DOJ Claims Judge Who Trashed 'Made Up Plot' Should Be Removed For Being 'Hostile' To The Gov't
from the because-the-doj-can't-lose dept
The self-assured nature of federal prosecutors can be quite insane. We've talked many times in the past about how the criminal justice system is completely rigged against anything remotely looking like fairness. From grand juries to plea bargains to sentencing guidelines, the entire system is designed to make anyone who enters it presumed guilty until their spirit is crushed and destroyed. In the last few years we've noted an even more disturbing trend: law enforcement creating their own plots, in which they lure (often gullible or marginalized) individuals into a convoluted criminal "plot" in which nearly all of the other players are fellow law enforcement folks (or informants). They then build up this big plot... wait until it's about to go off (knowing it'll never actually happen) and then arrest those they lured into it. It has happened over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. Courts have found that this is technically not "entrapment," even though it sure appears to come close to it.That's why we were quite happy to see a federal judge finally call out one of these questionable plots. Earlier this year, we wrote about Judge Otis Wright (whose name you may recall from the beatdown he gave Team Prenda) calling out one of the ATF's homegrown criminal plots for "outrageous government conduct" in creating a "made up crime." Wright detailed how the government picked details of the entirely fictional plot at levels to guarantee felony charges, and also accused it of "trawling... poverty-ridden areas" in a "fishing expedition" dangling huge riches on people who have no money. He further noted that nearly all of the elements of "the crime" were done by the ATF:
But for the undercover agent’s imagination in this case there would be no crime. The undercover agent invented his drug-courier persona, the stash house, the 20 to 25 kilograms of cocaine supposedly inside the stash house, the two individuals supposedly guarding the stash, the need to use weapons, and the idea of robbing the stash house. He even provided the putative safe house and getaway van. Dunlap brought little to the table besides his sheer presence and perhaps the hope of being able to obtain some quick cash.So, how did the DOJ respond to this setback? Well, via Brad Heath, we see that the DOJ has gone to the appeals court to demand a new judge, accusing Judge Wright of being biased. Seriously.
[....] ...here, the undercover agent provided a getaway van, putative safe house, and—most important of all—the entire scheme and its fictitious components. He also alleviated Defendants’ logistical and safety concerns when he “proposed that he would be inside the stash house at the time of the robbery . . . .” ...
Reassignment is warranted “to ensure not only the existence, but the appearance, of impartiality,” such as when “the district judge . . . may be viewed as having assumed the role of advocate.” ... Here, as Dunlap himself has suggested..., the district court’s tone and actions have created the appearance of hostility to the government.In short: because the judge called out the ATF and the DOJ for its outrageous behavior, that proves that the judge is biased and therefore unfit to hear the case. Only judges that accept our outrageous behavior are reasonable and should be allowed to hear our cases.
As set forth earlier, the court’s tone has not been one of impartiality. To be sure, a holding of “outrageous” conduct necessarily entails strong language—condemnation is built into the very standard. But even so, the court’s comments are extreme: accusing the government of “lead[ing] us into temptation”; of “stoop[ing] to the same level as the defendants it seeks to prosecute” and “creating crime”; of targeting people simply for being poor or for having bad thoughts; and of being “cold-blooded and heartless.” Similar is the court’s refrain that the crimes of conviction were “fake,” “trumped up,” “cut from whole cloth,” or “made up”—after all, it was Hudson who initiated contact, the defendants showed up with guns, one of which Whitfield boasted could cut a man in half.... Similar, too, is the court’s repeated criticism of the investigation as a “trawling” expedition where bait was “dangled” “irresistibl[y]” before poor, ignorant defendants.
It is not just that the substance of the court’s accusations is wrong: merely erring is not grounds for reassignment. It is that the tone creates the appearance of hostility toward a government “oppressor.” ... And that tone is not limited to the court’s description of historical facts: it has been also dismissive to government counsel during hearings.
This is the attitude of federal prosecutors. The entire system is already rigged to support us, so if a judge somehow actually pushes back on something we did, then clearly he's the problem, rather than our outrageous behavior.
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Filed Under: atf, doj, entrapment, made up plots, otis wright, outrageous government conduct, own plots
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What boggles my mind...
And the DOJ is denying the facts for faith. This is literally religion in a state institution and goes against the First Amendment...
