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The Referral was the Easy Part – Where does Gabbard’s Evidence Lead DOJ?
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July 29, 2025
The Referral was the Easy Part – Where does Gabbard’s Evidence Lead DOJ?
By: James Trusty
Americans are used to a considerable level of dirty tricks when it comes to politics. Occasionally, however, a legal line is crossed and a high-level official is either chased out of office, subjected to a criminal prosecution, or both. Ask Richard Nixon, Marvin Mandel, and Bob Menendez. Despite the predictable proclamation from prominent democrats that DNI Director Tulsi Gabbard’s referral is “old news” and “politically motivated,” in reality it is too early to characterize the newly discovered evidence as overwhelming or to call it mere hardball politics. If President Obama decided to completely flip intelligence conclusions about Russian (non) interference in the 2016 election and knowingly set the false information in motion to hobble the incoming president, then we could…
Baltimoronic Investigation
July 8, 2025
Baltimoronic Investigation
By: James Trusty
June 24, 2025, may mark the day that the criminal justice system for Baltimore, Maryland finally established its lunacy. If the allegations are correct, an employee of Pretrial Services committed what Maryland officials view as a cardinal sin—he or she let ICE know that there was an illegal alien coming to the office. Armed with that information, ICE showed up at the courthouse, was allowed…
Biden and DOJ’s Spiteful Ploy Boomerangs: How Politics Destroys Privilege
June 30, 2025
Biden and DOJ’s Spiteful Ploy Boomerangs: How Politics Destroys Privilege
By: James Trusty
During the pre-indictment period in which I was one of President Trump’s lawyers, there was a considerable amount of then-sealed litigation over the Special Counsel Office’s (“SCO”) insatiable search for incriminating evidence. We regularly found ourselves fighting against prosecutors providing ex parte information to the Court in support of their singular claims that Donald J. Trump did not have the same legal privileges as almost…
Court of Appeals 9th Circuit to D.C. Circuit: We’ll See You in [The Supreme] Court
June 24, 2011
Court of Appeals 9th Circuit to D.C. Circuit: We’ll See You in [The Supreme] Court
By: Ifrah Law
Yesterday, the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit cleared the way for the extortion case against Former Rep. Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.) to proceed to trial. In the process, they flatly disagreed with a 2007 ruling by the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on a US representative’s right to advance notice for search and seizure. Given this conflict between two appeals courts…
Good-Faith Rule Applies to Document Destruction
June 20, 2011
Good-Faith Rule Applies to Document Destruction
By: Ifrah Law
Big cases can turn on a little rule of evidence called spoliation. The rule recognizes that a trial court has the inherent authority to sanction a party for destroying, altering, or failing to preserve property that the opponent could have used as evidence. A recent decision in the Eastern District of Virginia serves as a reminder that a judge’s decision to award sanctions — and…
Disqualification of AUSA in Scruggs Case Is Message to Prosecutors
June 13, 2011
Disqualification of AUSA in Scruggs Case Is Message to Prosecutors
By: Ifrah Law
The botched prosecution of Senator Ted Stevens was a wake-up call of sorts for the U.S. Department of Justice that there would be severe consequences for prosecutors who did not comply with obligations under Brady and related cases. The Department took another hit recently when a federal judge removed an Assistant United States Attorney from the case against the son of disgraced anti-tobacco attorney Richard…
Perjury, Obstruction, and Barry Bonds’ Conviction
June 6, 2011
Perjury, Obstruction, and Barry Bonds’ Conviction
By: Ifrah Law
Last month, an article in the National Law Journal asked a question that has been on the minds of many: “Did Barry Bonds really obstruct justice?” In April a jury convicted baseball legend Barry Bonds on one count of obstruction of justice based on the testimony he provided before a federal grand jury investigating the use of illegal steroids in professional sports. The jury, however,…
Black Friday Chills Legislative Momentum in Nevada and Elsewhere
May 25, 2011
Black Friday Chills Legislative Momentum in Nevada and Elsewhere
By: Ifrah Law
Just a couple of months ago, there was considerable optimism after the introduction of an interactive-gaming bill in the Nevada legislature that that state could be the first to legalize online poker. However, in the wake of last month’s “Black Friday” indictments, it now appears that the optimism was premature. The state legislature is clearly waiting for the issue of online gaming to be resolved…
