Archive for the ‘Fifth Amendment’ Category

Does Mueller’s grand jury mean an indictment is imminent? – PolitiFact

Special Counsel Robert Mueller has opened a grand jury in Washington, D.C., for his investigation into Russian election meddling and possible coordination by Trump campaign associates, according to multiple news reports. We decided to review the significance of this move, so we asked legal experts for their views on several questions related to grand juries.

What is a grand jury and what is its job?

The grand jury traces its roots to the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. That provision says that "(n)o person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury."

When a court impanels a federal grand jury, jurors are tasked with figuring out whether enough evidence exists to formally accuse someone of a felony. Unlike a trial jury, a grand jury does not play a role in determining guilt or punishment. Rather, this panel of 16 to 23 citizens serves a gatekeeping function for issuing indictments.

In modern practice, the grand jury is a potent investigative tool for prosecutors, said Andrew D. Leipold, a law professor at the University of Illinois College of Law.

"People dont generally have a duty to cooperate with law enforcement," Leipold said. "So if the police or FBI questions someone, typically that person is not required to answer. And generally unless the police have a warrant, they cant make a person produce documents."

"But a grand jury can do that," he said.

In Muellers case, he could not conduct an effective investigation without a grand jury, said Ric Simmons, a law professor at Ohio State University.

"The prosecutor does not have subpoena power on his or her own," he said. "He or she needs the grand jury to issue subpoenas for documents and to compel testimony."

To issue an indictment, a grand jury needs to believe a federal crime was probably committed. This threshold, known as the "probable cause" standard, is a far easier hurdle to clear than the proof "beyond a reasonable doubt" needed to convict. Grand juries are also one-sided ordeals, where neither defendants nor their lawyers have the right to appear before jurors to refute incriminating evidence.

For these reasons, lawyers have a saying that any halfway decent prosecutor should be able to indict a ham sandwich. But its important to emphasize that someone who is indicted has not yet been found guilty, and may never be.

How has Special Counsel Robert Mueller used grand juries so far?

Muellers appointment in May as special counsel granted him fairly broad jurisdiction.

The Justice Department authorized him to lead an investigation into Russias interference in the 2016 election, as well as any links or coordination between the Russian government and Trump campaign associates, plus "any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation."

Grand juries are supposed to operate in secrecy, but because they issue subpoenas and compel testimony, their work sometimes becomes public. Our best understanding of how Mueller has used grand juries is based primarily on anonymously sourced news reports.

In June, Reuters reported that Mueller was taking over a grand jury investigation in Virginia that had been looking into former national security adviser Michael Flynn.

The investigation got fresh attention when the Wall Street Journal reported in August that a new grand jury had convened weeks earlier in Washington, D.C., to focus on his investigation.

That same day, Reuters reported the new grand jury had issued subpoenas related to a controversial June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower between Donald Trump Jr. and a Russian lawyer, and several others (CNN also reported on the subpoenas). The meeting was predicated on the promise that a "Russian government attorney" would deliver damaging information to Trump Jr. about his fathers Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton.

Why would Mueller open up a new grand jury?

While Muellers precise rationale for seeking more than one grand jury is not publicly known, legal experts told us its a fairly unsurprising move for a special prosecutor because it carries several advantages.

Grand juries typically divide their attention among multiple cases. So its possible Mueller believes he can operate more smoothly with a panel of jurors focused exclusively on whats potentially a large volume of information.

"In special investigations, rather than ordinary criminal cases, it is not uncommon to impanel a special grand jury," said Joshua Dressler, a law professor at Ohio State University. "This way, the jurors will become increasingly knowledgeable about the matters at issue, and they can focus on just one matter."

Theres a number of other theories for Muellers move.

Some believe his grand jury was meant to make it easier to broaden the scope of his investigation beyond Flynn.Others say a Washington-based jury would be more sympathetic. Still others say Mueller simply wanted a grand jury closer to his teams Washington office.

"Since the proceedings are secret, it is very hard to know which (if any) of these are correct," said Jed Shugerman, a professor at Fordham Law School.

Does the new grand jury mean an indictment is near?

Legal experts we spoke to fell into two camps on whether the existence of Muellers grand jury tells us anything about the likelihood of any future indictments.