I'm just in awe at how entitled the government has become.
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Re: What boggles my mind...
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If they can get this reassigned, any time a judge points out bad behavior, they could be traded out.
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Re: Re: Re: What boggles my mind...
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Re: Re: Re: What boggles my mind...
Exactly what you said, this is a canary in the coal mine moment folks. If the gov't is saying the impartial referee isn't partial because they want to make up their own rules...we're in deep deep trouble.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: What boggles my mind...
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: What boggles my mind...
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Re: What boggles my mind...
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Re: What boggles my mind...
I prefer consensual relationships and exchange.
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Re: Re: What boggles my mind...
If half the government were replaced with a system of transparency, accountability, transparency, and oversight, we wouldn't need the half it replaced and we could start over with trust.
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Re: What boggles my mind...
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THAT should be the definition of entrapment.
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Also applies to this thread... https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20140712/22295127864/nypd-tells-brooklyn-officers-to-continue-maki ng-low-level-drug-arrests-da-has-stated-he-wont-prosecute.shtml
I DARE you to call me for Jury Duty.
Your goin to so PAY for your TREASONS. (yeah that's plural)
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Re:
in practice, i imagine that means only law-and-order authoritarian types with too much time on their hands actually do so, NOT fair-minded citizens interested in real justice...
just sayin'...
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Re:
"Dismiss this juror for cause, your honor?"
"Agreed."
And back to the juror assembly room you go, to sit and wait and eat stale vending machine snacks...
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Re:
This means all actual selectees for juries in this state have no conscience because of one of the following:
1. They don't actually have a conscience
2. They can actually ignore their conscience when determining guilt or innocence
3. They have a conscience, but can ignore it when they lie on the questionnaire.
Amazing.
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I DARE you to call me for Jury Duty.
Your goin to so PAY for your TREASONS. (yeah that's plural)
Not sure how much LONGER the SYSTEM can even be WORKED TO FIX.
think about that one.
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Imagination
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Re: Imagination
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Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
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Re: Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
Judge Wright for President! Seriously, I would vote for him in a heartbeat.
However, this is demoralizing. The Department of Justice has become a Department of Injustice, presumed innocent is a bygone concept, and we have become a police state. I guess we just make sure to write letters while we still have a First Amendment and vote while we still have some choice (even though the two parties have effectively become one.
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Re: Re: Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
Just start calling them the department of judgment.They are not administering justice, but judging who should go to jail.
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Re: Re: Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
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Re: Re: Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
Something I drew up. I really need to fix/finish it.
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Re: Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
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Re: Re: Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
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Re: Re: Judge Wright for the Supreme Court
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A New Attitude
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Or............
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Hitler is smiling
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Re: Hitler is smiling
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Re: Re: Hitler is smiling
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Re: Re: Hitler is smiling
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Re: Hitler is smiling
The US is presently merely slouching towards corporate feudalism.
If anyone wins, it's the imaginary terrorists who hate our freedoms, because those are certainly being annihilated one by one. (Real terrorists have a more specific and less US-centric agenda).
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Nothing 'imaginary' about them
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Re: Re: Hitler is smiling
If half the government were replaced with a system of transparency, accountability, transparency, and oversight, we wouldn't need the half it replaced and we could start over with trust.
The Germans had a strong seat in Philadelphia, they could have influenced American politics to become Nazi in due time, had they not lost first.
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he should consider himself lucky
Either that, or in a few months we'll be reading a story about how Wright was arrested after some child porn was found on his computer. Coincidence, I'm sure.
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Tone it down a bit?
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How to fix the DOJ and Judicial process
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What's the difference?
Now that both have received a smackdown from Judge Otis Wright, what's the difference between Prenda and the government prosecutors?
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Re: What's the difference?
I am shocked. SHOCKED, I tell you. That you would even THINK such a thing.
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what?
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Re: what?
This is one of the rare judges we need to KEEP on the payroll! He seems to be doing his real job compared to the majority that just snooze through their jobs like uncaring drones until it suits them to do otherwise.
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Lies to its people.
Lies to itself.
Lies to other governments.
Destroys evidence.
Destroys lives.
Tortures people.
Spies on citizens.
Spies on politicians.
Spies on groups.
Breaks the laws.
Violates the constitution.
Takes money for favors.
