Uncle Toms, N*****s, drugs, $100,000, and witness protection screens. Gang-banger's trial? Nope. These features were the order of the day yesterday in the trial of Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith. The D.A. is fighting a three-count indictment that accuses him of illegally helping criminal defendants. Yesterday saw the testimony of Mr. Smith's attorney, Jim Waide, Christopher Butler's girlfriend, two MBN agents, and Assistant Attorney General Patrick Beasley.
The Clarion-Ledger's Anna Wolfe and Jackson Free Press's Timothy Summers have provided the bulk of the coverage since the first day and yesterday was no exception. Their live tweets from the courtroom report the courtroom events as they happen. Ms. Wolfe reported this morning:
Day five of the criminal trial against Hinds County's lead prosecutor felt more like a routine drug proceeding than it did a trial on obstruction of justice. That's because most witnesses who took the stand Tuesday came to testify about the circumstances of the drug charges against Christopher Butler....
The 2011 raid has been a focus of Smith's case, but Butler also faces drug charges from a separate event that took place a year later. Dear told the story of Butler's second drug charge, which began when agents conducted a traffic stop on Butler in April 2012 and found a large amount of marijuana and cocaine in his vehicle. Dear said he believed Butler was on the phone with his attorney when they pulled him over....
Those are still not all the crimes Butler is accused of committing. In 2016, the attorney general's office arrested Butler on charges of embezzlement and mail fraud stemming from his work at Mega Mattress, where prosecutors allege he defrauded a Florida-based financing company.
The attorney general's office argues it has jurisdiction to prosecute such white collar crimes under Mississippi Code 7-5-59. Smith maintains it doesn't have the authority to do so based on the court case Harvey v. Williams, in which the state Supreme Court ruled the attorney general could not prosecute a case dismissed by the district attorney. But in Williams, the case in question originated in the district attorney's office, whereas the fraud case against Butler originated with the attorney general.
At a preliminary hearing in that case, Smith showed up before Priester and created such a scene, those in attendance say, the judge had to reschedule the hearing. Prosecutors argue Smith had no businesses attending the hearing in the first place.
While he's accused of hindering Butler's prosecution in the drug charges against him, Smith's attempts to derail the attorney general's white collar crime case against Butler proves more puzzling. Is it a coincidence that Smith's legal opinion in the two cases contradicting that of prosecutors happens to benefit Butler?...
The state suggests Smith conspired to hinder Butler's prosecution by trying to indict two assistant attorneys general and Hinds County Circuit Judge Jeff Weill.
Heated testimony from Assistant Attorney General Patrick Beasley, a central figure in this case, did little to shine any new light on Smith's charges, but did demonstrate a possible power struggle between the offices.
In November 2015, the attorney general's office made an announcement that it had arrested an inmate on false pretense charges connected to a prison scam in which the man impersonated officials, promising the family members of other inmates that he could get criminal charges dropped in exchange for cash.
The same day, Smith texted Beasley at 10 p.m.: "Good shot traitor. So you're the new anointed Uncle Tom?" "What the f*** are you talking about?" Beasley responded, proceeding to call Smith the n-word.... Rest of long article.
Readers can also follow Ms. Wolfe's blow by blow report on Twitter if one wants to see the drama as it unfolded live yesterday. Follow Mr. Summer's courtroom tweets as well. Mr. Summers posted this report last night.
Day six should provide more of the same. Will the D.A. take the stand? Will we see Christopher Butler? Stay tuned.
25 comments:
How can these two prosecute cases when they are so racially biased? Or does that only work when a white person is accused of racism?
9:18, you should know better than to ask such a question. Just for asking you should be labeled a racist and be fired from your job.
Whites do not have freedom of speech. That is a right only enjoyed by the black race.
The idea that RSS was out to drop the charges against Butler because the drugs were planted is completely outrageous. Since when did RSS care about a defendant's rights being violated.
