This is intended to enrage you. (#5 in a series)

September 18th, 2013

Back in April of 2012, I noted the convictions of five New Orleans police officers on charges stemming from the “Danziger Bridge” incident.

About that:

Citing “grotesque prosecutorial misconduct” on the part of federal lawyers here and in Washington, a judge on Tuesday threw out the 2011 convictions of five former police officers who had been found guilty in a momentous civil rights case of killing two citizens and engaging in an extensive cover-up in the days after Hurricane Katrina.

More from NOLA.com:

In a 129-page order that strongly criticized prosecutors in former U.S. Attorney Jim Letten’s office, U.S. District Judge Kurt Engelhardt pointed to “unprecedented events and acts” that “has taken the court on a legal odyssey unlike any other.”

And yes, this is a direct result of the anonymous comments scandal that led to Letten’s resignation:

The revelations and other instances of misconduct prompted Engelhardt to call for a criminal probe of former prosecutors Sal Perricone and Jan Mann, neither of whom were directly involved in prosecuting the Danziger Bridge case. Tuesday’s order alluded to additional misconduct uncovered by that probe.
The judge outed a third Justice Department prosecutor as an anonymous poster.

To be clear, I’m not enraged at the judge: I think he made the right decision, especially given the discovery of Karla Dobinski’s activities:

Ms. Dobinski had an important role leading up to trial, as the lawyer in charge of the so-called “taint team,” which among other things ensured that testimony given by police officers under immunity was not later used against them (the failure to do so is what fatally compromised the case in state court).

Ms. Dobinski is the third “anonymous” commenter. (Also: “taint team”. Ken White, call your office, please.)

I’m enraged at Letten, and at his office, for f—ing this one up. It looks like there will be retrials. I hope the defendants get a fair second trial. I also hope that Letten, and the other folks in his office responsible for this mess, face their own criminal trials, and receive appropriate punishment if they are found guilty of criminal acts.

Posted in Clippings, Cops, Law, Rage | Comments Closed

Notes from the blotter.

September 17th, 2013

I have written previously about Glafira Rosales, Knoedler & Company, the fake Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock and Robert Motherwell paintings, and the guy in Queens who actually painted them.

Yesterday, Ms. Rosales pled guilty to “charges of wire fraud, money laundering and tax evasion”.

In court, Ms. Rosales, who had been arrested in May, dabbed at her eyes with a tissue after she detailed her role in the fraud and listened to the judge explain that she could owe up to $81 million in restitution and have to forfeit her home in Sands Point, N.Y.; her art collection; and her bank accounts. She also faces a maximum sentence of 99 years in prison, although her recommended sentence under federal sentencing guidelines is likely to be far less.

I particularly like the “although her recommended sentence…” part. Ken White, you are doing some good in the world.

I have also previously written about the case of Robert Middleton, and the attempts to file murder charges against the person who burned him (leading to his death from cancer some years later).

From the HouChron:

After countless stops and starts, prosecutors Monday refiled a murder case against 28-year-old Don Wilburn Collins, who was age 13 when Middleton was set ablaze.
“We have located previously unknown witnesses and developed a considerable amount of new information regarding the heinous attack on Robert Middleton,” said Montgomery County Attorney J.D. Lambright, who last year was elected to his first term and assumed office Jan. 1.

Lambright claims that there’s “more than 50,000 pages” of new information. Further, since Lambright is claiming that the assault against Middleton occurred in conjunction with the alleged sexual assault by Collins, the charge is actually felony murder.

Lambright has filed a new motion in juvenile court, seeking “discretionary transfer” of Collins’ felony murder case to district court, where he will be tried as an adult.

And if you want to bid on any of Jesse Jackson Jr.’s stuff – some of the stuff that he spent campaign funds to buy, and that got him convicted of a crime – go here.

As the auction began Tuesday, one option for eager buyers was a guitar supposedly signed by both Eddie Van Halen and Michael Jackson, which prosecutors said the former congressman spent $4,000 in campaign funds to purchase. But hours later, it was scratched from the auction. The U.S. Marshals Service said it was pulled from the auction because of questions about its authenticity.

Man, this is just compounding the embarrassment. I mean, you use campaign money illegally to buy crap – that’s bad enough. Then it comes out that you’re a Van Halen fan – that’s even worse. Then it comes out that you got taken when you were buying Van Halen memorabilia – how much worse can it get?

