While no one openly disputes the validity of the Brady Rule, many prosecutors see it as a thorn in their sides—an obstacle to overcome rather than a welcome responsibility to be scrupulously observed. . . While there are certainly many honest and fair-minded prosecutors, a disturbing number fail to disclose exculpatory evidence to the defense. Some prosecutors affirmatively and knowingly conceal it. . . .

Sanctions against prosecutors who violate Brady are practically unheard-of and professional discipline is non-existent.  As a consequence, there is, as I’ve said elsewhere, ‘an epidemic of Brady violations abroad in the land.’

In the book Licensed to Lie, attorney Sidney Powell, former prosecutor turned private practitioner who represented a defendant in one of the high-profile cases discussed in the pages that follow. She was called in by the defense team after the client had been convicted. As she describes her first meeting with the client and his lawyers, they were ‘traumatized, exhausted, wrung out, meek, and broken’ as a result of what had been a brutal trial.

‘I seemed to have more testosterone than all of them put together,’ she quips.  In truth, Sidney Powell has more testosterone than pretty much any roomful of lawyers, be they men or women. Writing a book like this more than proves it. Not only does she take on, by name, prosecutors and former prosecutors who continue to serve in powerful and responsible positions, she is also relentless in criticizing judges before whom she has practiced for years.  Few lawyers have the stones to do this.

In this unpublished decision, the California Court of Appeal for the Fifth District affirms the district court’s dismissal of an indictment because of the prosecutor’s “egregious, outrageous misconduct . . . that shocked the conscience.”

In The People v. Efrain Velasco-Palacios, the prosecutor added two highly incriminating lines to the transcription of the defendant’s police interrogation. In so doing, he also destroyed the attorney-client relationship, necessitated the appointment of new counsel, and generally destroyed the validity of the process. His defense? It was just a “joke.”

This is the third strike we know of for California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris who apparently doesn’t understand the importance of prosecutors following the law. She appealed the dismissal, arguing that only physical “brutality” would be sufficiently shocking to the conscience to warrant a dismissal of the charges.

Senator Troubled by Abusive Prosecutors in Justice Department  New York City (February 3, 2015) — In last months confirmation hearings for the proposed new attorney general of the U.S., Loretta Lynch, esteemed Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah gave the nominee an urgent request:

“I recently read a powerful book… I read it in one day.” “It’s titled, Licensed to Lie: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justice.” “The author writes about many things, including the debacle that occurred in the misguided prosecution of Senator Ted Stevens, which I thought was out of this world bad. I was one of the people who testified as to his character, and he was one a person of great character. As you know, he lost the Senate race because of this type of prosecution. I know that case. Ted Stevens was a dear friend of mine, and I testified on his behalf.

Only after he was convicted did we learn that the Justice Department prosecutors intentionally hid exculpatory evidence that could have helped his case.”

Now, these were not mistakes. They were corrupt acts that violated every prosecutor’s duty under the Brady v. Maryland decision to turn over exculpatory evidence so that the trial will be fair.” “Now I recommend that you read this book, because if even half of it is true, and I believe it is true, you have a lot of work to do to clean up that department. Will you consider doing that for me?” Ms. Lynch replied: “Thank you sir, I will.”

Click here to view the video–the new “trailer” for Licensed to Lie. Widely respected former federal prosecutor and appellate attorney, Sidney Powell, author of Licensed to Lie, applauds the Senator’s dedication to the rule of law and his appreciation of her work.

“Senator Hatch is a beacon of integrity in the Senate, and a leader in protecting justice for all Americans.  I am not surprised that he is appalled by the callous disregard for truth, justice and fundamental fairness exposed in my book. It is my great honor to add my research to this important discussion on reform led by Senators Hatch, Murkowski, Grassley, and others.

I also implore Ms. Lynch to champion this cause for reform, and I will welcome any opportunity to meet with her to discuss these crucial issues.” “To restore confidence in the Department, Ms. Lynch should terminate the services of the attorneys in the Department who have been found to have committed intentional or reckless violations of their duties. She should end the Department’s stonewalling of its own Inspector General and provide the documents Congress has long requested in the IRS scandal, Benghazi tragedy, and Fast and Furious disaster.

