The Government isn't giving up on challenging the reversal of former Qwest CEO Joe Nacchio's insider trading conviction. Today it filed a petition in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals seeking a review of the reversal by all of the Judges on the court. The reversal was decided by a panel of three judges. The Petition alleges the panel erred in holding that the trial judge was wrong to exclude Nacchio's expert witness.

First, the government challenged the panel's ruling that the district judge "lacks discretion to exclude expert testimony even where the government's motion to exclude the evidence challenges the expert's reliability and the defendant's written opposition makes no showing of reliability and does not request an evidentiary hearing."

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Flamboyant attorney and legal analyst Geoff Fieger, perhaps best known for his defense of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, is on trial in federal court in Detroit. He and his law partner, Van Johnson, are charged with having employees at their law firm and others donate to John Edwards' presidential campaign and then reimbursing them, in violation of federal campaign laws. Fieger is also charged with obstruction of justice for allegedly concealing a memo and tampering with grand jury witnesses. (Background here.)

Gerry Spence, a legendary jury communicator, is representing Fieger. From his opening argument:

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The trial of former Hollywood private investigator Anthony Pellicano on illegal wiretapping charges was just about to wind up. But the Government today decided to call a rebuttal witness to impeach the credibility of former police sergeant Mark Arneson, one of Pellicano's co-defendants, and it blew up in their face. The witness may now be charged with a crime and the Judge is considering a mistrial.

Allison Hope Weiner has been in the courtroom and writes up what happened for Huffington Post. For those of you who like good trial theater, this is it.

Criminal defense attorney Gerry Goldstein, lead counsel for the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, has wasted no time in filing a blistering attack on the raid on the polygmanist sect's Texas compound:

At the crux of the 39-page motion Goldstein filed Thursday in the Texas 51st Judicial District Court on behalf of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a revelation that the man authorities were looking for, Dale Evans Barlow, was in Arizona at the time of the April 3 raid. Texas Rangers searched the polygamist sect’s Yearning For Zion Ranch near Eldorado, Texas, for a week after receiving reports from a woman claiming to be a 16-year-old named Sarah Jessop, who alleged that Barlow was sexually abusing her. However, police now suspect the reports were a prank engineered by a woman in Colorado Springs with a history of false reporting.

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Our Crime in the News coverage would be incomplete without mention of Wesley Snipes, who was sentenced today.

Snipes was sentenced to three years in prison Thursday for failing to file tax returns, the maximum penalty — and a victory for prosecutors who sought to make an example of the action star.

We should cringe when prosecutors or judges crow about "making an example" out of a defendant. Does fame justify suspension of our belief in equal protection of the law?

Suggested reading if you want to know more about the Snipes prosecution: (more...)

No surprise here -- the D.C. Madam was convicted today on all counts. The Government asked she go directly to jail, the Judge said no and allowed her to remain on bond pending sentencing.

Another secret revealed: What Rob Lowe's nanny is really claiming: he groped her. The cross-complaint the nanny filed, through her lawyer, who else but Gloria Allred, is here.
Unless she has a videotape, it sounds like a bunch of he said - she said to me. Most of the claims are labor law related -- Allred says the nanny was an employee not an independent contractor and because the Lowes employed more than 5 people, the nanny was entitled things like 30 minute meal breaks and she didn't get them, as well as other legal protections. Lots of sexual harassment allegations, none involving sex. She also wants damages because Mrs. Lowe walked around naked.

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Good news for forensic pathologist and tv pundit Cyril Wecht. After 9 days of deliberation in his federal trial on theft of public services for using the state coroner's office to conduct autopsies and private business, the jury is deadlocked. The jury's note:

"After considering all counts in a variety of ways and in reconsideration of all individual opinions according to the court instructions, we have unanimously agreed we have reached an impasse," the note read. "We agree additional deliberations would not be helpful."

I mentioned yesterday that Sara Jane Olson, aka Kathleen Soliah, the former SLA member (think Patty Hearst) was paroled from prison after serving a six year sentence.

Turns out, the California Department of Corrections says they made an error calculating her release date and she still has a year to go on her sentence. They re-arrested her at LAX last night and she's back in custody.

That just sucks. Sorry, there's no other word for it. Check out these older posts I wrote on Sara Jane's life in prison, on how her prison term got extended and how the extension was later thrown out. Here's more on her guilty plea to the second degree murder charge.

Her lawyers intend to take the matter to court, saying she doesn't deserve to be treated like a yo-yo. I totally agree.

The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed the insider trading convictions of former Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio. The panel voted two to one for reversal and ordered that a different judge preside over a re-trial.

The reason: The judge's exclusion of Nacchio's expert witness.

"Mr. Nacchio appeals, arguing that the evidence was insufficient to convict him, that the jury was improperly instructed, and that the trial judge incorrectly excluded evidence — expert testimony and classified information — important to his defense," the decision states. "We agree that the improper exclusion of his expert witness merits a new trial, but we conclude that the evidence before the District Court was sufficient for the government to try him again without violating the double jeopardy clause."

The Court did not agree with Nacchio he should have been able to present his classified information defense. Nor did it agree with him that the jury instruction on materiality was fatally flawed. It also found that a properly instructed jury could have found him guilty of insider trading.

You can read the opinion here (pdf.) [More...]

Client Number 6 in SpitzerGate has been revealed. He's the richest man in England, the Duke of Westminster, Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor.

The Duke of Westminster, listed as the world's 46th richest person by Forbes magazine, hired four hookers over a six-week stretch in late 2006 and early last year, the News of the World reported last year.

Despite his incredible wealth, multi-billionaire Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor haggled with one of the Emperors Club girls for the cost of their date, according to the report.

He's described as one of Prince Charles' best friends and Prince William's godfather. A multi-billionaire, aside from his having haggled over price, he's said by one of the call girls to be "dull and demanding.

And here's the 22 year old Kristen, whose apartment in the Flatiron District of Manhattan tonight is under seige by the media : [more...]

NYPD Blue actor Esai Morales has been cleared of an allegation that he raped his ex-girlfriend, Elizabeth Mazzocchi. I'm glad. I like him.

I read about the allegations for the first time today, although his girlfriend held a news conference (transcript here)in December to accuse him publicly and she had (who else?) Gloria Allred file a civil suit against him. Allred since dropped out and Mazzocchi has new lawyers.

In the complaint filed by Allred, available here(pdf), Mazzocchi says Morales began physically abusing her in April, 2006 about a month after they moved in together. She says he raped her on May 19, 2006. She continued to live with him for months after that. She also claims he gave her a s.t. disease.

I spent several hours with Esai in New York taping a Montel Williams at the beginning of May, 2006. I wrote a long post about it at the time. At the end of the day, as we were leaving, a very pretty woman came up and he introduced her as his girlfriend. They seemed really happy. [More...]

Austin, TX Mayor Will Wynn was charged with assault two days ago. Today, he admits it and says he has been in anger management counseling for a few years. The assault stems from an incident outside his condominium when a man made fun of his name. Wynn says he let the guy "push his buttons."

A few weeks ago, Wynn endorsed Barack Obama. Obama said he was honored to have Wynn's support. Will we see him on the campaign trail?