Mr. Julian Heicklen, a retired Pennsylvania State University chemistry professor, has been indicted by federal prosecutors on a charge that his distributing of pamphlets advocating the right of jury nullification and that jurors should vote their conscience violates the law against jury tampering.
He was arraigned on Friday in a hearing before federal magistrate Judge Kimba M. Wood, who entered a not guilty plea on his behalf when he refused to say how he would plead.
Mr. Heicklen insists that he never tries to influence specific jurors or cases, and instead gives his brochures to passers-by, hoping that jurors are among them.
Prosecutors declined to comment on his case, as did Sabrina Shroff, a lawyer who was assigned to assist Mr. Heicklen. (He is acting as his own lawyer.)
Mr. Heicklen also distributes information from the Fully Informed Jury Association, which urges jurors to nullify laws with which they disagree. I dont want them to nullify the murder laws, he said. Im a big law-and-order guy when it comes to real crime.
This is classic political advocacy, Christopher T. Dunn, associate legal director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said referring to Mr. Heicklens pamphleteering. Unless the government can show that hes singling out jurors to influence a specific verdict, its squarely protected by the First Amendment, and they should dismiss the case.
Court records show that before Mr. Heicklens indictment last fall, Mr. Heicklen has been cited at least six times since October 2009 for distributing fliers without a permit at the entrance of the Manhattan federal courthouse. But the violations, which carry fines, do not depend on the content of his message. If convicted of the jury tampering charge, he could face a six-month sentence.
In court Friday, Judge Wood noted that because he was charged with a misdemeanor, she said, he was not entitled to a jury trial.
#2
..a retired Pennsylvania State University chemistry professor..
Can you say karma -
In the 1670 "Hay-market case", William Penn was accused of the crime of 'preaching Quakerism to an unlawful assembly' and while he freely admitted his guilt, he challenged the righteousness of such a law. The jury, recognizing that William Penn clearly had been preaching in public, but refusing to find him guilty of speaking to an unlawful assembly, attempted to find Penn guilty of "speaking in Gracechurch-street". The judge, unsatisfied with this decision, withheld food, water, and toilet facilities from the jurors for three days. The jurors finally decided to return a not guilty verdict overall, and while the decision was accepted, the jurors were fined. One of the jurors appealed this fine, and Chief Justice Sir John Vaughn issued an historically important ruling: that jurors could not be punished for their verdicts. This case is considered a significant milestone in the history of jury nullification. Abramson, Jeffrey (1994). We, The Jury. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. pp. 6872. ISBN 0-674-00430-2.
#3
We also harvest info from the AyPee, Iran's PressTV, and DEBKA among others. Not alway unimpeachable sources, but sometimes the value is not the information content, but what story they are pushing. Think of it as a form of traffic analysis.
#5
Well, I'm just confused if the NYT is trustworthy or not. Because if they aren't, then they can't be trusted to say the sky is blue. But if they are, then that's problematic as well. How do you tell if the NYT is pushing a viewpoint or not? Typically they weave it into the story seamlessly.
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/25/2011 21:49 Comments ||
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#8
The fact that the New York Times -- and other such biased sources -- reports something is also a useful datum, gromky. And they do have a few seriously good reporters in among the creative writers, whose work comes through relatively untouched. That gentleman who tracked down Mr. Assange in England, f'r instance, did crackerjack work in Iraq, as I recall. Also, you can take the key facts as the start of a google search that will lead you to more balanced sources, where otherwise you mightn't know about the story at all. I know that's a bit harder in your part of the world, what with all those firewalls, but recent research has shown that doing web searches is as good for forestalling senility as crosswords or sudoku -- and much more rewarding, in my opinion. ;-)
Former Bell City Manager Robert Rizzo was removed on a gurney Wednesday during his preliminary hearing.
Rizzo was seated on a bench outside the courtroom at the downtown LA Criminal Courts Building when paramedics arrived at 12:30 p.m. He was talking to attorneys during a break. Rizzo complained of chest pains and light-headedness.