Some experts think a grand jury by itself tells us nothing. Others said it increases the chances of indictments issuing at some future point, though none believed they were imminent.

Simmons said while a grand jury is a prerequisite for a future indictment, its also a required step in the early stages of an investigation.

"It simply means that Mueller did not believe the case was frivolous and decided a real investigation was appropriate," he said. "Thats something we all pretty much assumed already."

Leipold called the grand jurys impaneling "important but unremarkable" in the grand scheme of the investigation.

"I dont find any clues in its presence as to whether or not there will be an indictment or whether or not its imminent," he said. "I can imagine a world in which Mueller says, Im not inclined to seek an indictment, or, one in which he seeks lots of indictments."

Others viewed the new grand jury as a more meaningful development, but cautioned against jumping to any premature conclusions about its ultimate significance.

Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, said that because of the relatively low probable cause standard -- recall the quip about indicting a ham sandwich -- she believes its more likely than not that at least one criminal indictment will issue.

"But none of this is a done deal," she added.

So what to make of the frenzied speculation in the Twitterverse about an indictment being issued any day now?

"I think people have overreacted to this news by thinking an indictment is imminent," Shugerman said.

Perhaps the only clue the grand jury gives as to Muellers timeline is that were in for a lengthy investigation, said Mark Godsey, a law professor at the University of Cincinnati and author of Blind Injustice, about the inner-workings of federal prosecutors' offices.

"I dont think it says much about timing, other than it suggests there is a lot of work to do, and that can impact how long the investigation lasts," he said.

Share the Facts

2017-08-10 15:47:15 UTC

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Correct about grand juries

"You cant read that (the impaneling of a grand jury necessarily) means that indictments are going to follow."

Adam Schiff

U.S. Rep, D-Calif.

CNN

Sunday, August 6, 2017

2017-08-06

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Does Mueller's grand jury mean an indictment is imminent? - PolitiFact

Omaha City Council members look to boost funding for community service programs in Stothert’s proposed budget – Omaha World-Herald

A group of City Council members wants to add some money for community service programs to Mayor Jean Stotherts proposed 2018 budget.

Theyve proposed four amendments to add money to such programs, plus a fifth amendment that would beef up the city clerks budget after the council approved some increases to the offices salary ranges.

The amendments would make less than $100,000 worth of changes to a $900 million city budget.

If the amendments are approved, the following programs budgets would increase:

The Metropolitan Area Planning Agency would receive an additional $10,000, for a total of $20,000.

MAPA executive director Greg Youell asked the council to increase its funding to $40,000.

Council President Ben Gray proposed the amendment.

The Police Athletics for Community Engagement would receive an additional $10,000, under an amendment proposed by Gray, Pete Festersen and Vinny Palermo.

Stothert had proposed funding of $25,000, up from $20,000 in 2017.

The ReConnect program, which provides job training and other services to young people transitioning from prison, would receive another $10,000 for a total of $55,000, under an amendment from Gray and Council Vice President Chris Jerram.

Gray and Jerram also want to add $20,000 for the Heartland Workforce Solutions job training program.

Council members had asked for about $1 million in funding; Stothert proposed $500,000, up from $440,000 in 2017.

All of the money would be moved from the mayors proposed allocation to citys reserve funds.

The council is scheduled to vote on the budget Aug. 22. Tuesday is the deadline for council members to submit amendments.

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Omaha City Council members look to boost funding for community service programs in Stothert's proposed budget - Omaha World-Herald

Alphabet could use Benchmark’s lawsuit against Uber in its own lawsuit against Uber – Recode

Benchmark Capital may have just given another Uber investor some legal ammo by filing a bombshell complaint against the company and its former CEO Travis Kalanick. Central to Benchmarks allegations that Kalanick committed fraud and breach of fiduciary duty is Alphabets self-driving lawsuit against Uber.

According to the complaint, Kalanick did not disclose to the board what he knew about Alphabets allegations of trade secret misappropriation before the board signed off on Ubers acquisition of self-driving startup Otto.

In sum, the Waymo lawsuit presents significant legal, financial, and reputational risks to Uber risks that could have been reduced or avoided if Kalanick had disclosed crucial facts about his own apparent knowledge at the time of the Otto acquisition, the complaint reads. Instead, as noted above, Kalanick repeatedly emphasized to [Bill] Gurley and others at the time that Ubers acquisition of Otto and employment of Levandowski who appears to have taken information from Waymo would be transformative for Ubers business.

