MS Supreme Court Judge Diaz and Lawyer Paul Minor face extortion and attempted bribery charges

The Clarion Ledger ^ | February 21, 2004 | By Jerry Mitchell

[WKB]

A federal grand jury added extortion and attempted bribery charges Friday against Justice Oliver Diaz Jr. and trial lawyer Paul Minor, postponing their March 1 trial.

Minor's lawyer, Abbe Lowell of Washington, D.C., called the new charges outrageous, saying his client will plead innocent to them.

[WKB]

MS PING

[rrrod]

a democRAT?

[Gurn]

Hey, WKB, remember that freepmail I sent you Friday morning? Just call me Kreskin. :-)

[Gurn]

My source close to the case says everyone's shocked that Minor's defense team includes Lowell. A lawyer like that will not play well in front of a jury in Jackson.

[dixiechick2000]

"A lawyer like that will not play well in front of a jury in Jackson."

LOL! The first thing I thought when I saw his name is that I surely would like to be in the courtroom when he is heard. The reaction to him will be priceless. What was Minor thinking?

BTW, I'm sorry Dean folded. I was hoping for a win in MS. ;o)

[WKB]

This is a copy of a freepmail I received from gurn on Friday Feb 20. The man is in the know:


From Gurn | 02/20/2004 12:54:17 PM CST replied

There will be a "superseding indictment" in the Federal judicial-corruption probe within a week or 10 days. No new defendants, but lots of new allegations, described to me by a source close to the investigation as "more damning than you can imagine."

[vetvetdoug]

This incident is the status quo for Mississippi politicians and corruption. After Marty Frankel embezzled $3 Billion from the Mississippi insurance companies and let Thurston Little, Travis Little's brother, launder several of the millions, you have heard nary a peep. Thurston is free, the money has been gone and rolled over dozens of times, his family is continuing to profit from the money and nothing has been done. Its only been seven years since the story surfaced. Unless someone else (meaning federal or another state) gets Ebbers, Little, Frankel, Diaz and Minor, this will be a lot of noise without any punishment.

[Gurn]

BTW, the two lawyers identified by initials in the indictment are plaintiff's attorneys from Vicksburg. Though they're trial lawyers, they're not scumbags. I used to work with one of their sons, also an attorney.

It was one or more of these trial lawyers who reported the attempted bribe/extortion to the US Attorney's office. Point being, I guess, that not all of them are complete dirtbags.

Incidentally, this indictment tells me a couple of things. First, it's significant that the allegations were credible enough to postpone a March 1 trial date.

Also, lawyer friends and I had been speculating about which of the defendants would be the first to roll over. Minor is the big fish here. That leaves the two former judges from the coast, Diaz, and his ex-wife to cop pleas.

Now, the feds may think they have enough on Minor to where they don't need the testimony of any of his co-defendants to put him away. As such, there may be no plea bargains to be had for the other four. That train, as they say, may have left the station.

[Magnolia]

That train, as they say, may have left the station.

and it's about time....lol!

[afuturegovernor]

Judges in Mississippi are elected on a non-partisan basis, but Diaz was appointed to fill an open seat on the MS Supreme Court by now former Democratic Governor Ronnie Musgrove.

[onyx]

Hey Magnolia, good to *see* you.

[Lancey Howard]

bttt

[bourbon]

Let's not let the good news about the legal climate get lost in all the bad news. The good news is it is changing now with McRae and Diaz off the court.

Ruling May Limit Mass Litigation

and

High Court Changes Mass Litigation Rules

Changing MS's rule on joinder may not sound sexy, but trust me it's a big, big step in the right direction.

[WKB]

I am happy to say I know at least one decent lawyer
Well two I guess I forgot about gurn

[onyx]

Changing MS's rule on joinder may not sound sexy, but trust me it's a big, big step in the right direction.

I trust you! Good to *see* you, bourbon. We're traveling to MS (Vb) in April to "buy" us a house. Woo-Hoo.

[FormerACLUmember]

The exploitative Mississippi shyster industry, its crooked judges, and complete legal system corruption on every level makes John Grisham novels look tame.

The incredibly wealthy lawyer elite also make Mississippi the poorest, most third world-like of all US states.

[onyx]

I'll take Mississippi over NY every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

I get your point: MS is the jackpot justice state, but look for Governor Barbour to have a say in that matter.

[wardaddy]

Be nice...trial lawyers are hardly at fault for all that...bad as they are.

Mississippi's poverty is directly related to having the largest proportional black population by far in the nation and their historical trend for such since emancipation.

We can debate the hows and whys of that for volumes.

It is also at the same time arguably one of the most culturally conservative states there is and that is worth quite a bit. I miss that.