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Dead Constitution See other Dead Constitution Articles Title: Attorney Richard I. Fine Released Attorney Richard I. Fine Released - by Stephen Lendman An earlier article explained his judicial lynching, accessed through the following link: http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2010/04/richard-i-fines-judicial-lynching.html A longtime distinguished lawyer, detailed information about him, his career, and lawless disbarment and imprisonment can be found through the following link: http://sites.google.com/site/freerichardfine/ From the early 1990s until his disbarment and March 4, 2009 jailing, Fine challenged and corrected state corruption, returning about "$350 million to California taxpayers which state, county and municipal governments (unlawfully took from) 'special funds' and 'trust funds' in a series of taxpayer cases filed in federal" and state courts. Yet, for his many years of crime fighting, he was charged with "contempt of court" and "moral turpitude," disbarred by California's Supreme Court, and jailed by Superior Court Judge David Yaffe (retiring November 1) "in retaliation for bringing the cases and exposing the unconstitutional payments," ones later held to be unconstitutional. Last spring, Fine appealed to the US Supreme Court for release. The California Bar waived its right to respond, meaning his appeal was unopposed. Nonetheless, on May 24, 2010, Fine's Petition for Writ of Certiorari (an order to a lower court) was denied without explanation or comment. As a result, he remained a political prisoner, one of many hundreds in America, a topic an earlier article addressed, accessed through the following link: http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2010/08/political-prisoners-in-america.html At the time, his daughter Victoria Fine, a Huffington Post journalist and editor, said: "We are deeply disappointed in the outcome of this. It's scary to me that the justice system at all levels doesn't see the inherent flaws in the system and is choosing not to correct them." Richard Fine Released With few details available, and little media coverage outside Los Angeles, the following accounts announced the news: On September 18, Los Angeles Times writer Scott Glover headlined, "Lawyer abruptly freed from jail," saying: After a year and a half in jail on contempt charges, "Richard Fine was released from Los Angeles County Jail in downtown Los Angeles shortly after 9 p.m. but did not wish to speak to a Times reporter." On LA Observed, Kevin Roderick wrote: "Fine, the 70-year old lawyer and self-styled taxpayer advocate sent to jail 'indefinitely' by a ticked-off Superior Court judge (was) released abruptly last night." On Examiner.com Los Angeles, Laura Lynn said: "Attorney Richard Fine was released from jail Friday, according to an LA Times article and children's rights advocate Janette Isaacs." Isaacs suggested that Yaffe may have released him on Yom Kippur (a day of atonement for Jews) as "a symbolic act." Los Angeles Daily News writer Troy Anderson said Fine told the paper, in a phone interview, that his release showed "right will win over might. This is really a great day for Los Angeles and for California." He'd written Yaffe recently, requesting a new judge because of his retirement. He then speculated that Yaffe may not have wanted to hand someone else his "complicated case....I guess Friday it all came to a head and Yaffe suddenly decided he wanted out of all this and decided to release me." Perhaps he also wished to close it ahead of his retirement, or even had second thoughts about his outrageous sentencing of a man deserving praise, not indefinite punishment for serving the people of Los Angeles County heroically and selflessly. Until September 17, he'd spent 563 days in solitary confinement, the longest ever for an attorney (or perhaps anyone) for contempt of court. Emerging, however, his spirit was as high as last May after the Supreme Court denied his petition, saying then: "I'm in fighting condition. They haven't broken me down, and they won't break me down." On September 18, he said: "We can now look at cleaning up the judiciary and stopping (23 years of) illegal payments....that have cost taxpayers $300 million." While imprisoned, Fine filed dozens of motions, including a complaint several days before his release, charging local, state and federal prosecutors with a massive "judicial corruption and bribery scheme" in California courts. Writing District Attorney Steve Cooley, state Attorney General Jerry Brown, and US Attorney Andre Birotte, he requested local, state, and federal investigations of LA County judges and supervisors for alleged corruption, a longstanding problem Fine challenged from the early 1990s until his illegal disbarment and March 4, 2009 jailing. Now free, he may continue his work and advocacy to cleanse LA County of corruption, costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, the same problem throughout America, especially in Washington, as well as from Wall Street and other corporate predators, notorious for ripping off unsuspecting customers and clients. A Final Comment Those challenging entrenched power risk grave harm to themselves. Besides many others, Fine and two other courageous lawyers stand out. Paul Bergrin is one, an earlier article addressing his case, accessed through the following link: http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2009/12/targeting-lawyers-case-of-paul-bergrin.html A "top prosecutor" and one of New Jersey's "most prominent (and effective) defense lawyers," according to The New York Times, he ran afoul of the system by defending one of US soldiers charged with killing four Iraqis near Samarra during Operation Iron Triangle in May 2006, a case that made international headlines. Yet as Professor Stjepan Mestrovic explained in his book titled, "The 'Good Soldier' on Trial: A Sociological Study of Misconduct by the US Military Pertaining to Operation Iron Triangle, Iraq," four charged soldiers followed their commander's (Col. Michael Steele) Rules of Engagement (ROE) to "kill all military age males." They had to obey or face Court Martial and imprisonment, their fate as it turned out anyway to absolve their commander of responsibility. Bergrin wanted him and the entire chain of command, including Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, George Bush and Dick Cheney held culpable, and therein lay his undoing. Arrested and imprisoned since May 2009, he was accused of racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, the murder of a federal witness, and conspiracy to commit murder plus other charges in a 14-count indictment. One or more of the charges were later dropped, but if convicted of those remaining, he faces a potential life sentence - not for any crime, but for doing his job honorably and courageously. Six earlier articles discussed another longtime heroic lawyer, Lynne Stewart, access through the following link, the most recent article includes links to the others: http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2010/07/darkness-in-america-lynne-stewarts.html The opening paragraph said the following: She worked selflessly, tirelessly, and heroically for 30 years as a human rights champion, defending America's poor, underprivileged, and unwanted - people never afforded due process and judicial fairness without an advocate like her. She knew the risks, yet took them courageously until bogusly indicted on April 9, 2002 on four counts, then convicted by outrageous government-orchestrated antics inside and outside the court. Initially sentenced to 28 months, she was re-sentenced to 10 years after losing her appeal. Another is planned. If turned down, perhaps followed by one to the Supreme Court for justice she's been so far denied. Age 71 in October, she's been ill with cancer, now in remission, a recent biopsy confirming it. Since imprisonment, she's also had surgery, successfully done with no complications, but not by doctors or in a hospital of her choice. West Coast Director of the Lynne Stewart Defense Committee called her "a brilliant and dedicated fighter sacrificed on the alter of an intolerant class-biased system of repression and war." So is Paul Bergrin for confronting US barbarism and Richard I. Fine for challenging LA County corruption. Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening. http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour/.
