Just in: Michael Avenatti is asking Judge Selna to read a "curative jury instruction" Tuesday morning regarding the Geoff Johnson Social Security benefit issue that tells them to "disregard and ignore all such evidence" drive.google.com/file/d/1c4nMNy…
The wording of his proposed instruction is kind of hilarious and classic Avenatti. I think it's unlikely Judge Selna tells the jury exactly this, but as the motion (and my tweets) say, Selna has already said he's thinking about this. So there's going to be something.
I expect the U.S. Attorney's Office will file a response to this by end of Monday. Then the judge will take it up before the jury gets seated on Tuesday. #staytuned Again, Google Drive link to full document is here: drive.google.com/file/d/1c4nMNy…
Just in: Prosecutors' response pretty well lays out why this Social Security stuff is relevant to wire fraud: Avenatti's lies about the trust. "The testimony of Ms. Guerrero and Mr. Goeders strongly corroborated Mr. Johnson’s testimony..." Google Drive: bit.ly/3ry8h0x
"their interactions ... - even if they were in the context of defendant failing to maintain Mr. Johnson’s SSI benefits or help him purchase a house after promising to - are highly relevant to proving the false statements underlying one of the government’s theories of wire fraud."
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
Just in: Judge Roland wants John Eastman disbarred for his 2020 election fraud claims and the Jan. 6 attempted insurrection.
Here's the full ruling. 128 pages.
"John Charles Eastman is ordered transferred to involuntary inactive status ... His inactive enrollment will be effective three calendar days after this order is served..."
I remember going to the first day of Eastman's bar hearing in LA back in June along with other reporters including the great @TomDreisbach. Little did we know what a marathon we were in for. 9 months later, a ruling.
A woman with an “unshakable, delusional belief that she owns or works” at LA Fitness is jailed indefinitely on a civil contempt charge, and her story is a horrifying look at mental illness and the court system.
I know I’ve got a lot of followers in Atlanta area: There is an ATL connection to this story.
The woman was fired from LA Fitness in SoCal in 2011, then was hired two years later at a gym in Atlanta using a false Social Security number. legalaffairsandtrials.com/p/judge-wants-…
The cases are different, but it's worth noting that the mentally ill woman jailed for civil contempt involving LA Fitness appears in the same courthouse where Judge Carney is releasing neo-Nazis from jail and dismissing their charges. legalaffairsandtrials.com/p/9th-circuit-…
Good morning from Los Angeles, where I’m here for what should be an extraordinary hearing for Alexander Smirnov, an FBI informant accused of lying about the Bidens.
It follows an extraordinary order from Judge Otis Wright that said his lawyers likely are trying to help him flee.
A year before Judge Cormac Carney dismissed charges against white supremacist Robert Rundo, he refused to accept a guilty plea from Rundo’s co-defendant.
The judge asked about defending against Antifa then said he appears to be innocent.
“The judge dismissed Rundo's charges on Wednesday. Last year, he declined a plea offer from a co-defendant and suggested possible bail after learning of his meth habit.” legalaffairsandtrials.com/p/robert-rundo…
More action in Robert Rundo's case today.
The DOJ says Rundo's fiing last night "lays bare what the government already suspected: defendant intends to continue to try to persuade the lower courts to circumvent this Court’s order requiring him to remain in custody."