The timing of Benchmarks complaint may prove to be material for Alphabet and its case as the company is scheduled to depose Benchmark partner and former Uber board member Bill Gurley at the end of the month. In deposing Gurley, as well as fellow board member Arianna Huffington, Alphabet is attempting to find out what the board knew about former Uber engineer Anthony Levandowskis alleged theft of important files.

Alphabet is claiming Levandowski stole 14,000 files from Alphabet before starting Otto, which Uber later acquired.

The complaint lays out in part what Gurley and the board knew and when, so it stands to reason that Alphabet will use it in its questioning of Gurley. The complaint further alleges that Kalanick tried to block the termination of Levandowski before he left, even after Alphabet sued the company. Alphabet has previously argued that Levandowskis continued employment at Uber signaled the company was okay with his alleged infractions.

Benchmarks complaint also brings up a document that has become a major point of contention in the Alphabet suit.

Before Uber acquired Otto, the company commissioned security firm Stroz Friedberg to conduct a due diligence report to assess, among other things, whether any of the employees took files from Alphabet. Benchmark claims Kalanick did not disclose the findings of that report to the board or partner and former company board member Bill Gurley.

Alphabet has asked the court to compel Uber to produce the Stroz document as part of discovery. Uber has refused. Since Levandowski asserted his Fifth Amendment rights in the case, his as well as Ubers attorneys have argued that the document is privileged and should not be turned over to Alphabet.

The board has since seen the document and its clear Benchmark, at least, thinks it would have made a material difference on some of its decisions. Specifically, the complaint is seeking to reverse a 2016 decision that allowed Kalanick to create three additional seats on the board.

Upon information and belief, if the contents of Strozs interim findings and the Stroz Report had been disclosed to Benchmark at the time, they would have had a material impact on Benchmarks decision to authorize the creation of the three new Board seats and grant control over them to Kalanick, the complaint reads.

The two companies expect to hash out whether Uber has to produce the Stroz report in court again tomorrow. Its likely Alphabet will use Benchmarks complaint to bolster its argument to obtain the document.

As we have long said, there is significant and direct evidence that Uber is using stolen Waymo trade secrets, a Waymo spokesperson said in a statement. There is also significant evidence that Uber leadership knew about Levandowski's misconduct and, rather than do the right thing, tried to conceal it.

Uber declined to comment.

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Alphabet could use Benchmark's lawsuit against Uber in its own lawsuit against Uber - Recode

Active-duty military members sue Trump over transgender ban – Washington Post

(Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

Five active-duty service members sued President Trump Wednesday over his intentions to ban transgender personnel from serving in the military.

The directive to reinstate a ban on open service by transgender people violates both the Equal Protection component of the Fifth Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, states the suit filed in U.S. District Court in Washington by five anonymous Jane Does.

They are represented by the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD).

Trump announced in a series of tweets on July 26 that the United States Government will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military.

[Trump announces ban on transgender service members ]

(Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

The military has not issued a policy on how that directive would be carried out. The suit states that upon information and belief, the White House turned [Trumps] decision into official guidance, approved by the White House counsels office, to be communicated to the Department of Defense.

Since the Obama administration lifted the ban on transgender troops in June 2016, hundreds of service members have come out and are serving openly. A Rand Corp. study commissioned by the Pentagon last year estimates that there are about 11,000 transgender troops in the reserves and active-duty military.

All five of the plaintiffs said they relied on the 2016 policy change when they notified commanding officers they were transgender. Besides the constitutional challenges, they ask the court to find Trumps intentions would be a violation of the promises government has made to members of the military.

Because they identified themselves as transgender in reliance on defendants earlier promise, plaintiffs have lost the stability and certainty they had in their careers and benefits, including post-military and retirement benefits that depend on the length of their service, the suit states.

The suit is expected to be the first of several filed once the ban is officially issued.

The plaintiffs are a Coast Guard member who has written a prospective letter of resignation; an Air Force active-duty service member of nearly 20 years who served twice in Iraq; and three Army soldiers.

