Subscribe"The grand jury will continue its work, abiding by the rule of law. That law requires a grand jury of citizens, not the prosecutor, to determine whether probable cause exists to hold an accused person to answer for the accusation against him or her."As said before, a jury of 6 or 12 citizens made the determination to bring an indictment.
"one of the week's most-talked-about events may be a $30,000 martini and cigar night honoring Rep. David Dreier . . . The invitation came in a cigar box, and the party favors will include silver-plated martini glasses.
"It may not be politically correct, but it is very chic," said Brad Smith, Dreier's chief of staff."
"After earlier reporting that Rep. David Dreier (R-CA) was expected to succeed House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) as majority leader, the decision has been reversed. House Majority Whip Roy Blunt (D-MO) will instead take up DeLay's post.
Sources tell RAW STORY that Dreier -- who was a shoo-in for the position -- was nixed for various reasons, in part because his sexuality would raise ire within the party ranks. He is also out of favor because he is pro-choice.
A second reason cited is that it would have meant that Doc Hastings (R-FL) would have become Rules Chairman in Dreier's place, meaning the Ethics Committee would change hands midstream. This was seen by leadership as a bad move, sources say."
"The 52-year-old single congressman voted for the Marriage Protection Act in July, a measure that would have stripped federal courts of jurisdiction over challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act, which bans the federal government from recognizing gay partnerships. Dreier did not vote on the latest amendment to constitutionally ban gay marriage, and said he was against it.
Dreier, a Christian Scientist, also voted for the original Defense of Marriage Act in 1996 and a measure that banned gays from adopting in Washington, D.C. He has a 92 percent favorability rating from the Christian Coalition, and was elected with Ronald Reagan in 1980.
Hustler sent Dreier a letter Sept. 7 asking to interview him about the 'intersection of human sexuality, national politics and the conservative agenda.' They have not received a response.
When asked if he was heterosexual on a Sirus Radio interview Aug. 31, Rep. Dreier refused to answer.
“I’m not going to talk about that issue,” Dreier said. 'That’s really not what I’m here about.'"
"Earle has spent almost three years investigating whether Republican groups and their business allies violated the ban on spending corporate money in connection with political campaigns. The groups helped elect a Republican majority to the state Legislature which, in turn, drew new Congressional districts that benefited Republican candidates.
Over the past year, Travis County grand jurors have indicted three DeLay associates — John Colyandro, Jim Ellis and Warren Robold — as well as eight corporate donors, the Texas Association of Business and DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority. Colyandro and Ellis were re-indicted this morning as part of the conspiracy indictment.
DeLay had appeared to escape criminal scrutiny as early as last year when Travis County prosecutors concluded they did not have the jurisdiction to pursue election code violations against him. Under the law, only DeLay's local district attorney, a Republican, had jurisdiction, and he expressed no interest in the case.
But a conspiracy charge falls under the criminal code, not the election statute that bans corporate money from being spent on a campaign. And Earle has the jurisdiction to prosecute DeLay for conspiring with others to circumvent state law.
In recent days, the broad-based investigation has focused on one particular transaction during the 2002 campaign.
In late September 2002, Colyandro, the executive director of Texans for a Republican Majority, sent a blank check to Ellis, who is DeLay's primary fundraiser in Washington.
According to the money-laundering indictment returned against those two last year, Ellis was accused of having the Republican National Committee launder $190,000 of corporate donations into noncorporate money that was sent to to seven Texas House candidates, including Austinites Jack Stick and Todd Baxter." [Austin American Statesman | September 28, 2005]
"A grand jury can compel witnesses to testify. During the proceeding, the defendant and his or her counsel are generally not present. The grand jury's decision is either "true bill" or "no true bill." Where they exist, grand juries are part of the system of checks and balances that prevents a case from going to trial without an impartial panel of citizens first deciding whether there exists reasonable cause or probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed.Thus, it appears that since this is a federal charge of wrongdoing, a 'grand jury' is required to determine if there is cause enough to make an indictment. It's now obvious that this jury felt there is reasonable or probable cause that a crime was committed.
Britain abandoned grand juries in the 1930s, and today fewer than half of the states in the U.S. employ them. Most jurisdictions have abolished grand juries, replacing them with the preliminary hearing at which a judge hears evidence concerning the alleged offenses and makes a decision on whether the prosecution can proceed. However, grand juries are still used in a number of US jurisdictions.
...Charges involving 'capital or infamous crimes' under federal jurisdiction must be presented to a grand jury, under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This has been interpreted to permit bypass of the grand jury for misdemeanor offenses, which can be charged by prosecutor's information.
Unlike many other provisions of the Bill of Rights, the Supreme Court has ruled that this requirement does not pertain to the state courts, and states are therefore free to abolish grand juries." [source]
posted by rzklkng at 10:35 AM on September 28, 2005