Posted on 03/17/2010 12:26:11 PM PDT by Behind Liberal Lines
When it comes to qualifying for a court-appointed lawyer, it doesn't necessarily matter to whom you're married. That's what Monica Conyers, wife of Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.), demonstrated this week when a federal judge declared her indigent and assigned her a tax-funded public defender to appeal a three-year prison sentence for bribery conspiracy.
Monica Conyers, a former Detroit City Council member, pleaded guilty this past June to accepting cash bribes in exchange for her vote on a $1.2 billion sewage sludge contract with a Houston company. Now she wants to undo that deal, but says she can't afford a lawyer to do so, despite the fact that her husband — who is the second-longest serving current member of the U.S. House of Representatives — makes $174,000 a year.
The court says the congressman's salary is irrelevant in this matter. According to a March 16 statement from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, "The guidelines for the administration of the criminal justice act explicitly state that the initial determination of eligibility should be made without regard to the financial ability of a person's family…unless the family indicates willingness and financial ability to retain counsel promptly."
The court said that Monica Conyers provided information that established her inability to pay for a lawyer, including "a detailed description of her financial resources in the presentence investigation report and [the information] that Mrs. Conyers was on her own — so to speak — as to such resources." Therefore, the court said, "Further inquiry was not appropriate and would have intruded on private matters."
The court also noted, "There is nothing exceptional about these circumstances of this appointment."
Conyers' court-appointed attorney, Douglas Mullkoff of Ann Arbor, Mich.'s Kessler, Mullkoff & Hooberman, did not return calls seeking comment.
Her former attorney, Detroit solo practitioner Steven Fishman, who represented her in the criminal matter, was unavailable for comment. He withdrew from the case after the sentencing.
To University of Michigan Law School professor Richard Friedman, the court's reasoning made sense. Friedman said it didn't "strike me as particularly strange that the individual would be able to claim indigency without respect to her spouse's finances because they might just maintain separate finances."
If Monica Conyers is broke, Friedman concluded, she's entitled to a lawyer. "If the court were to say, 'Well, your husband's wealthy,' and she says she has no money…and if he does decline to support the [legal] representation, where is she left?" Friedman asked.
As for John Conyers' financial support of his wife, his office has issued no statement on the matter. He did not attend her sentencing last week and has remained quiet during much of the scandal.
Monica Conyers remains free on bond. She is scheduled to report to prison on July 1.
More Dum corruption.
Have the taxpayers foot the bill.
In 2009, it $174K. I’m not sure if it’s been raised this year, yet.
This is crazy. You know he makes a lot more than that and now she gets a free lawyer.
As it says, $174,000, plus perks that make it worth much more. Conyers and his ilk have no shame. They are nothing but parasites.
All the money went to pay for her kids private schooling.
That or her husband dug it up from the backyard.
If this new attorney Douglas Mullkoff is white I hope he stands out of her reach when the appeal is denied because she is going to blame the closest whitey she can get her hands on.
It’s all Welfare, it’s all free, and somebody owes me. Why not?!
Hey! Rod Blagojevich is an attorney and needs a job.
“As for John Conyers’ financial support of his wife, his office has issued no statement on the matter. He did not attend her sentencing last week and has remained quiet during much of the scandal”
Nothing like family values of democrats and throwing your wife under the bus. Then again, as with democrat values, if you can make the taxpayer pay for your sorry self, why not?
She got caught. He’s probably gonna divorce her!
Also, if members entered Congress and were not millionaires they were after only a term or two.
For many years they were given special offers for IPOs at sweetheart pricing so they could then unload the stocks after a couple of days when the prices usually increased at rapid rates.
IIRC that practice has been stopped but there are many other ways these leaches have to scam money while "representing" us in Congress.
If you would like to be added or dropped from the Michigan ping list, please freepmail me.
My guess is that John is also trying to distance himself from Monica so as to be in a better position to bargain if the IRS wants to check out their tax returns.
Thank you.
I dunno, maybe he has some cash in the freezer;-0
Happily, in the case of Douglas Mullkoff being assigned to Monica Conyers, the sad situation where the indigent get poor and inexperienced lawyers is avoided. He has consistently been named as a Michigan 'Superlawyer'.
Kinda makes ya go all glow-y inside.
This makes absolutely no sense. Rep. Conyers could stay below the radar on this one, but no, he goes rogue and won’t pay for his wife’s legal bills. Does that work for credit card bills, too??? The mortgage??? Car payments??? Just say I don’t want to pay it because it’s my wife’s problem, not mine — and a judge bought it! Can the taxpayers of Wayne(ing) County appeal this? UNBELIEVABLE - HOW MUCH MORE CAN WE TAKE OF THIS TYRANNY???
Any real Detroiter knows you can’t keep cash in the freezer. First place anyone would look.
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