by TChris

Scott Peterson's lawyer, Mark Geragos, filed a motion yesterday accusing the prosecution of withholding key evidence: the statement of a former peace officer who says he saw two men pull Laci Peterson into a van. Scott is charged with Laci's murder.

In the motion, Geragos alleges that the prosecution has known about the unidentified witness since December 2002 but didn't interview him until just last week -- just days before the start of the trial. Opening statements are scheduled for a week from today. "The witness confirmed his sighting of a woman he identified as Laci and her two abductors,'' according to the defense motion. "However, the Modesto Police Department chose to ignore this former peace officer's report presumably because 'it was not going in the right direction.' This ... clearly establishes that the prosecution's conduct was undertaken in bad faith."

Another witness, Diane Jackson, saw a van acros the street from Laci's house on the morning she disappeared.

Wow. Secret Service employee Larry Stewart, the ink expert who testified at the Martha Stewart trial, has been charged with two counts of perjury--for lying on the witness stand at her trial.

The government said it had uncovered eight separate false statements made by Larry Stewart on the stand about two subjects: that he participated in an August 2002 examination of the worksheet, and that he was familiar with a book proposal on ink analysis.

The Government doesn't think it will affect her conviction. We disagree. We'd also like to know when the Government realized Stewart lied.

Meanwhile, shares in Shares in Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. (MSO) rose 11 percent today. We got an e-mail from Martha's website a few days ago asking us to let people know how they can help Martha. It was signed by Martha. Here's how:

This just in by e-mail from Law Professor Michael R. Masinter (Nova Southeastern University):

Late this afternoon, a Miami federal trial judge granted a judgment of acquittal to Greenpeace in the government's unprecedented prosecution of an advocacy organization for the nonviolent civil disobedience of its members. Greenpeace was indicted for the offense once known as sailor mongering, more specifically, for boarding a ship as it was "about to arrive at its destination" in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2279, and for conspiracy to violate that statute because its members boarded the ship to protest its cargo of unlawfully harvested mahogany.

As best as I can tell the court granted an MJOA because there was insufficient evidence from which the jury could find that the ship was "about to arrive at the place of her destination, before her actual arrival and before she has been completely moored," the actual language of the statute, or because the statute as applied to the facts shown (the ship was three miles from port) was unconstitutionally vague for lack of fair warning that it could apply three miles offshore.

A Santa Barbara dentist is making serious misconduct allegations against Tom Sneddon, the DA in charge of the Michael Jackson prosecution:

Sundaram's allegations against Sneddon were serious, in that he also claimed to have heard, first-hand, statements by Sneddon and others in the DA's office that suggest that Santa Barbara police persecution of innocent citizens is planned, common, and often racially motivated. Sundaram said that in 1994, he attended a fund-raising event with Tom Sneddon and other city officials, where ways to "get Michael Jackson out of the county" were discussed. Racist remarks were allegedly made on that occasion. According to Sundaram, other alleged vendettas were discussed as well, to the extent where he said it resembled a Mafia planning session.

Sundaram's allegations are not an isolated instance. There have been many complaints and law-suits against the Santa Barbara DA's office. The new counts against Jackson may be consistent with a pattern that Santa Barbara defense attorney Gary Dunlap has called "stacking charges."

Back in November, we published a sampling of quotes issued by Sneddon about Jackson over the past ten years, which we got from doing a Lexis query that turned up 100 entries for "Tom Sneddon" and "Michael Jackson" between 1994 and 2001. Sneddon still denies he's a man on a mission to get Michael Jackson.

by TChris

Daniel Scruggs couldn't take the bullying at school, so he hanged himself in his bedroom closet. He was 12.

Rather than pursuing the bullies or the school system that allowed them to torment Daniel, a Connecticut prosecutor went after Daniel's mother, Judith Scruggs. The government claimed that Daniel was targeted by bullies because of his body odor, which they contend was caused by a filthy home. Judith's lawyer says that Judith may have been a poor housekeeper, but she worked long hours supporting her family as a single mother and had little time or energy to devote to cleaning.

Judith was convicted of contributing to Daniel's suicide by creating a risk of injury. To the extent that Judith's housekeeping played any tenuous role in Daniel's death, the loss of a son should have been punishment enough.

Judith was placed on probation today, sparing her a sentence of incarceration. Her probation conditions require her to obtain counseling and perform 100 hours of community service.

by TChris

This is William C. Costopoulos describing his days as a prosecutor:

"I thought I was great in front of a jury as a prosecutor. I honestly believed it had something to do with my oratory skills and preparation. My blue suits, exotic boots, and briefcase added to my confidence. I was fighting evil, winning the war between right and wrong, with a meaningful purpose in life as one of God's chosen. I didn't have a clue."

