Detroit lawyer Geoffrey Fieger was indicted on Friday, in large part for allegedly conspiring to make illegal campaign contributions to John Edwards.

Geoffrey Fieger, the Southfield lawyer known for winning multimillion-dollar civil judgments and antagonizing judges, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on criminal charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, making illegal campaign contributions and causing false statements.

The indictment charges Fieger and a law partner, Vernon (Ven) Johnson, of conspiring to make about $127,000 in illegal contributions to Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards' 2004 campaign.

Famed lawyer Gerry Spence will defend Fieger:

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I just received a copy of Until Proven Innocent: Political Correctness and the Shameful Injustices of the Duke Lacrosse Rape Case by Stuart Taylor, Jr. and KC Johnson.

Anyone interested in this travesty of a prosecution simply must read this book.

The book gives nice coverage to the blogs, including TalkLeft and Liestoppers.

They must drink funny water in L.A. I don't get them. Paris Hilton gets 45 days for violating probation by driving with a suspended license (even though there was no alcohol involved in the probation violation and yes I know that she was put on probation for an alcohol-related reckless driving charge) while Lindsay Lohan gets 1 day in jail for all this:

She pleaded guilty to two counts of being under the influence of cocaine; no contest to two counts of driving with a blood-alcohol level above .08 percent and one count of reckless driving. Two counts of driving under the influence were dropped.

Lohan had two arrests for drunk driving, one in May, in which she crashed her car and fled the scene, and the other in July, shortly after getting out of rehab.

The D.A. says:

"She's getting what everyone else would get," Deputy District Attorney Danette Meyers said after an hourlong hearing in Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge H. Chester Horn Jr.'s courtroom.

I guess she means everyone except Paris.

To be clear, I don't think Lohan should have gotten more time, I'm complaining again that Paris Hilton got too much time.

Update: Thanks to Squeaky in the comments for adding that Nicole Richie served only 82 minutes of her four day sentence.

Former Illinois Governor George Ryan lost his appeal to overturn his conviction on corruption charges yesterday. He will remain free pending a request for an "en banc" rehearing by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The main issue in the appeal involves the propriety of the Judge substituting two alternate jurors 8 days after deliberations began and a juror's bringing outside material into the jury room.

Yes, a juror did bring improper outside information into deliberations at Ryan's trial and "there is no doubt this should not have happened," the two-judge majority wrote. The judges also acknowledged that the sudden removal of an outspoken juror after eight days of deliberations was irregular.

"The trial may not have been picture-perfect," the two judges wrote in the majority opinion.

One judge dissented from the majority's view:

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Michael Vick's lawyers announced today he will plead guilty. No word yet on the sentence, but the charge is a felony, conspiracy, and a prison sentence is possible.

"After consulting with his family over the weekend," Michael Vick asks that I announce today that he has reached an agreement with federal prosecutors regarding the charges pending against him," lead defense attorney Billy Martin said in a statement.

"Mr. Vick has agreed to enter a plea of guilty to those charges and to accept full responsibility for his action and the mistakes he has made. Michael wishes to apologize again to everyone who has been hurt by this matter," Martin's statement said.

Michael Vick is feeling the squeeze. He has no good options. Vick has used speed and agility to avoid sacks under those circumstances throughout his career, but this week he's facing a pass rush that he can't elude by scrambling. (Sorry. Sports metaphors end here.)

The Falcons quarterback has been indicted for conspiring to sponsor dog fights. Vick can accept the government's proposed plea agreement, knowing he'll probably serve a year or two in prison, or he can take his chances at trial. If he elects a trial, however, prosecutors have threatened to add more charges.

The evidence against Vick is (warning: disturbing photo) horrific. He would risk more convictions (and probably a longer sentence) by exposing such ugly facts to a jury. Reports that Vick's lawyers advised him to take the deal are therefore unsurprising.