Posted in Art, Clippings, Law | 1 Comment »

TMQ Watch: September 17, 2013.

September 17th, 2013

This week’s TMQ, after the jump…

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Food, NFL, Sports, TMQ watch, TV | 2 Comments »

The street finds its own uses for things.

September 17th, 2013

Hattip on this to Big Bill Gibson and John Gruber.

Posted in Apple, Clippings | Comments Closed

Onion headline, or New York Times headline?

September 17th, 2013

The Rational Choices of Crack Addicts

Answer after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Clippings, Economics, Geek, Neuroscience | Comments Closed

Pullet surprise.

September 17th, 2013

On certain days, a truck pulls up alongside their quiet, spacious coop on an Amish farm here and delivers a feast that seems tailored to a flock of two-legged aristocrats. Before long, the rust-colored birds are pecking away at vegetable peelings and day-old bread from some of Manhattan’s most elegant restaurants, like Per Se, Daniel, Gramercy Tavern, the Modern and David Burke Townhouse.

More:

Of course, these chickens are not dining on stale loaves from grandmother’s breadbox. On a recent afternoon at the farm, where a few hundred creatures inhabit a peaceful, 15,000-square-foot coop that would dwarf the size of most New York apartments, they clucked and ambled around pans of bread soaked in fresh milk, and white buckets full of leafy trimmings that would make a tremendous tossed salad.
“Some of this is nicer stuff than I have to eat when I get home,” said Mike Charles, a local poultry expert involved in the project.

I could snark on this, but I actually think there’s a lot to be said for chicken that tastes like chicken. (Didn’t Nero Wolfe buy chickens from a farmer who fed them on acrorns? Or was that pigs, and the chickens were fed on something else? I don’t have any of my Wolfe books here at work.)

But:

“We explained the concept,” Ms. Daguin said, “but for him it’s like: ‘What? You’re driving two and a half hours to give me vegetable scraps? I have them right here.’ ”

Yeah, what’s the carbon footprint of these chickens? How sustainable is “driving two and a half hours” to deliver vegetable scraps? Especially since the Amish are likely to have vegetable scraps and day-old bread of their own?

Posted in Amish, Clippings, Food | Comments Closed

Your loser update: week 2, 2013.

September 17th, 2013

NFL teams that still have a chance to go 0-16:

Pittsburgh
Cleveland (Quote blatantly stolen from a family member in Cleveland: “Apparently, the Browns now have to suck for Teddy Bridgewater!” And what’s even worse: “Suck for Bridgewater!” doesn’t even have the ring to it that “Suck for Luck!” did.)
Jacksonville
Washington
NY Giants
Minnesota
Tampa Bay
Carolina

Posted in Loser, NFL, Sports | Comments Closed

Quote of the day.

September 16th, 2013

Bloombergism is the sort of thing the Constitution was designed to prevent.

–“The Dashed Dreams of President Bloomberg”, Jonathan Chait, New York Magazine

(Hattip to Popehat on the Twitter for this one.)

Posted in Clippings, Politics | 1 Comment »

Dear Washington Post.

September 13th, 2013

Recalls should target those who deserve extraordinary rebuke, primarily those guilty of malfeasance. It should not become a regular feature of America’s system of government, which is premised on the notion that voters entrust their representatives to act with deliberation and a degree of independence.

There’s something you might want to go read. Parts of it are engraved on a monument very near your headquarters. Here’s the relevant section:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

I hope this helps. If you have any more questions, I recommend an extended session of meditation at the Jefferson Memorial, and perhaps a little bit of reading.

Posted in Clippings, Guns, Politics | Comments Closed

More schadenfreude!

September 12th, 2013

I can’t help it. I’m enjoying this too much.

Anthony D. Weiner, the digital Lothario who called himself the “imperfect messenger” of the mayoral race, mustered a measly 5 percent of the Democratic primary vote. Eliot Spitzer, a former governor and noted patron of prostitutes, lost his comptroller bid to a journeyman politician whom he outspent two to one.

Hey, remember when folks were saying this was Weiner’s comeback?

“It turns out sexual misconduct is a fast track to a concession speech,” Sonia Ossorio, president of the local branch of the National Organization for Women, wrote in a triumphant note on Wednesday morning. “Voters will reject candidates who fail to treat women with respect and dignity.”

We can hope.

Other New Yorkers, who watched with dismay when Mark Sanford, the philandering former South Carolina governor, won a Congressional seat this year, seized on the primary results from Tuesday to indulge in a more time-honored city tradition: feeling superior to the rest of the country.

