Posted on 03/02/2005 4:32:10 AM PST by Anti-Bubba182
U.S. District Judge Joan H. Lefkow originally ruled in favor of Matthew Hale and his white supremacist church when a trademark infringement case filed against the World Church of the Creator first came before her in January 2002.
But when an appeals court overturned Lefkow's decision and she tried to enforce the new ruling later that year, Hale became angry and plotted to kill her, a federal jury ruled last year.
The jury of six whites, five blacks and one Hispanic convicted Hale on April 26, 2004, of soliciting his security chief to murder Lefkow.
The security chief, Anthony Evola, was in fact an FBI plant in Hale's church who had secretly recorded their conversations.
On one of those tapes, recorded Dec. 5, 2002, at the church's headquarters in East Peoria, Evola is heard asking Hale, "We gonna exterminate that rat?" in reference to Lefkow.
Evola testified at trial that Hale leaned back in his chair with both hands behind his head and "nodded yes with a smile on his face."
"Whatever you wanna do," Hale then said on the tape. "My position's always been that I, you know, I'm gonna fight within the law. ... If you wish to, ah, do anything yourself, you can, you know?"
Hale then added: "So we're clear?"
"Consider it done," Evola said.
"Good," Hale replied.
The taped conversation took place one day after Hale sent Evola an e-mail asking for Lefkow's home address.
Prosecutors said Hale had targeted Lefkow because she presided over the case in which an Oregon church had sued the World Church of the Creator for trademark infringement..."
(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...
Sounds more like entrapment to me.
"World Church of the Creator"
Definitely a religion of peace.
I guess the appeals' court ruling didn't 'play in Peoria.'
Like Marion Barry was entraped?
It certainly sounded like entrapment when I read the summary of the tape. The FBI agent asked Hale "We gonna exterminate that rat?", which is clearly entrapment. They can't do that. They have to wait for the suspect to initiate the discussion. They also have to give him possible outs like "Are you sure?", to establish intent. The part of the tape quoted in the article makes this case sound very flimsy.
"...In closing arguments, the defense contended that the undercover tape recordings showed that Evola repeatedly prodded Hale for approval to kill Lefkow.
But prosecutors said Hale got his message across to Evola to carry out the murder even though he spoke cautiously to give himself "plausible deniability."
The day after receiving the e-mail seeking Lefkow's home address, Evola, a Chicago security guard, traveled to Hale's headquarters in Downstate East Peoria on FBI instructions.
"We gonna exterminate the rat?" Evola asked in reference to Lefkow.
"Ah, my position's always been that ... I'm gonna fight within the law and but, ah, that information's been ... provided," Hale was quoted as replying. "If you wish to, ah, do anything yourself, you can, you know?"
"So that makes it clear," Hale added.
"Consider it done," Evola said.
"Good," Hale replied.
The two jurors said Evola's undercover recordings were critical.
Ultimately the debate came down to whether it was solicitation or entrapment on Evola's part, according to the jurors.
Hale is "a very intelligent man," one juror said. "This is a man who passed the bar exam. No one could make him say something he didn't want to. During those conversations, he never said no" to killing Lefkow.
"He liked to see other people do his dirty work for him," agreed the other juror. "But he never closed the door on anything....."
Is it "flimsy" just for Hale or for those who may be charged for the hit also?
Entrapment or not -- and I tend to think it reeks of it -- this little jerk is about to learn, the hard way, that instituting a terror campaign against a sitting federal magistrate is just plain stupid.
It offends me that the government could win a conviction using such a transparent entrapment device as was done in Hale's case, but not nearly so much as it does to think Hale or someone in his organization can stoop to this sort of "remedy".
I don't have any other info about this case other than this article and my comment regarding entrapment is based on the fact that the first one on the tape to mention exterminating the rat is the planted agent.
There may be other evidence that implicates Hale and I'm sure he's a POS, but I'm just commenting on the substance of this particular article.
I saw his mother on H&C last night, asking why he would try to kill the judge right before his sentencing...I dunno, lady. Maybe because your son is an idiot?
If you've ever seen this guy Hale it does seem like he isn't that stupid. He has a law degree.
Sorry Bubba and other Matt Hale sympathizers, but you don't have a leg to stand on. Hale had discussed harming the judge with other members of his group before his bodyguard taped the conversation quoted in part above. Furthermore, seeking her address was an act in furtherance of a plan. Testimony was offered at trial suggesting a pattern of Hale using other people to do his dirty work. (Some readers will recall that he apparently urged a follower to go on a shooting spree after being denied a law license in 1999. Nine people were wounded and two killed.) Entrapment requires that the government initiate the defendant's interest in committing a crime. The interest in killing Judge Lefkow originated with Hale.
The truth of the matter is that there was never any basis for Hale's animosity toward Judge Lefkow. She initially ruled in his favor in the trademark case. An appeals court overturned her ruling.
My guess is that people who share Hale's racist views will look for ways to exonerate him. But, to anyone else, he is not deserving of sympathy.
*Sigh*. I haven't seen anyone on this thread who "shares Hale's racist views". Some people believe he was entrapped. Based on the portion of the tape shown here, it looks like it was entrapment.
I don't know if it was entrapment or not. You provided additional evidence that it wasn't, so maybe it wasn't. But wanting to make sure due process is observed is not the same as being in the defendent's corner on every issue.
Over on another thread there were people expressing qualms about the way Wichita cops got DNA from Dennis Rader's daughter. That doesn't mean they were supporters of Dennis Rader.
And just in case I didn't make it clear, I don't endorse Matthew Hale's views and would not have a problem with seeing him fry if he is responsible for this heinous crime.
That means there's even less of a clue at this point as to why and how the Judge's husband and mom were killed.
It's understandable that people would speculate along these lines, but still, we don't know yet who did it.
The initial focus on Hale is strange. The whole Hale thing is strange.
Most any criminal judge or prosecuter gets some significant threats at one time or another. The husband was a civil rights lawyer -- maybe ex-client, and four daughters maybe ex-suitors, unlikely but maybe hidden lifes, random killing, botched burglary, etc etc ... all possibiles
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