Given the NFL's emphasis on players' off-field misconduct, Vick's playing career may be over even if he could beat the charges at trial. He lost his endorsement contract with Nike. He has no good choices. His deadline to decide is tomorrow.

Luck has run out for former Adelphia execs John Rigas and his son Timothy. Three years after being found guilty of fraud, they reported today to federal prison in Butner, N.C. to begin serving their 15 and 20 year respective sentences.

While they didn't get their choice of prison locale, they were allowed to serve their sentences at the same institution.

John Rigas is 83 years old and suffers from bladder cancer. It's a death sentence for him, just like it is for Bernie Ebbers who got 25 years.

America. Prison Nation. It's just sick.

Al Gore III pleaded guilty to drug possession in Los Angeles today and was granted diversion.

He pleaded guilty to two felony counts of drug possession, two misdemeanor counts of drug possession without a prescription, and one misdemeanor count of marijuana possession, the district attorney's office said.

Jaime Coulter, senior deputy district attorney, said Gore's sentencing will be continued until Feb. 7. If he has complied with all the conditions of the diversion program, the sentencing will be continued again for another year, with charges possibly being dropped in 2009. "At that point, he will be able to withdraw his guilty plea as if he never entered it," Coulter said.

That's the correct resolution. Now, if we could only ensure it was available to all who are similarly situated. Rather than castigate Gore for getting special treatment, as some undoubtedly will, I'd rather people use his case as an example and to send a message to prosecutors and legislators that this outcome should be available to all in need of drug treatment.

Former Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio, convicted of insider trading, today was sentenced to six years in prison, fined $19 million and ordered to forfeit $52 million to the Government.

He was granted a voluntary surrender and will report to the designated facility within 15 days of designation. He was denied an appeal bond.

More here, including my take:

Joe Nacchio suffered a supreme fall from grace today. He didn’t get off lightly. The Judge, to his credit, resisted the Government’s request to max him out and flatten him like a pancake. We are all greater than the sum of our misdeeds, including Joe Nacchio.

Today is reckoning day for former Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio. He will be sentenced by Judge Edward Nottingham, Chief Judge of Colorado's U.S. District Court.

Among the unknowns, in addition to the length of the sentence and the amount of forfeiture and any fine the Court will impose on Nacchio, is whether he will be allowed to remain on bond pending appeal and if not, whether he will be taken into custody immediately or told to report to his designated institution within a period of weeks.

These are very different issues. One involves the Judge determining whether Nacchio has met the stringent legal standard for an appeal bond, which I discuss here and the Rocky Mountain News discusses today here.

The other only has to do with self-surrender.

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DA Mike Nifong issued an apology to the three vindicated Duke lacrosse players today in court.

A hearing is ongoing as to whether Nifong committed criminal contempt of court. After the apology, the defense lawyers withdrew their request for sanctions.

Contempt of court is an affront to the dignity of the Court. The court is the victim.

The Judge previously found probable cause to believe that Nifong lied to the court at two pretrial hearings.

If convicted, Nifong could be fined and sentenced to up to 30 days in jail. He has resigned as DA and been ordered disbarred.

There were a flurry of motions yesterday in the case of Qwest former CEO Joe Nacchio who faces sentencing Friday in Denver. Among them was a motion for bail pending appeal. I discuss them at length today at 5280.com.

As I wrote, the test for bail pending appeal is set by statute.

A defendant is entitled to bail pending appeal if he is not a flight or safety risk, the appeal is not for purposes of delay, and he will raise a “substantial question” on appeal which, if decided in his favor, will likely result in reversal of the conviction or a new trial.

In the Tenth Circuit, the Court has interpreted “substantial question” to mean:

.... a “close” question or one that very well could be decided the other way.’”

As I wrote when Scooter Libby was seeking bond pending appeal,

It's not necessary that Judge Walton believe he was wrong, or that reversal is probable, only that the issue presents a close question or one that could have been decided the other way.

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