Takes favors for favors.
Rigs districts.
Rigs elections.
Rigs trials.
Rigs judges.
Rigs debates.
Rigs evidence.
Rigs attacks.
Invades countries.
Invades private property.
Abuses power.
Abuses authority.
Abuses minorities.
Ignores the will of its citizens.
Imposes its will on its citizens.
Imposes its will on other countries.
Hides misdoings.
Hides evidence.
Hides information.
Hides accountability.
...and I'm sure there are many more I am not thinking of.
Just what is it going to take for people to recognize the corruption and take action?
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Though that 5% enlistment is huge. Our USArmy enlistment, by comparison is 0.028%.
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Revolution starts with grievance.
Starvation and death.
People join the resistance when their personal lives are directly affected by the process. When they get SWATted and their dog is killed (or their baby burned), when their businesses get extorted to betray their clients, when the police gun down innocents in "defense" or lie as a group in court to throw someone in jail, then those who survive, those who still remain will consider taking up arms, if there is a place to rally.
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Re: Revolution starts with grievance.
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Re:
Shutdown ComicCon.
Shutdown the NFL.
Shutdown Tesla Motors. in progress
Cancel Game of Thrones
Cancel Avengers 2: Age of Ultron
Cancel Star Wars VII
Cancel all pizza delivery service
Cancel Mountain Dew
Have George R R Martin killed
Have Tupac killed check
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Re: Re:
As long as folks can still get pissed 3 days a week, they'll keep on thinking everything is peachy.
OK, so maybe the word "thinking" is inappropriate when discussing drunks...
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Aw, come on now.
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Judge Otis Wright
Status: Big Damn Hero
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Osama won
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Re: Osama won
It will still be a while before the Empire finally topples.
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So much for ...
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This is (now) part of the procedure.
Especially so if there are further penalties to the Honorable Wright.
If this appeal succeeds in getting Wright ousted from the case, it will be yet another example of how the DoJ is completely busted. (Much like the incidents of law enforcement officers getting caught lying in court without penalties near what a civilian would suffer). It demonstrates that our law enforcement branches no longer serve to reasonably serve the public, but instead serve their own agendas (or those of people in power -- in contrast to offices that hold power).
The next step, incidentally, is not outright revolution, but is twofold.
The first is to adopt the policy of Omertà, which is to avoid calling the cops (or any responders) at all costs with the understanding that they will only make a situation worse, this no matter how grievous a matter or crime. We'll be ready to do this when we realize that the lives lost to crime or fire or disaster is a lesser cost than suffering the intervention of Law Enforcement Agencies.
The second step is to adopt the policy of Vendetta, which is to police ourselves with violent reprisal against wrongdoers and their families (since humans are more motivated to avoid consequences to others than themselves). And ultimately to target law-enforcement officers themselves, responding to their injustices as if they are individuals rather than part of an institution. And again, we'd also target their families in order to make it clear they are responsible for their own actions, no matter how they justify it as "part of their job".
Yes. This is messy. That is why we don't do this normally. This is why we prefer to have a police force that has internal integrity and is compelled to serve the justice of the people over preservation of the institution.
This is, incidentally, how we dealt with the medieval Holy Inquisition. And, for that matter, Nazi occupation.
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Re: This is (now) part of the procedure.
The line "Especially so if there are further penalties to the Honorable Wright."
Goes below the paragraph that begins "If this appeal succeeds" and ends "but instead serve their own agendas (...)"
Sorry all. I am dum.
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Re: This is (now) part of the procedure.
Our government makes me cry.
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Re: Re: This is (now) part of the procedure.
I think it also happened in the Soviet Union, which is part of how the Russian mobs formed.
And the reason the police are supposed to preserve their own integrity and not turn into thugs-with-uniforms is to prevent the people from having to resort to such measures.
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Another thing to understand is that prosecutors love to overstate facts (how else are you going to put a guy with a pound of weed in jail for 10 years, you have to be full of shit to think that is right).
Anyway, the prosecutor is a showboat.
Maybe we will get lucky and the judge will find some reason to sanction/fine/etc this guy.
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Just get it to the Supreme Court and that should be close enough, yes?
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FTFY
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But we're protecting you from WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION
Are you guys all pinko communists? Don't you care about protecting your country?? :-)
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