Thursday, May 31, 2012

"I bear no animosity toward the prosecutors, even though they pursued false charges based on fabricated evidence."

Ben Kuehne is the only person I know who could say such a thing and actually mean it.  Ben is quoted in Jay Weaver's article about John Sellers, who prosecuted Ben and who also prosecuted banker Sergio Masvidal

Masvidal was represented by Joe DeMaria, who was able to get his client's name cleared.  Although OPR concluded that his conduct was "reckless," the Justice Department let him keep his job:
Five years after unsuccessfully targeting two prominent Miami figures — one a banker, the other a lawyer — in separate cases, a Justice Department prosecutor faces a July disciplinary trial by Maryland Bar regulators.


John W. Sellers left the Justice Department in 2010 amid an internal probe concluding that he committed “reckless” misconduct in a money-laundering case against Miami-based American Express Bank International, which was headed by banker Sergio Masvidal.
***
Masvidal’s Miami lawyer, Joseph DeMaria, said the Justice Department should have fired Sellers after concluding that he had committed reckless misconduct, according to the agency’s internal probe in 2010.

Sellers now works as a Treasury Department attorney on the federal bailout program for the banking industry.

“The Justice Department let him sneak out the back door to the Treasury Department so he could keep his same salary, benefits and pension,” DeMaria said. “And now he’s working as an attorney on the federal bailout. How ridiculous is that?”
Indeed. 

The article ends with this quote from Ben:  “Lawyers reap what they sow. He will need to answer for his own conduct.”   But prosecutors who engage in misconduct rarely have to answer for their conduct.  That's part of the problem.  OPR rarely does anything, and the few times it does do something, it's a slap on the wrist.  See, e.g., Ted Stevens' prosecutors


In this case, the Maryland Bar has initiated a case against Sellers, so it will be interesting to see what happens. (Here's the Maryland complaint).  The problem is that even when the Bar tries to disclipline prosecutors, DOJ claims that they are immune even from Bar rules, and of course, civil remedies are not available.

12 comments:

  1. Anonymous7:49 PM

    hey, Ben, I will say it for you, FUCKING ASSHOLE!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous11:39 AM

    John Edwards is saying the same thing today. Oh no, I forgot. Edwards is actually guilty.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous1:08 PM

    David,

    I find it interesting that you filter out all comments about L & T, but you let this garbage in.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous3:13 PM

    I tell you what , Sporto: you have the balls to post your name instead of hiding like a coward anonymously, when you want to criticize someone, I'll back you for david to post your comment. otherwise, crawl back under your rock you gutless wonder and simmer in your self loathign and hatred of others, and mediocrity.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous4:29 PM

    http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/01/opinion/judges-should-write-their-own-opinions.html

    Interesting

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous4:32 PM

    How can you say Edwards was actually guilty? The evidence against him was inconclusive at best.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous9:14 AM

    Sporto,

    David knows the truth. He protects L&T on this blog because they are friends. Everyone else is fair game to be called a " f--g a--hole."

    ReplyDelete
  8. Sellers now works as a Treasury Department attorney on the federal bailout program for the banking industry.

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  9. He will need to answer for his own conduct.” But prosecutors who engage in misconduct rarely have to answer for their conduct. That's part of the problem.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Joseph DeMaria, said the Justice Department should have fired Sellers after concluding that he had committed reckless misconduct, according to the agency’s internal probe in 2010

    ReplyDelete
  11. when you want to criticize someone, I'll back you for david to post your comment.

    ReplyDelete
  12. The article ends with this quote from Ben: “Lawyers reap what they sow. He will need to answer for his own conduct.” But prosecutors who engage in misconduct rarely have to answer for their conduct.

    ReplyDelete