&%^$#!@*&^$#! Delay Might Be Cleared of Charges

[Melissa G]

Austin American Statesman - August 25, 2008
DELAY MIGHT BE CLEARED OF CHARGES
Money-laundering charges against former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and two indicted co-conspirators may be dismissed because the 2002 campaign finance case involved checks and not cash, a lawyer for DeLay said Sunday night. "We win," said Dick DeGuerin, DeLay's lawyer, "because there's nothing but checks in the case." The state's 3rd Court of Appeals on Friday actually upheld the money-laundering indictments against DeLay's two campaign associates, John Colyandro of Austin and Jim Ellis of Washington. But the ruling contained a silver lining for the trio's lawyers because it concluded that the state's money-laundering statute — written in 1993 to combat illicit drug activity by focusing on the cash in the criminal transactions — did not apply to checks at the time DeLay is accused of laundering corporate money into campaign donations. The Legislature changed the law in 2005 to include checks.

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/region/legislature/stories/08/25/0825delay.html

[Maestro]

1. Okay so the money was funneled to candidates

but since it was not cash, this is fine?!? Sounds like a mighty big technicality or maybe I am missing something.

[Melissa G]

2. Technicality, yep. But one his very good lawyer will use if possible.

:puke:
from article...
DeGuerin said he would take the appellate court's opinion back to Pat Priest, the trial judge in San Antonio, who has dismissed the check argument previously. Armed with the opinion, however, DeGuerin said he expects Priest to reconsider DeLay's motion to dismiss the charges because only checks — not cash — were involved in the transactions.

snip
Last summer the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals confirmed the dismissal of a separate indictment against DeLay and his associates on a charge of conspiring to violate the state election code. The court ruled that conspiracy did not apply to election code violations until 2003 — a year after the $190,000 exchange — when the Legislature changed the law.

On Sunday night, DeGuerin noted the similar circumstances for the money-laundering indictment.

"If this is how it ends," DeGuerin said, "it means every crime Ronnie Earle indicted Tom DeLay for was not a crime."

edit for quotes from article

[Baby Snooks]

8. But Republicans only commit technicalities....

Democrats commit crimes. Republicans commit technicalities. Just ask Kay Bailey Hutchison. Who also tangled with Ronnie Earle and in the end only committed a technicality and began her second career as a cheerleader. A cheerleader for corruption.

[Jane Austin]

3. Be sure to read down to Ronnie Earle's comment.

He said the ruling was "absurd". That it was like "getting away with murder because you paid the hit man with a check."

I love Ronnie Earle!

[Melissa G]

6. I Love Ronnie Earle ,Too

The Question is whose argument is the Judge presiding over the case gonna love or perhaps whose argument is the Judge to which they appeal to gonna listen. I'm afraid Texas is just stacked with too many folks inclined to give Bug Boy an out and too few Ronnie Earle's or Hell, just folks with plain common sense!

[Baby Snooks]

9. The judges or the legislature?

Reality is the law itself is flawed. And may have been flawed on purpose. How many really ever read these statutes as they're proposed and then passed by the legislature? Many times a matter of law becomes what an attorney can convince a judge it is. We need a new legislature along with a new judiciary in Texas.

[PDittie]

4. Not guilty of money-laundering, because checks aren't cash.

Absurd just doesn't go far enough.

[Melissa G]

7. Ridiculous and Obscene don't go far enough.

This is like saying "Oops, I used my Amex and you only specified a there was a problem with Visa..." :puke:

Hairsplitting corruption of justice and the intent of the rule of law.

[tbyg52]

5. Slime. Pond scum. No wait - I heard on the news they'd come up with a use for pond scum. nt

[NoPasaran]

10. "It wasn't money laundering, Your Honor. I had those checks dry cleaned."

Amazing how justice works in a state where you can go to death row just for being in the same car as someone else who commits a murder.