Like every citizen, prosecutors need to be subject to the law, and to be held accountable when they flout it. Indeed, as officers of the court entrusted with the power of the Sovereign, they should be held to an even higher standard. Instead, abusive prosecutors have been promoted, gaining even more power that will make them even more corrupt.

What happened to the citizens in Licensed to Lie can happen to anyone.  Just ask the teams of the Innocence Project who work tirelessly to free people who have spent decades in prison for crimes they did not commit. More than half of those wrongful convictions were the result of prosecutorial misconduct.

In addition to Senator Hatch, there has been much critical acclaim for Sidney Powell and Licensed to Lie from many respected minds including Brendan V. Sullivan, Jr., of Williams & Connolly LLP. Mr. Sullivan said that this book is “more instructive than any criminal law course offered today in our best law schools,” and, “It’s malpractice to litigate against the Department of Justice without reading this book.” Respected Federal Judge Alex Kozinski of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has urged judges to “put a stop” to these abuses. In his private capacity, he wrote the Foreword to Licensed to Lie, which he urges friends of justice to read. In the oral argument of a recent case involving a California prosecutor, Judge Kozinski suggested consideration of perjury charges for prosecutors who lie.

The 6-minute video of John Stossel’s show OVERLORDS, featuring LICENSED TO LIE: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justice may be viewed here on Vimeo.

Judge Sullivan has shut down the Department’s abuse of Rule 17 subpoenas in this opinion.United States v Vo (Opinion)

See this Petition for a writ of certiorari and this article for the New York Observer.

As reported in the New York Observer, senior federal Judge Kevin Duffy verbally branded AUSA Stanley Okula as a “liar” after catching Okula in a misrepresentation regarding whether the United States Attorney had issued press releases in the Michael Little and related cases.

For the transcript we have available, see 2014-12-4 U S v Michael LittleTR.

Our friends @Popehat pointed out that this is not Okula’s first offense.  He has been reamed by judges on two continents in two cases.

A federal judge today has ordered the recusal of all federal judges in the Eastern District of California and asked Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kozinski to name a judge from another district to hear the serious case and allegations of fraud and misconduct that may warrant setting aside a $55 million settlement agreement payable to the United States. See this 2014-10-15_Order_of_Recusal-c.  The Press Release re Moonlight Fire 10-9-2014 of the filing is also available, and it includes allegations in a Declaration from a former Assistant United States Attorney,  expressing his belief that he was terminated from working on the case because of his ethical concerns. The Defendants’ extraordinary motion is PA Rule 60(D) motion-c.

Many of the people named in LICENSED TO LIE, such as Attorney General Eric Holder, are in the news daily–often, not favorably.  But one of the heroes in this true legal thriller, is a real Article III federal judge of great integrity and courage.

Meet United States District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan.  Judge Sullivan is one of the primary heroes because he helped uncover prosecutorial misconduct by the Public Integrity Section prosecutors for the Department of Justice in its corrupted prosecution of former United States Senator Ted Stevens.  He appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the Department of Justice and its attorneys.

He is in the news now because he is presiding over the Freedom of Information Act lawsuit by Judicial Watch against the IRS seeking the emails of Lois Lerner and her nefarious colleagues, and he’s entered various orders discussed here, here and here, extracting information from the IRS.  Thanks to Judge Sullivan, we now know (and broke the news) that Lois Lerner’s blackberry was destroyed after the Congressional inquiry focused on her.

Another hero in Licensed to Lie is the man Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kozinski, in his foreword for Licensed to Lie, called “the fabled” Brendan Sullivan–the highly esteemed leader of Williams & Connolly in Washington DC.  Brendan Sullivan and his partner Rob Carey, Simon Latcovich and their team represented Alaska Senator Ted Stevens, fighting relentlessly until they uncovered egregious prosecutorial misconduct, important evidence the prosecutors hid from the defense, and obtained the dismissal of all charges against Senator Stevens.

For the latest declarations filed by the IRS in Judge Sullivan’s court, revealing that the IRS destroyed Lois Lerner’s Blackberry also, see IRS Executed Declarations (8-22-2014) and see my articles in the New York Observer

From Judicial Watch Weekly Update:

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