Judge tosses DeLay case subpoenas

March 13, 2006, 6:08PM

Judge tosses DeLay case subpoenas

By R.G.RATCLIFFE
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau

AUSTIN — A state appeals court today threw out more than 30 subpoenas requested by Travis County prosecutors building a criminal case against U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, saying the investigation should have stopped in December when a district judge halted proceedings in his court.

District Attorney Ronnie Earle has been issuing the subpoenas ever since Senior District Judge Pat Priest dismissed all or part of three indictments against DeLay, R-Sugar Land. Earle appealed Priest's ruling, and the judge stayed the case pending a ruling by the Third Court of Appeals. Most of the subpoenas involved political fund-raising controversies that have involved DeLay, some dating back to 1996.

After Earle subpoenaed records from DeLay's wife, Christine, DeLay's legal team asked Priest to quash the subpoenas. Priest told DeLay lawyer Dick DeGuerin that the case was stayed while on appeal, so he would neither halt Earle from issuing subpoenas nor would he enforce them. DeGuerin then asked the appeals court to intervene.

"Because the state has obtained a stay in the proceedings ... we hold that subpoenas may not issue compelling witnesses to testify and produce documents at the stayed proceedings," the order by a three-judge panel said.

...more
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3720707.html

:wtf:

in its jurisdiction, so why would that court be hearing an appeal from a Texas case?

There's this circuit court system, http://www.uscourts.gov/courtlinks/ , with the 3rd circuit covering a bit of the mid-Atlantic.

Then there's the Texas appeal court system, with the third circuit covering Austin and surrounding territory: http://www.3rdcoa.courts.state.tx.us/

There was a thread about it earlier where OldLeftyLawyer explained. Perhaps she'll explain again on this thread. Sorry, I don't have the link handy.

My mistake, OLL (and JR) and it has been edited...or "stricken from the record." :evilgrin:

Okay, thanks. I'll search for it.

While this is on hold nothing can move forward, that includes the subpoenas. I wouldn't be surprised if DeLay is behind this even getting any press, he likes to muddy things up in peoples minds.

They can always be reissued. Supoenas normally have a date and time to produce documents to a court. Most likely the prosecutor is giving Delay a preview of what is to come. He could even be taunting him with innuendos about what he knows and what he is willing to expose.

Did you catch the comment by Deguerin's partner in the article about how the appeals court's ruling is a supposed warning to the prosecution about him making this a "political" case.

I hate the way these guys spin. Bugs the crap out of me.

Overall I would say things didn't change today. Delay's balls are in a vice.

his ass out of jail. The scheming and maneuvering is DeLay and junior's style.

need very little to issue supeana's, and grand juries even less.

This is a procedural issue, it won't prevent the prosecutor from getting his hands on the information at a later date.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3721403.html

One law for Dems, no law for Reeps.

QUOTE
A state appeals court Monday gave U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay a legal and public relations victory by throwing out more than 30 subpoenas issued by Travis County prosecutors investigating the Sugar Land Republican's political finance activities.

The Third Court of Appeals said the subpoenas issued by District Attorney Ronnie Earle after a senior district judge stayed proceedings in the criminal case against DeLay in December are "null and void."
.........
The unsigned order was issued by Judges Bea Smith, David Puryear and Alan Waldrop. Smith, a Democrat, is not seeking re-election. Puryear and Waldrop, Republicans, are up for re-election this year.
........
UNQUOTE

that this is not a victory or defeat for Delay....

All of the subpoenas after December have been dropped but all of the subpoenas before Decemeber still are valid......

He is still in up to his neck....

since all it did was say that Earle can't issue subpoenas on Bugman's case until the trial goes forward (or the Third Circuit rules one way, or the second way, or the other - could be "drop all," "reinstate dropped charges" or "leave it as is" as I understand it). All this says is "Earle can't issue subpoenas on a case until WE decide the status of the case."

appeal... correct? if Earle can't start collecting evidence now, he will just have to spend more time collecting it later.

Unless the 3rd Circuit decides to drop all charges... Of course, that appears to be unlikely, but I wouldn't be surprised.

Look at what happened in the Kay Bailey-Hutchison case, and you'll see what I mean. DeLay et al have alleged that that case was a partisan witch hunt, but the fact is that a hand-picked judge barred Ronnie Earle from producing the evidence that he had obtained (legally, I might add) from HER computer. Without that evidence, the case pretty much fell apart, but that doesn't make that case a witch hunt...