Month: January 2014

Wednesday Morning Open Thread

Posted onAuthorjeralyn

larger version here.

It sure is cold outside, but the view from my living room was very pretty yesterday.

I’ve been mostly reading news from Mexico today. The papers there have been filled the past few days with revelations that the DEA made deals with top Sinaloa cartel members to provide information about rival cartels in exchange for immunity and the freedom to continue their illegal activities. This is about the case of Jesus Vincent Zambada-Niebla, awaiting trial in Chicago. I’m not sure why the Mexican papers are just picking it up now — it was news in the U.S. in 2011. The reporter does a good job though, and includes references to some of the pleadings. Here’s a long post I wrote about the case and the DEA’s “snitch and carry on” policy. It’s an interesting question whether Humberto Loya-Castro, the Sinaloa lawyer who became a DEA informant and provided information about rival cartels for years to the DEA, and who set up a meeting in Mexico City between the DEA and Zambada-Niebla, at which Zambada-Niebla claimed the DEA offered him the same deal as Loya — become a snitch against rivals and continue on without fear of busts — was not so much an informant as an agent of the Cartel doing business with the U.S. Government.

Snitch and receive a get out of jail free card pales in comparison to snitch, stay in business and be free from arrest. The  DEA used the same strategy in Colombia when targeting Pablo Escobar. It’s called “Divide and Conquer.” [More…] Read More

DOJ Spending $544k to Recruit on Linked-In

Posted onAuthorjeralyn6 Comments

The Department of Justice signed a contract in late December to pay $544,000 for an “enhanced profile” on the social networking site “Linked In” to “increase its branding” and improve its ability to recruit prosecutors. The recipient of the contract is Carahsoft Technology Corporation, and you can view the contract details here.

Here is DOJ’s justification for avoiding the open-bidding process and what it gets for its money. Among the benefits: full access to every Linked-In profile.

This will include an enhanced company profile within a large-scale, professional networking platform, and targeted online job advertising to attract highly qualified Criminal Division employees and intern applicants as well as use the already existing Criminal Division presence,” the document said.

I find this particularly inappropriate when sequester cuts are still in effect for federal defenders and indigent defense counsel. Federal defenders have been hit with lay-offs and furloughs, while indigent defense counsel had their payment vouchers delayed for four weeks this fall and their already reduced rates cut $15.00 an hour. The pay cuts will last at least until September, 2014.

Here is Chief Justice John Roberts’ 2013 end of year State of the Judiciary report. The judiciary cuts from sequester amounted to $350 million.