As DOJ Probes Mount Vernon Police More Press Questions About Civil Case Discovery

 

By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC - Guardian UK - Honduras - ESPN

SDNY COURTHOUSE, Dec 23 – A Federal civil rights investigation into the police department in Mount Vernon, New York, including for falsification of evidence, was announced in a December 3 press conference by Damian Williams, the new US Attorney for the Southern District of New York  and Kristen Clarke,  Assistant Attorney General for DOJ's Civil Rights Division.

  Inner City Press, which has reported on the SDNY's cases in Mount Vernon, including a murder case that after a change of counsel and ostensibly guilty plea simply disappeared from the docket, went to cover the press conference. 

After a presentation including ways for the public to have input into the investigation, Inner City Press asked US Attorney Williams, Will this impact your Office's prosecutions and even convictions?

Will your Office treat information from the MVPD differently during the pendency of the investigation?  

 US Attorney Williams said that is a question for another day. Fair enough. But this may be one of the days.

  A civil case against the MVPD and particular officers is coming to trial, and Inner City Press is digging into it. Names officers include Detective Sergeant Sean Fegan, Detective Camilo Antonini, PO Robert Puff, PO Patrick King, and PO "John" Valente. The complaint has the shield numbers. Now, on what SDNY federal cases have they worked, and what review is being conducted?

That civil case is Govan v. City of Mount Vernon, et al., 19-cv-8830 (Halpern)

 Later in December Inner City Press identified at least three more civil cases concerning such abuses in the MVPD: false searches of cars and houses, abuse in detention. The same names show up again and again. So what are the SDNY prosecutors doing to review their prosecutions and convictions? Hasn't that "other day" arrived?

On December 23 in another of the cases, Seward v. Antonini, et al., 20-cv-9251 (Karas), Mount Vernon's outside counsel opposed a discovery request for MVPD communications "related to an ongoing investigation being conducted by the Department of Justice." Would DOJ reveal such documents, including the light they cast on its own prosecutions? What this site.

Or this one: on November 24, 2020 Inner City Press reported Raheem Jones was charged with aiding and abetting a murder in Mount Vernon. He was assigned a Criminal Justice Act lawyer, Mark S. Demarco.  

  On May 17, 2019 U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Nelson Stephen Roman relieved DeMarco and appointed Donna R. Newman as CJA counsel. 

   On November 24, Jones pleaded guilty to racketeering, and to the aiding and abetting murder, with a guidelines sentence of 300 months or 25 years.  Inner City Press covered the change of plea proceeding. 

  During the proceeding Ms. Newman referred to an earlier version of the plea agreement which referred to Jones as a career offender.

 AUSA Andew Fong Chow quickly pointed out that was never filed with the court.  

  Jones, who said his first name was Lonzo, was read his newly-explicit Brady rights under the Due Process Protection Act - and then, as part of this plea, appeared to waive any Brady violation.

 Ms. Newman added she was not aware of any such violations in his case.    Sentencing was set before Judge Roman for either February 25, or March 4, at 10:30 am. 

But now on December 3, 2021, there is nothing in the docket. The case is US v. Jones, 15-cr-661 (Roman).  We aim to have more on all this.

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After UN Failure in Darfur Now Crocodile Tears From Guterres As El Fasher Base Is Looted

 

By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC - Guardian UK - Honduras - ESPN

UN GATE, Dec 25 – How corrupt has the UN system become under Antonio Guterres? Well, below is a sample retaliation complaint about his UN in Sudan, which has been provided to Inner City Press, which Guterres has had banned for 1369 days without providing answers.

  Inner City Press asked Guterres and spokespeople Stephane Dujarric and Melissa Fleming, and Amina J. Mohammed, about Sudan in writing on the morning of October 25, along with a new UN child rape by a "peacekeeper" from Morocco. No answers - totally corrupt.

 At the UN's lame noon briefing, Guterres' SRSG Volker Perthes said he could not speak to the impact in Darfur.

But now, after so much UN failure in Darfur (which Inner City Press visited with the Security Council, before Guterres had Inner City Press banned for its reporting), now on Christmas 2021, this: "The Secretary-General condemns the looting and reported violence occurring around the former United Nations logistics base in El Fasher since 24 December 2021 in a part of the former base for which custody was handed over to local Sudanese authorities on 21 December 2021. The safety of personnel from the former United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur, UNAMID, that remain at the base is of paramount concern at present. Security of this section of the base that has been overrun and looted was to be maintained by Sudanese authorities once it was handed over.   This latest incident of looting and destruction is a tragedy for Sudanese communities that stood to benefit from substantial amounts of equipment and supplies gifted by the United Nations assets for civilian use. We remain hopeful that Sudanese authorities can put an end to the looting in El Fasher, and that remaining infrastructure, equipment and assets can be administered for civilian use as intended.  Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General     New York, 25 December 2021." Lies, all of it. Where is Guterres and why no answers on his links to Ghislaine Maxwell and cover up of UN rapes?