Rizzo, who was responsive, had a towel over his face as paramedics removed him from the building. He was transported to Good Samaritan Hospital near downtown Los Angeles.
Hospital officials would not give an update on Rizzo's condition.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/25/2011 00:00 ||
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In an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV Friday, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said President Barack Obamas decision not to fully enforce the Defense of Marriage law eventually could lead to a constitutional crisis, as he has directly violated his constitutional duties by arbitrarily suspending a law.
Obama Attorney General Eric Holder said on Wednesday that the administration will not defend the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act in the courts, which has banned recognition of same-sex marriage for 15 years. President Clinton signed the act into law in 1996.
Obamas decision to forego a legal defense of the law has caused a firestorm of anger from conservative groups.
Gingrich slammed Obama for his decision, telling Newsmax that he is not a one-person Supreme Court and his decision sets a very dangerous precedent that must not be allowed to stand.
First of all, he campaigned in favor of [the law]. He is breaking his word to the American people, Gingrich says.
Second, he swore an oath on the Bible to become president that he would uphold the Constitution and enforce the laws of the United States. He is not a one-person Supreme Court. The idea that we now have the rule of Obama instead of the rule of law should frighten everybody.
The fact that the left likes the policy is allowing them to ignore the fact that this is a very unconstitutional act, Gingrich said.
Gingrich said it is absolutely critical for Obama to comply with Congress and the constitutional process.
I believe the House Republicans next week should pass a resolution instructing the president to enforce the law and to obey his own constitutional oath, and they should say if he fails to do so that they will zero out [defund] the office of attorney general and take other steps as necessary until the president agrees to do his job.
His job is to enforce the rule of law and for us to start replacing the rule of law with the rule of Obama is a very dangerous precedent."
Gingrich adds: I dont think these guys set out to create a constitutional crisis. I think they set out to pay off their allies in the gay community and to do something that they thought was clever. I think they didnt understand the implication that having a president personally suspend a law is clearly unconstitutional.
#1
Here's my favorite quote from the article "Gingrich even suggested that, if a President Sarah Palin had taken a similar action, there would have been immediate calls for her impeachment."
All hail King Obama...who needs the other 2 branches of Government anyway....
He was a mere instructor, swksvolFF. Anyone can instruct, no degree needed if the department head believes he has the knowledge to share and the ability to run a classroom properly. Most instructors are grad students, because there are so many of them lying about, but universityies will take anyone with a modicum of ability and a willingness to work cheap... for the first year, anyway. How long did Mr. Obama, esq. wield that chalkboard?
Last month, the Obama administration claimed success with the 2010 Q4 annualized GDP growth rate estimate from Commerce of 3.2%. Today, Commerce has issued its customary follow-up estimate, and the news is not as bright. Their 2010 Q4 estimate dropped to 2.8%, barely above Q3′s 2.6%
Over the last two years, the pattern from Commerce has been to advance a flashy number initially, then back down in later estimates. The worst case came early, when 2009 Q3 got revised to 2.8% from 3.5%. In 2010 Q3, the pattern reversed itself, with GDP estimate rising in each new estimate to the 2.6% level.
Reuters doesn't exactly use the U-word, but notes that its economists expected an upward revision in GDP:
Economists had expected GDP growth, which measures total goods and services output within U.S. borders, to be revised up to a 3.3 percent pace. The economy expanded at a 2.6 percent rate in the third quarter. For the whole of 2010, the economy grew 2.8 percent instead of 2.9 percent.
The outlook is rather poor, thanks to surging oil prices from the crises in the Middle East and North Africa:
In addition, consumer spending -- which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity -- grew at a 4.1 percent rate in the final three months of 2010 instead of 4.4 percent.
It was still the fastest since the first three months of 2006 and was an acceleration from the third quarter's 2.4 percent rate. But there are concerns that surging crude oil prices could hurt consumer spending and slow the economy's recovery.