“time-honored city tradition”. There’s really nothing I can say here, is there?

Mr. Spitzer lost by a small margin, receiving nearly half of the votes cast, and about half of voters had a favorable impression of him, according to exit poll results. Mr. Weiner performed far worse, placing fifth in the primary, and about three of every four voters said they had an unfavorable view of him.

I wonder if this is a rejection of the nanny state exemplified by Bloomberg.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily that all of a sudden New Yorkers are these chaste moral beings that can’t deal with scandals,” Dr. Greer said. “The larger story is we were looking for a new day, a new day post-Bloomberg, post-drama, post-scandal and embarrassment for the city and state of New York.”

Note the paper of record’s use of “post-Bloomberg” there, too. Interesting.

(Edited to add: More on the “Bloomberg backlash” theme by way of Insta.)

Posted in Clippings, Politics, Schadenfreude | Comments Closed

Noted.

September 12th, 2013

I owe Lawrence $5.

Oh, well, there’s always next year.

Posted in Sports, Wagers | Comments Closed

Random notes: September 12, 2013.

September 12th, 2013

Two games in, and we have our first head coach firing of the college football season: Doug Williams is out at Grambling. The team lost the first two games of this season, and was 1-10 last season (0-9 in conference).

The Chicago City Council voted to do away with the city’s gun registry.

The change, which the Council made reluctantly, comes as Chicago is trying to control a rash of gun violence that drew national attention when the city’s homicide count surpassed 500 last year. The Chicago Police Department has cited gang activity and a flow of firearms from suburbs and from across the Indiana border into the city, which continues to pursue more aggressive gun restrictions.

Or, as Iowahawk once noted, Chicago blames their violence problem on other states…that don’t have a violence problem. (I can’t find his exact quote. By the way, Twitter’s search features stink.)

Criminal experts say the gun registry database in Chicago, which contains more than 8,000 gun owners and about 22,000 firearms, has helped the police better understand the movement of weapons in the city as they put in place new law enforcement strategies. Adam Collins, a spokesman for the Police Department, said in a statement that officers would be able to use a new online database of permit holders maintained by the Illinois State Police under the law.
“There’s no scenario where this makes the jobs of police easier,” said Jen Ludwig, director of the University of Chicago’s Crime Lab, about having to repeal the registry.

Of course, because Chicago’s criminal class is composed of law-abiding permit holding individuals who register their illegally possessed guns.

Speaking of sad pandas:

While some voters in the two districts groused about the flood of donations Mr. Bloomberg and outside groups made in the recall campaigns, analysts in Colorado said the election results were shaped by an eruption of local discontent from voters who say their leaders are ignoring the concerns of gun owners and abandoning Colorado’s rural, libertarian roots.

Kind of interesting that the paper of record mentions Bloomberg specifically, and not the NRA.

Ms. Giron’s loss raised far more red flags for Democrats. She represented a district where registered Democrats outnumbered Republicans by two to one, and she won her seat in 2010 by 10 percentage points. But on Tuesday, voters lined up against her, 56 percent to 44 percent.

Heh. Heh. Heh.

And among the many things Mexico needs: strict machete control.

Four men hacked a state legislator to death with machetes and wounded a journalist who was apparently talking to him on the side of a highway Wednesday in the western Mexico state of Michoacan.

Posted in Clippings, Firings, Guns, Law, Politics, Schadenfreude, Sports | 1 Comment »

Things that make me go “Interesting”…

September 11th, 2013

Posted in Clippings, Cops, Law, Music | 1 Comment »

You’re going down in flames, you tax-fattened hyena! watch (#3 in a series)

September 11th, 2013

Two Colorado Democrats who provided crucial support for a slate of tough new gun-control laws were voted out of office on Tuesday in a recall vote widely seen as a test of popular support for gun restrictions after mass shootings in a Colorado movie theater and a Connecticut elementary school.

Posted in Clippings, Guns, Politics | Comments Closed

Speaking of ESPN…

September 10th, 2013

“I’m from the D.C. area and a fan all my life,” says Rob King, senior vice president of content for ESPN print and digital media, “and I’ve thought about the Generals and the Statesmen as names, even George Washington replacing the Indian on the logo.”

The Washington Generals? Dude, what are you smoking, and where can I get some?

Posted in Clippings, Media, NFL, Sports | Comments Closed

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