Opening statements finally began Tuesday in the trial for Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman — with prosecutors describing some of the notorious accused drug lord’s most heinous acts for jurors, along with his weapons of choice.
“Some of his favorites include a diamond-encrusted handgun with his initials on it and a gold-plated AK-47,” said federal prosecutor Adam Fels.
He recounted how Guzman allegedly ordered hits on his own loved ones and used a small private army — consisting of hundreds of men “armed with assault rifles” — to take out his rivals.
For the defense:
Guzman’s defense team, meanwhile, claimed during its opening statements that prosecutors were trying to use him as a “scapegoat.”
“There’s another side to this story, an uglier side,” said attorney Jeffrey Lichtman. “This is a case that will require you to throw out much of what you were taught.”
According to Lichtman, the real criminal mastermind is Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada — current leader of the infamous Sinaloa Cartel. The lawyer described the 70-year-old former poppy-field worker as “the biggest drug trafficker in Mexico.”
8 comments:
Gripping
Deja vu. Court steps in to protect AUSAs.
and another Magistrate gets chilled to never again criticize their overlords at the USAO.
Along with the ruling in Shaygan, the SDFL apparently can do no wrong.
It must take a sworn confession from a bad AUSA to even get reprimanded.
ANY lawyer would get disbarred for this.
But not here, instead you have the DOJ hiring a former US Attorney to tell a District Judge to override the Magistrates findings as "unnecessary".
Add this case to the long list of judicial cover ups for bad US Attorney behavior. Ends justify the means.
Have you seen the smack down that Thomas Bacon, Phillip Cullen, Joshua Sheskin, and the other ADA scoundrels got in the Middle District of Florida?!
Any lawyer who has even done an ADA case should take a look at the Middle District Case, In re: ADA Cases. Case No. 6:18-mc-00014-GAP-DCI.
Admonishment and mandatory reporting to the Court for a year. I think they got off light. But it'll be an exhibit to motions in ADA cases for a long time to come.
And if that's not enough, you should see the spectacle that unfolded in THIS District in Case No. 1:17-cv-24116-KMM. It was ADA scoundrel against ADA scoundrel. the firm known as "Federal Legal Advocates LLC" took as shot against Sheskin, and Sheskin filed an affidavit (D.E. 34) in response saying under oath that ADA mills are in the business of committing fraud.
A couple of must reads for every civil litigator in this town.
what is everyone talking about?
I think they're talking about the Esformes whitewash.
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