In other words, we have not freed ourselves from stagnation. The one area that held the most promise, consumer spending, will likely get curtailed thanks to the inflation-multiplying effect of higher oil prices. If we were pumping our own oil in the Gulf and off the coasts, we would not only have hundreds of thousands of more jobs, we would also have insulated ourselves a little better from the price effects of turmoil in the Middle East. Our GDP might be going up instead of sideways at this point. And Bambi, the Unions and the dhimocrats wonder why the average Joe/Jane is so eager to start cutting away at budgets.
We are broke and not recovering, assholes. The debt bomb stimulus and your screwed up energy policy have doomed us to a nice decade of suck.
#2
But there are concerns that surging crude oil prices could hurt..
Will hurt till you drill your own. Becoming independent of the vagaries of the world that drive a fundamental element of the economy and not doing so is a crime against the people driven largely by religious fanatics aided a abetted by one political group.
#3
From experience I can tell you that you cannot trust Department of Commerce numbers. They are pure propaganda and are tweaked to fit the current administration.
I am surprised they adjusted them downward. That tells me things are not good. It also tells me the real number may be somewhere around a negative growth (after you cut through the accounting and economic mumbo jumbo they try to blow up your butt in the reports)
Posted by: Bill Clinton ||
02/25/2011 16:00 Comments ||
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#4
BC,
Yes you can trust the DOC numbers. The problem is that the DOC can only use the reports they receive and those reports overcount part of the economy, undercount other parts of the economy and miss other parts altogether.
This is because we don't (thank God) have a centrally planned economy (and with luck we will never have one).
Posted by: lord garth ||
02/25/2011 16:15 Comments ||
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#5
Yep, the same apparatchiks in the government who report up the line that everything is going well in the old Soviet bureaucracy. Give the boss the happy/glad story. Hell, even the CIA who were reading the stuff thought it was true too. Then the collapse.
#6
Gas around here went from 3.15 yesterday to 3.35 today. Milk went up a buck a gallon in the last week.
I think the worst is yet to come. But that Motown concert looked fabulous on the news this morning...
#7
I know man, the way the Prez hit those teleprompter marks with his look, had the Wright accent, wow! Thought my bike was a train all day long, didn't even mind the freezing snot.
#5
To quote one of the best of all Motown lyrics...
And politicians say mo' taxes will solve everything!
Posted by: Alan Cramer ||
02/25/2011 15:03 Comments ||
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#6
Sorry Aujali (former ambassador of former Libya),
When Obama said he was taking requests he meant music....music. But hey, take comfort knowing that Motown Soul has, according to this program, evolved into Sheryl Crow and the Jonas Bros.
See, suddenly your brethren do not seem as pillaged and shamed.
#7
Meanwhile, Bat Fans, oer at PEOPLE'S DAILY FORUM > AL-QAEDA CALLS FOR [aysemmtric]NEW ATTACKS AGZ WEST, to offset historical + contemporary Muslim inferiorities vee US-West, e.g. MILTECHS, i support of waging Jihad.
[Arab News] The new mayor of Chicago used to work in the White House. Rahm Emanuel, the former White House chief of staff and Democratic strategist won a hard-fought battle to become Chicago's 55th mayor, succeeding incumbent Richard M. Daley, who announced in September he would step down at the end of his term.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/25/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
a completely unqualified inexperienced crook of a worm in other news.. Chicago continues to go south. if I lived there i would pull up stakes and leave. pronto
#8
I thought RAHM was Court-declared to be electorally ineligible/unqualified to runas a Candidate in the Chicago Mayoral Elex due to lack of residency???
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Former Bell City Manager Robert Rizzo was removed on a gurney Wednesday during his preliminary hearing.
Last month, the Obama administration claimed success with the 2010 Q4 annualized GDP growth rate estimate from Commerce of 3.2%. Today, Commerce has issued its customary follow-up estimate, and the news is not as bright. Their 2010 Q4 estimate dropped to 2.8%, barely above Q3′s 2.6%
[Arab News] The new mayor of Chicago used to work in the White House. Rahm Emanuel, the former White House chief of staff and Democratic strategist won a hard-fought battle to become Chicago's 55th mayor, succeeding incumbent Richard M. Daley, who announced in September he would step down at the end of his term.