From the UN in Sudan, Inner City Press published this: "Please provide the name and position of the person(s) who has committed the alleged act(s) of  retaliation:   Mr. Mateen Shaheen; Deputy Representative UNFPA CO, Sudan; email: shaheen@unfpa.org  Mr. Massimo Diana; Representative UNFPA CO, Sudan; email: diana@unfpa.org    II. Protected Activity:   Did you report misconduct? To whom and when (date) did you make your report of misconduct?  Yes, to the Executive Director on May 24th. 2021  

What misconduct did you report? 

3. Discrimination and nepotism; specifically, un-unified methods of recruitment, including 12 new  positions were not opened internally following procedure’ referring to ‘fast track recruitments’ in order to  not extend contracts of national staff in the Sudan CO in favour of bringing in staff who have served with  senior management in former duty stations. As evidence, in the last six months, six new positions have  been recruited and filled by staff from Syria, the former duty station of the Representative. Further,  positions have also been filled through personal relations such as bringing on board the wife of the  1   Representative’s friends in Khartoum into the Youth Program without transparency or clarity on roles  and responsibility. 

V. History:   Who else besides the Ethics Office have you contacted for assistance?   No other parties and/or bodies have been contacted for assistance."

Until Inner City Press, along with additional confidential information. Watch this site.

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Elastos Foundation Is Sued For ELA Tokens Pitched At Fordham Now Howey Test Questions

 

By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC - Guardian UK - Honduras - ESPN

SDNY COURTHOUSE, Dec 25 – Mark Owen sued the Elastos Foundation, Rong Chen, Feng Han and others for a crypto-currency scam involving "ELA Tokens."     

     On December 22, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York  Judge Gregory H. Woods held a proceeding. Inner City Press covered it.

  The complaint noted that on February 13, 2018 Elastos through ChinaWise published a press release about Han's speech at CryptoCon 2018 on February 15, 2018 in Chicago on ICOs and bitcoin mining. 

  Han also spoke at a "meet up" at Fordham University in New York, promoting ELA.    Judge Woods had questions about the Howey test. He had already denied the motion to dismiss. So the case goes forward.

The case is Owen et al. v. Elastos Foundation et al., 19-cv-5462 (Woods)

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In Maximum Maxwell Christmas Hiatus Tabloid Vigil Outside the MDC, Return To The Little Black Book

 

By Matthew Russell Lee, Author on Patreon Song Ruling
BBC - Decrypt - LightRead - Radio - Podcast

SDNY COURTHOUSE, Dec 24 -- It was Christmas Eve and the number of people in prison, in the United States and around the world, was numberless. But in Kurt's world there was nearly unitary focus on one prison, in pre-trial detention for nearly a year and a half now: Ghislaine Maxwell.

 

  Kurt had once been a volunteer and reporter at the Catholic Worker, but it he didn't practice religion day to day. But he went to midnight mass, not in Chinatown but up the United Nations. And the priest, after a pitch for money and a vague denunciation of government intrusion, did mention the works of mercy including the visiting of prisoners.

 

   Not only Ghislaine's listed lawyer but also, at least in April, Leah Saffian had visited Ghislaine in the Metropolitan Detention Center. Now British TV journalists camped out in front of the prison, one of them reporting inaccurately that if she were convicted, Ghislaine could spend the rest of her life in the MDC.

 

  No one, of course, knew how long Ghislaine's sentence would be, or if Judge Nathan would be the one to impose it. But it would definitely not be served in Brooklyn.

  Maybe in Connecticut, where Martha Stewart had been, or down in West Virginia, with the sad opiate army. If that happened, the focus on her would pass, expect perhaps on Christmas, her birthday. Or she might, another reporter quipped macabrely, "pull an Epstein."

 

   Kurt remembered getting the next of Epstein's death, the tabloid photo of the gurney at the nearby hospital, then the indictment of the MCC corrections officers. On an upper floor of 500 Pearl Street, the guards of color was waited on one side of the elevators, the journalist on the other.

   Tova Noel, who had to give up her gun, and the other guard were being scapegoated, their supporters and lawyers said - not only unlike what Ghislaine and her family were saying now.

 

   Someone had filmed the family in a law office, with its anachronistic walls of books, sister crying, brother staring into a computer. Was it staged like Leah's In-N-Out Burger shot? Who was it directed at?

   Kurt returned again the Freedom of Information document he had just posted, that "Epstein has also provided information to the FBI as agreed upon."

 

   One reader thanked him, during midnight mass no less, that she had printed and framed the document - maybe hyperbole. And framed was another word Ghislaine and her family were using, also hyperbolic.

  It would all be known soon, when the jury returned and re-started, maybe ended, its deliberations. #MaximumMaxwell.

And so it continued.  Click here for Patreon and more (2d).

Note: On October 29, 2021 and again on November 12 Ghislaine Maxwell and the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York filed a flurry of motions in limine, heavily redacted; the Government argued that trial exhibits are not public and will be withheld. Inner City Press opposed and opposes the continued secrecy.

Inner City Press will cover the trial, and all the comes before and after it; #CourtCaseCast and song I, Song 2, Song 3, fifth song and now Nov 27 song

The underlying case is US v. Maxwell, 20-cr-330 (Nathan).

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