I'm sure it was a matter of good law that Alaska Ted is now a not guilty man again

[Stinky The Clown]

But it sure sucks that he is.

What was Mukasey's justice dept DOING?

[DevonRex]

1. Fucking up on purpose. That's what. nt

[Towlie]

2. He's as not guilty as O.J.

[OwnedByFerrets]

3. Oh, he's guilty...just not convicted.

[northofdenali]

4. Of course he's guilty.

Prosecutorial misconduct caused this - and the DOJ prosecutors were under Bush, so of course they fucked up to the point that Obamba's DOJ had to let Unca Ted loose. I don't, however, think he'll run for office again, although I'd love to see him run against Sarah Palin, who called for his resignation before he was even convicted........... THAT would mean a Dem walk into the governor's office and a really FUN campaign season!

[demigoddess]

5. I was thinking the prosecutors (repubs?) threw in a few things for reversal

to save Stevens' a** down the line or am I just too paranoid?

[Igel]

6. Too paranoid.

At least one of the "repub" prosecutors, it seems, was a dem.

They got greedy. They wanted the conviction, and they wanted it badly.

Moreover, they were rushed and got sloppy. They had a problem: He did what they didn't think he was going to do--he called for a speedy trial, instead of delaying it. That may have cost him the election, but he may also have figured that he stood a very good chance of beating the rap--after all, it turns out what he knew the evidence said was a bit more accurate than what the jury got.



But let's try the other tack: They're all repubs and they did what they did intentionally.

It means that they ran the risk of having the conviction thrown out. Sure enough, that happens. Woo-hoo, our theory yielded a prediction that was true. But we're not done.

The conviction was thrown out--but they got the conviction a few days before the election that saw Stevens fail to be re-elected, and all the publicity couldn't have but helped reduce his supporters' turnout and energize his opponents'. If they're repub operatives, that counts as epic fail. Unless the repub operatives were *trying* to get a dem elected. I don't think our theory would have predicted this as a goal--under most assumptions, repub operatives would work *for* the Republican Party, and helping a dem get elected is counterproductive. Our theory yields a false prediction.

It also means that after 20+ years in the practice of law, including a current post one holds as adjunct law professor, their reputations are ruined. They failed to follow ethical procedures, they intentionally violated the judge's orders. They undermined the rule of law and might well be disbarred, if not put behind bars. (Epic fail)^3. Now, I don't see many repubs running to give them a million dollars, to hire them. Perhaps our theory wouldn't have included this. But any lawyer would know being exposed is a possibility, and they'd weight the risk. I don't see how this threat was reasonably counterbalanced by some benefit.

Never ascribe to cunning what can be plausibly explained by stupidity. Or, as the case may be, "and greed."