ten-page report (and included none of the documents in the appendix, 76 pages in all). The first five pages of the OIA Final Report contain “background” information, investigative notes, and a full reproduction of Officer Childs‟s account of an inmate assault in his Incident Report without any indication that that account was being questioned; the findings adverse to Officer Childs begin on the sixth page.
After the trial, which alleged federal crimes arising from a bribe and kickback scheme involving a community hospital, Judge Biggers entered judgments of acquittal and alternately motions for new trials for defendants Earnest Levi Garner and Raymond Lamont Shoemaker. On the government’s appeal, the Fifth Circuit reversed, reinstated the jury verdicts of guilty and remanded for resentencing. On remand, the district court noted that its prior grant of the alternate new trial motions did not address defendants’ claims of Brady violations but instead relied on a separate legal issue related to “agency” (as to the hospital) and the related jury instructions. Nor did the government address the Brady issues in its appeal to the Fifth Circuit, “ostensibly since the [] court had not ruled on them.” Because the court “did not grant the defendants a ruling on the Brady claims,” and despite the peculiar procedural posture, the court determined that “to refuse to rule on these constitutional claims now would be a denial of due process and contrary to the interests of justice.”
In the last two weeks, the New York Observer has published four articles, all of which have been in the TOP TRENDING on the site since they were published.
Three have been picked up by Drudge; by Investor’s Business Daily, and the last even by Breitbart, which “borrowed” the title from the Observer and most of my article.
Here are the links and please forward them to all of your friends. We are all starved for honesty in government-regardless of the party in power. We must demand better, and now Judge Emmet Sullivan may help us get to some of the truth.
Judge Sullivan previously appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the Department of Justice and the prosecutors who hid evidence that was devastating to its ginned-up case against former United States Senator Ted Stevens. He has set a special hearing on the case filed by Judicial Watch for JULY 10. For the full story on Emmet Sullivan, read LICENSED TO LIE. There is reason to hope that IRS has met its match!
LOOK who’s advising the President on the Benghazi cover-up! Kathryn Ruemmler, chief White House Counsel, seated to the left of the president, was lead prosecutor on the Enron Task Force who “plainly suppressed evidence” favorable to the defense while 4 Merrill Executives went to prison for something that wasn’t a crime. As James Carafano makes clear, the President could have chosen the path of Truth taken by Reagan in the Iran-Contra debacle, but instead, we have lies and a cover-up and now the release of Taliban terrorists from GITMO.
Ruemmler and her corrupt team of prosecutors (also promoted to high positions) actually YELLOW-HIGHLIGHTED evidence they were legally and ethically required to provide to the defense, and they deliberately hid it instead. And we wonder why we can’t get the truth on Benghazi??! Also pictured just to the right of POTUS is another member of the corrupt cabal of prosecutors, Lisa Monaco-implicated in the Enron Broadband trial misconduct. These former federal prosecutors are all discussed in the new book LICENSED TO LIE: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justicewith the Foreword written in his personal capacity by the incomparable Alex Kozinski, Chief Judge of the Ninth Circuit.
We called for Ruemmler’s resignation a year ago, but Obama wanted her to stay. She left just after the announcement of the release of the new blockbuster revelations of her legal, ethical and constitutional violations in the best-selling book LICENSED TO LIE. Coincidence? We think not.
Meanwhile, brilliant and profound reviews of LICENSED TO LIE continue to pour in-from readers and writers! Be a part of the national discussion Judge Kozinski calls for on this important issue. See who Obama chose to whisper in his ear on decisions affecting every aspect of our lives despite-or because of-their disregard for the Rule of Law and their legacy of injustice?
Listen to Sidney Powell discuss LICENSED TO LIE with Dennis Miller on his DMZ Radio Show. LICENSED TO LIE: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justice continues to draw rave reviews from readers and the experts and is a #1 BESTSELLER on Amazon.com where it is also now available on KINDLE.
“Riveting, profound, compelling, revealing read. Brilliantly written, brutally informative detailed with fact and honesty. Sidney Powell has narrated a piece of history from a perspective deep within the legal circle…confirming what most of us fear, our government is only as good as those who serve it, or at best, how they are held accountable in their privilege to practice and enforce law. By design, the media is our conduit to information, not necessarily based on facts or truth. Licensed to Lie takes us on a journey of Sidney Powell’s unyielding commitment to uphold the law, all that it stands for, the quest for facts, knowledge and truth to support the law. Never have I read a book in which the author has the gumption to name names and call out those who still hold power.
This is a story that makes you think about the essence of our American freedom, our rights as citizens, and the corrupt powers that control it. Those named need to be held accountable. Those pursuing a career in law and politics, need to embrace this story as a code of ethics. Sidney Powell must be applauded and thanked for her courageous plight to expose and right the wrongs of our judicial system.
Licensed to Lie is a factual account of real people, whose lives were destroyed by those in power with questionable judgment and corrupt agendas. It reminds me of the Titanic. We know the end is horrific, but throughout the story, you keep hoping the ship will not hit the iceberg. . . our judicial system is sinking the American spirit. . . Licensed to Lie is blowing the whistle. Kudos to Sidney Powell and the stones it took to write this book. Best read in decades.” By Tricia
I just finished Sidney Powell‘s book. I am speechless and furious. And a little angry at myself for being pitifully ill-informed. Masterful writing Sidney. . . . I applaud and admire your steadfast commitment to right wrongs in the face of such obstacles. Paige Wilson Kostelink
I just finished your book. I don’t think I ever read a book so fast before. I just couldn’t put it down. With each page your stature gained in my eyes. You have tackled corruption at the very core. You make the world a better place for all of us. Thank you for what you do and have done. Bob
You may order you book online at www.LicensedtoLie.com and it should be available now in all bookstores. Check the Events on the website for opportunities to meet the author in your area.
In a strongly worded and remarkable opinion, Gate Guard Services v. Thomas Perez, 14-40585-CV0, a panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, today ordered sanctions against the Department of Labor (DOL) for government misconduct, and remanded the case to the district court for an award to the private litigant of attorney’s fees because of the government’s “bad faith.” Writing for the unanimous Panel which included Judge Catharina Haynes and District Judge Marcia Crone, sitting by designation, Judge Edith Jones began:
