Department of "Just Us"...MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA – In two states where US attorneys are already under fire for serious allegations of political prosecutions, seven people associated with three federal cases have experienced 10 suspicious incidents including break-ins and arson.
These crimes raise serious questions about possible use of deliberate intimidation tactics not only because of who the victims are and the already wide criticism of the prosecutions to begin with, but also because of the suspicious nature of each incident individually as well as the pattern collectively. Typically burglars do not break-into an office or private residence only to rummage through documents, for example, as is the case with most of the burglaries in these two federal cases.
In Alabama, for instance, the home of former Democratic Governor Don Siegelman was burglarized twice during the period of his first indictment. Nothing of value was taken, however, and according to the Siegelman family, the only items of interest to the burglars were the files in Siegelman's home office.
Siegelman's attorney experienced the same type of break-in at her office.
In neighboring Mississippi, a case brought against a trial lawyer and three judges raises even more disturbing questions. Of the four individuals in the same case, three of the US Attorney’s targets were the victims of crimes during their indictment or trial. This case, like that of Governor Siegelman, has been widely criticized as a politically motivated prosecution by a Bush US Attorney.
The main target of the indictment, attorney Paul Minor, had his office broken into, while Mississippi Supreme Court Justice, Oliver E. Diaz Jr., had his home burglarized. According to police reports and statements from Diaz and from individuals close to Minor, nothing of value was taken and the burglars only rummaged through documents and in Minor’s case, also took a single computer from an office full of expensive office equipment.
The incidents are not limited to burglaries. In Mississippi, former Judge John Whitfield was the victim of arson at his office. In Alabama, the whistleblower in the Don Siegelman case, Dana Jill Simpson, had her home burned down, and shortly thereafter her car was allegedly forced off the road.
While there is no direct evidence linking these crimes to the US Attorneys’ office targeting these individuals, or to the Bush administration, there is a distinct pattern that makes it highly unlikely that these incidents are isolated and unrelated.
All of these crimes remain unsolved.
● Break-ins plague targets of US Attorneys
● WASHINGTON -- The House Judiciary Committee threatened Thursday to subpoena former White House adviser Karl Rove if he does not agree by May 12 to testify about former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman's corruption case.
● US Dept of Justice IP address blocked after 'vandalism' edits to Wikipedia
Wikinews has learned that a United States Department of Justice (DOJ) IP Address has been blocked on Wikipedia after making edits to an article which were considered "vandalism". In two separate instances, the IP address from the DOJ removed information from the Wikipedia article about the organization Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA), regarding an attempt by the organization to secretly gain influence on the site. The IP address has been confirmed by Wikinews to be registered and used by the DOJ located in Washington, D.C.
Alan Breslauer tricking Rove into holding a "free Siegelman" banner!
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Summary: A Media Matters for America review found that since February 27, the date that televangelist John Hagee endorsed Sen. John McCain for president, The New York Times and The Washington Post combined have published more than 12 times as many articles mentioning Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. and Sen. Barack Obama as they have mentioning Hagee and McCain.
● Wash. Post and NY Times published more than 12 times as many articles mentioning Obama and Wright as they did mentioning McCain and Hagee
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Not in the news: Cripples & ministers getting jailed & removed from events, for asking questions of McCain!
● Disabled group members arrested at McCain's office
● Clive businessman Marty Parrish was escorted from Sen. John McCain's town hall meeting by Des Moines police and members of the Secret Service after asking McCain if he had called his wife Cindy an expletive in 1992.
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● How does the media apologize for Exxon Mobil 1Q profit of $10.9Billion, the 2nd biggest recorded profit ever in history? You say it's "not as big as predicted" instead of "Exxon-Mobil records 2nd largest quarterly profit in U.S. history"
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Other news:
● EPA official: I was forced out. Dow wanted to cut corners in cleanup of deadly Agent Orange chemical: official.
● A landmark bill to forbid discrimination against people whose genetic information shows a predisposition to certain illnesses won final U.S. congressional approval on Thursday.
● Double suicide attack on wedding party kills 35 in Iraq
● Murtha: The Military Has Been ‘Dishonored’ By The ‘Untruths’ Of The Pentagon’s Propaganda Program
● Washington Post Editorial Board Attempts To Erase Its Pre-War Rush To Invasion
● In NEPA, PPL Corp. announces that they want to raise our electricity 35%!!!
● The Federal Trade Commission will announce today its plan for investigating and regulating possible market manipulation by oil companies, traders and others, a Democratic senator said Thursday.
● Home Depot to close 15 underperforming US stores. Home Depot closing 15 flagship US stores as weak economy, housing slump take toll
● Gulf States May End Dollar Pegs, Kuwait Minister Says
● Alan Breslauer's HotPotatoMash; Some highlights from yesterday's huge May Day rally in Los Angeles in support of immigrants, workers rights and against the Iraq occupation.