By the way his direct examination of Jaime McBride is going, Marvin Sanders should be indicted for aiding a criminal defendant-
Since when are tweets contemporaneous notes? Miz Wolfe's work is more like that of a court reporter.
But, remind me....Is this a federal or a county jury?
Anna Wolfe is HOT!
HEY KINGFISHER WHAT EXACTLY DOES THE TERM UNCLE TOM MEAN?
Married to aunt Mary...
The Dumbass from before Christmas who said Mr. McBride had plea bargained was, as I said at the time, dead wrong and did not know what he was talking about. McBride's testimony today, which likely didn't fully help either side, proved only that he had agreed he'd tell the truth, as he had said to one and all from the beginning, and repeated today, and that he set out to tell it like it was and tell it straight.
By telling the truth, Jamie McBride certainly did make the DA look good. And the DA is good. He is a good, decent; upstanding man who refuses to allow others to keep him from doing what he knows is right!
He is always seeking to do what's just, not only for victims, but for those wrongly accused. He wants to get the bad man, but he wants to get him the right way. And, I, for one, can appreciate that!
http://innocenceproject.olemiss.edu/case/matthew-norwood/
THIS IS THE RSS I KNOW!
"The idea that RSS was out to drop the charges against Butler because the drugs were planted is completely outrageous. "
-Particularly since RSS has admitted that he was saying the drugs were planted over a year or longer before he even saw the video of the bust (which he now claims supports his previous assertion that the drugs were planted but which did not show anything of the sort).
Also, the AG's office was also prosecuting Butler for fraud/mail fraud, and RSS interfered at one of the initial hearings in that case before Judge Priester, the one Judge Priester kicked him out of for acting so crazy.
And he raised hell when either the AG's office or Sheriff's office raided Butler's cell and found contraband and a cell phone there.
Someone please explain a legitimate reason to me why RSS is so intent on defending Mr Butler and keeping him out of any trouble at all, not just on the supposed planted drug charge. If he wants to fight and dismiss the drug charge because he thinks they were planted, that's one thing. But why is he so interested and involved in opposing these other crimes too ?
December 28, 2016 at 4:20 PM....fluff....I am sure RSS has good qualities,but from an outsider point of view, it seems as if he is trying to protect Butler from what should, lawfully, be pursued as criminal conduct.
11:32..Anna Wolfe is hardly hot, more like homely. Not impresses with her reporting. She clearly has no concept of police procedure; as evidenced by her assumptions
Probably the most helpful thing that McBride did for RSS (though just telling the truth) was to point out that the film of Camera 2 that could show drugs were planted, and which took years for MBN to produce, has never been shown by the AG's office which took possession of it or produced at trial. Jim Waide, if he has a lick more sense than arrogance, will use that to raise a reasonable inference that the AG's office has not revealed that camera view b/c it would vindicate the suspicion of RSS that drugs had been planted so that the large amount of cash MBN knew from their info was there could be seized and forfeited. But will Waide be smart enough to use this to create a reasonable doubt for his client?
The other thing McB did was to point out that the very lawyer questioning him had managed to get into a fight with RSS, demonstrating how out of control the AG people are, unreasonable convict at any price, justice be damned, zealots. Waide should close with that as well as the issue of Camera 2. RSS may walk if his lawyer does a very thoughtful closing.i was not sympathetic to RSS at the start but I'll be damned if the AG should be allowed to do an injustice.
RSS is a disgrace to the Mississippi Bar Association and the Magnolia Bar Association.
8:25 camera 2 was shown in court by the AGs office. No evidence of planting has ever been found.
We've got black prosecutors tossing around the N-word like nickels and dimes? Go figure.
At least the "little people" guy won't be back in court. This will come back to haunt Conway when he runs for gov.
Mc Bride ain't no Uncle Tom..
@9:44 either way Conway wins, he gets to show he prosecuted an Obama supporter.