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#1. To: Stephen Lendman (#0)
Great news. I only wish some of these worthless "conservative legal foundations" had half the guts that Fine has. Where were they when he was held as a political prisoner for making the corrupt lib establisment squirm?
Stephen - another case to add to your list is the mysterious murder of an experienced Public Defender who was defending a local Tax Activist/anti-corruption activist. She was working on an appeal and someone snuck in and strangled her to death. It was a very neat and professional murder. http://www.oregonlive.com/portla...us_public_defender_f.html Assistant U.S. public defender found slain in SW Portland home An assistant federal public defender was found dead in her Southwest Portland home, the apparent victim of a homicide, Portland police said late Wednesday. Nancy S. Bergeson, 57, a well-liked attorney, vigorously defended bank robbers, con men and drug dealers during about 18 years with the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Portland. She was found dead Tuesday, a day after she represented a man in a tax evasion conspiracy case in U.S. District Court here. A friend who stopped by her home in the 4100 block of Southwest Hamilton Street about 3 p.m. Tuesday saw Bergeson lying on the floor and called 9-1-1. Officers responding to the home apparently thought that Bergeson had died of natural causes. They summoned Multnomah County medical examiners to the home but did not call for homicide detectives, said Detective Mary Wheat, a Portland Police Bureau spokeswoman. After an autopsy Wednesday morning, the medical examiner’s office said Bergeson’s death was a homicide. Homicide detectives were sent to the home in the Bridlemile neighborhood to investigate further. They cordoned off the scene with red and yellow tape and spent most of the day there searching for clues. Police declined to say exactly how Bergeson was killed. Steven T. Wax, federal public defender for the District of Oregon, said late Wednesday that Bergeson’s friends and colleagues were devastated by news of her death. “We are mourning her loss,” Wax said. “Nancy was a wonderful person, a person full of spirit and a tremendously zealous advocate who exemplified the highest ideals of the profession.” Wheat said investigators soon ruled out gang and domestic violence as possible causes of her death, but they were considering other scenarios. “We don’t know who’s responsible for this,” Wheat said. “It could be a stranger, or it could be somebody that she knew. It could have been someone from work or someone that wasn’t necessarily a stranger. “Normally at this stage we have some idea if this is someone she (knew).” Wheat said she did not know whether anything had been stolen from Bergeson or her home, where she lived alone. Earlier this week Bergeson was defending Roy Bendshadler, 48, of Portland, one of five men the U.S. government accused of preparing more than 1,000 fraudulent tax returns between 2001 and 2005. During Monday’s session, Bendshadler and two others were found guilty, and a fourth man was acquitted. A fifth defendant had pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge in September. Bendshadler maintained he committed no fraud and said he plans to appeal his case. But now he has no attorney. “I’m gut-punched sick because I lost my advocate,” he said. “She was a fighter. She risked sanctions by the judge when she repeatedly objected to the prosecution putting hearsay documents into the records.” Bendshadler said he learned of his lawyer’s death about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, when Bergeson’s assistant called him. He has since talked to another defense lawyer, Michael Greenlick, who Bendshadler said was appointed to represent him. “I was told she was found dead, evidently in front of her laptop, with my case on the screen,” Bendshadler said. Bendshadler said he had not been contacted by any police officer or federal agent looking into Bergeson’s death. According to Wax, Bergeson came to the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Portland in 1991 after serving with a county public defender’s office in Utah. After spending a few years in the federal defender’s office in Eugene, she transferred back to Portland in 1994. Bergeson is a daughter of Marian Bergeson, a former California assemblywoman, state senator and California secretary of education. Related Link: http://portland.bizjournals.com/...s/2010/08/23/daily45.html Mr. Benshadler appears to have been targeted not because of any real illegality, but because he is a self taught expert on Constitutional Law and had embarrassed a Persecutor in a former case. His attorney was working on an appeal of a very dicey ruling by the Judge in the case in which he was eventually convicted. My guess is that she was whacked because she could have made successful appeal and the government very much wanted to nail Mr. Benshadler's hide to wall.
"One of the least understood strategies of the world revolution now moving rapidly toward its goal is the use of mind control as a major means of obtaining the consent of the people who will be subjects of the New World Order." K.M. Heaton, The National Educator
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