James J. Smith, former FBI supervisor and handler of accused spy Katrina Leung pleaded guilty in federal court in LA today. He most likely will avoid jail because he cut a deal to testify against his former lover and asset, Ms. Leung.

A former FBI counterintelligence supervisor pleaded guilty yesterday to lying about a long-running sexual affair he had with a prized bureau informant now accused of spying for China.....Smith, 60, agreed to cooperate with the government's ongoing investigation into Leung's suspected 20-year penetration of FBI counterintelligence efforts, which could include testifying against her if she is tried next year. In exchange, charges involving mail fraud and mishandling of classified documents against Smith will be dropped.

In addition to not telling the bureau of his affair with Leung, Smith also was accused of withholding his discovery in 1991 that the Chinese government knew that the FBI had her on its payroll as an informant....By agreeing to the unusually light sentence, officials said, the government hopes to build a stronger case against Leung, speed its damage assessment and avoid having to air more national security information during a trial....Four remaining counts of the indictment against Smith will be dismissed when he is sentenced in January if the government is satisfied with his cooperation. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, but U.S. District Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper said she did not "anticipate this punishment will be imposed in this case." Smith, who retired at 57, also will be allowed to keep his FBI pension.

by TChris

An earlier post refers to Air Force translator Ahmad Al Halabi, who is accused of espionage and misusing classified information. Halabi got good news today: new evidence persuaded a military judge to release Halabi from custody. Judge Col. Barbara Brand ruled that Halabi is not a flight risk, so he will not be detained pending his court martial.

Many of the original charges against Halabi have been dismissed, and Halabi's lawyer is confident that more dismissals are coming, presumably on the basis of the undisclosed "new evidence." The judge's ruling today sends a strong signal that Halabi's lawyer has it right.

by TChris

After the government rested its case against former Ukrainian Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko, U.S. District Judge Martin Jenkins dismissed 23 of 42 charges against him. Lazarenko "is accused of defrauding and extorting hundreds of millions of dollars from his homeland and laundering more than $100 million through U.S. banks."

Jenkins ruled earlier in the trial that prosecutors would have to prove that the schemes Lazarenko was accused of using to defraud his former government were prohibited under Ukranian law and that the money he purportedly stole did not belong to him when it was transported out of the country.

On Friday, the judge said that prosecutors had failed to make their case on most of those points. "That Lazarenko's conduct may have violated some common law fiduciary duty in the United States would be insufficient to prove that he failed to provide honest services to the citizens of Ukraine," the judge wrote in an order issued on Friday.

Lazarenko still faces charges of wire fraud, money laundering and conspiring to steal money from a Ukrainian government-owned dairy business.

Enron wife Lea Fastow has been sentenced to 12 months in jail on her misdemeanor plea. She will get no good time and have to do the full 12 months. Last week, she signed on with the Government as a cooperating witness, as did her husband, former CEO Andrew Fastow, several months before.

Why would she sign on as an informant now? We think it is to enable the Government to file a "Rule 35" motion in a few months seeking a post-sentencing cooperation reduction to get her back to the five months the Government originally agreed to. Clearly, the Judge is not happy with the Prosecution for dismissing six felony counts and allowing Ms. Fastow to plead to a misdemeanor:

Before sentencing her, Hittner lambasted the government for recommending that she be sentenced on a misdemeanor tax charge after originally being charged with six felony counts. "The Department of Justice's behavior might be seen as a blatant manipulation of the federal justice system and is of great concern to this court," he said.

The Judge in the Martha Stewart case has denied her motion for new trial based upon a juror's false answers to questions during the jury selection process. We think that juror had it out for Martha from the get-go.

by TChris

David Nevin, the attorney for Sami Al-Hussayen, wonders why the government is using an expert witness who did the same thing his client is accused of doing. Hussayen, who was a month away from earning his doctorate in computer science before being arrested for providing expert assistance to terrorist organizations, is accused of maintaining a website that promoted terrorism.

Al-Hussayen's attorneys argued that government witness Mohammed Aleem, of Tjara Networks Co., maintains an Internet site [www.Islamicity.com] carrying the same kind of material Al-Hussayen is accused of promoting.

Nevin argued that the information on the Tjara Networks site is indistinguishable from the material prosecutors claim Al-Hussayen has made sure was posted on the assembly's and associated sites — yet no attempt has been made to prosecute Tjara operators. Aleem's "organization has done essentially the same thing that Mr. Al-Hussayen has been accused of doing," Nevin said, and yet "he's here as a government witness, sponsored by the government."

Nevin wasn't allowed to cross-examine Aleem about the website because his questioning would have gone beyond the scope of the government's direct examination, but Nevin intends to call Aleem as a defense witness.

Recent TalkLeft coverage of the trial is here.