@944
Well one prosecutor was doing his job. I don't care what language he uses at 10 pm at night. I am sure that he did not know that RSS would use text messages that he (RSS) initiated. Beasley has often been ostercized by the black defense bar because he takes a hard stance against crime. Admittedly this was not his finest moment but he is not in the same category as RSS. He is a war vet and unlike RSS his mommy does not fight his battles.
I am unimpressed with those of you defending " the players" in this ugly drama based on your personal experience.
Good people can make bad mistakes and rationalize their self-interest everyday.
Sociopaths can be charming and convincing.
This case is about evidence not what you or the participants " feel" or " believe".
I don't give a rat's ass about who you like or don't like because your judgment of people could be terrible.
Those of you seeing this as racial, have some credibility simply because racism is a sad fact of life, but unless you offer something substantive as to why racism applies in this case, I'm unconvinced.
This case is about behavior. This is about whether someone's actions were legal or illegal, honorable or dishonorable.
I've one word to describe all of you who want to use race or religion to defend or attack others...SUCKER! You've been manipulated and haven't figured out that every bad actor in the world has used tribalism or religion to do evil.
Here's a news flash, NO group of humans is without bad actors in their midst.
If the judicial system isn't working, it's because YOU haven't insisted that it work as intended. YOU have corrupted it by deciding who is or isn't guilty based on YOUR feelings or gossip or your loyalty to your " tribe" and not valued facts over hearsay.
To 12/29 @ 7:30am, excellent commentary. Irrational commenters and readers need to pay attention to what you wrote.
-The fact is RSS honestly believed Christopher Butler was possibly framed and the fact that the MBN refused to turn over video for years, at the constant request of the DA is evidence that RSS did nothing wrong.
- Jamie McBrides testimony that MBN refused to turn over the video, refused to allow the DA an opportunity to explore camera 2 to determine who/how the drugs were planted is evidence.
- The fact that AG's Office has consistently argued throughout this trial that there's no animosity between the two agencies, yet testimony reveals that Alexander, Beasley and Sanders have all, at some point engaged in hostile communication or contact with RSS is evidence of retaliation.
- The fact that Jamie McBride believed his boss was doing the right thing and that he does a pretty good job of doing the right thing is great evidence of RSS's character.
- ALL OF THE TEXT MESSAGES (even those to Ivon that said over and over again that the drugs were planted and Butler was being set up is evidence that RSS believed the MBN was up to no good and needed to be stopped.
- And last, but no least, the fact RSS ONLY INITIATED his investigation into the Butler, after Kevin Rundlett, a white defense attorney and municipal court prosecutor out of Clinton, MS told him his client was being framed is evidence of RSS 's innocence in any wrong doing.
- Not to mention the fact, the Faye Peterson made the same argument Smith made on Butler's behalf, is also very important and quite telling. IT IS EVIDENCE.
9:02. Nice try but no cigar. But maybe you can still pick up a check from Waide's pr effort. All you have done is continue the personal opinion blog commentary. Just because you say it is "fact" does not make it a fact. RSS has clearly violated several ethical standards and probably legal standards as well. Whether Hood's folks can accomplish their job with a jury is going to be the question.
But the interesting fact here is that Conway hasn't shown his face in the courtroom. Most times there is a case with tv cameras involved, he injects himself -most of the time to the detriment of the prosecution. Guess it is either too fat fit him to drive down from Houston to make the trial, or more likely he wants to play it both ways with the electorate -prosecute a black guy crook, but also not be identified by the black voters as the one leading this charge.
Lawyers go to court every day and argue their client was framed and the police planted evidence. How many times does a DA not only believe it but then go out of his way to prove that it happened? How about hardly ever to never. Was there animosity between the DA's office and the AG's office, absolutely. But RSS had to have had a motive (e.g. Butler sold him drugs or whatever) for getting Butler out of trouble. The only other explanation is that RSS is insane. Or RSS is insane AND had a motive to protect Butler.
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