In a news release, one plaintiff says: My experience has been positive and I am prouder than ever to continue to serve. I am married and have three children, and the military has been my life. But now, Im worried about my familys future.

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Active-duty military members sue Trump over transgender ban - Washington Post

10 People Causing the Most Panic In the White House This Week – UrbanDaddy

It speaks volumes that the past weekwhich featured an all new presidential agitprop production, rumors that an entire field of shadow GOP primary candidates are emerging to challenge Trump in 2020, and another patented Twitter hissy fitqualifies as a fairly quiet one in the Trump Administration, but that's 2017 for you. Still, boiling beneath the surface of the relative calm are the 16-23 DC-area souls that comprise Robert Mueller's shiny new grand jury. We begin this week's power rankings (see last week's here) with with him...

1. Robert Mueller (Last Week: 2) The Special Counsels impanelling of a grand jury in the Russia investigation, while not uncommon, is significant because it gives Mueller the power to subpoena any documents related to the investigation, and to compel any witness to testify under oath, rather than as a non-binding courtesy, as weve seen in Congressional testimonies to date. What you can expect then, if any crimes were committed, is a lot of pleading the Fifth. Legally speaking, a Fifth Amendment assertion is an admission of guilt of a crime, which, assures indictment and keeps the investigation rolling until heads do as well. Vox reported last week that as many as 10 senior FBI officials will testify, completely throwing out the window the He said, He said defense Trump was hoping to use against James Comey. And again, the fact that Mueller and his team havent so much as raised their head to defend against the administrations attacks should worry the hell out of Trump.

2. Paul Manafort (NA) The Ukrainian oligarchys favorite bank teller will be possibly the hardest target in Muellers investigation, will definitely be called before the grand jury, has almost certainly committed crimes that may have been recorded, and has no position in the administration. He then, is our pick for first player to roll on everyone else.

3. Jared Kushner (10) Last week we said OG Kush was the most likely administration candidate for prison, but was largely skating thanks to the personnel circus happening within the White House. One grand jury announcement later, and it appears Kushner will be facing much oath-swearing and asserting his Fifth Amendment privilege for the foreseeable future. Kushners only below Manafort because he has familial incentive to keep the administration afloat.

4. Donald Trump (3) - Combined polling average today: 36.6% approval In his first Twitter tantrum of the Kelly era, Dear Leader attacked Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal for lying about having served in Vietnam. This line of attack would be more effective coming from someone who hadnt received five deferments during the war and never served himself. In other news, the walls are closing in.

5. Mike Pence (NA) The VP doth protest too much, wethinks.

6. H.R. McMaster (NA) The alt-right and Russian social media bots have turned against the National Security Advisor (who enjoys a largely stellar reputation among the sane) for his alleged anti-Israel, anti-Russia, andmost-importantanti-Bannon views, leaving Trump in the unenviable position of defending him against the only people likely to ever vote for him again.

7. John Kelly (7) A week and a half in, the General doing an admirable job getting the house in order (relatively speaking) and getting a lot of media attention for it. In any other presidency this would be cause for celebration. In this one, you can almost see the praise eating away at the First Orange Veneer.

8. Jeff Sessions (NA) Our esteemed Attorney General continued on his mission to get out of the Prezs dog house by tossing some red meat to the base by launching a war on leaks, upping his Sisyphean crusade against legal marijuana (against his own advisors recommendations) and beginning an all-new crusade against affirmative action. His gambit may actually pay off politically, but he appears to be acting as his own agent, which, history shows, roils the boss.

9. Rod Rosenstein (NA) After the announcement of the Mueller grand jury, the Deputy Attorney General (leading the DOJ in this matter thanks to Sessionss recusal) went on Fox News Sunday and clarified that, despite warnings of red lines from the Trump camp, Mueller has the right to investigate any and all crimes uncovered over the course of his investigation, including those related to Trump family finances. Gulp.

10. Stephen Miller (NA) The leading candidate for White House Communications Director following Mooch got that way thanks to a condescending, hypocritical rant against a CNN reporter over a combination of legislation Trump promised not to pursue and a poem on the Statue of Liberty that has sacrosanct to the American experiment. Hell fit right in, for awhile.

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10 People Causing the Most Panic In the White House This Week - UrbanDaddy