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Thursday, May 17, 2012

In three-part series, WBUR's David Boeri shines light on federal prosecutorial misconduct

WBUR-90.9-FM, one of Boston’s NPR-affiliated stations, this week ran a three-part report, by reporter David Boeri, on a remarkable case that has arisen in the federal court in Boston, in which evidence of alleged serious misconduct on the part of a federal prosecutor has been uncovered. Boeri interviewed me in parts 2 and 3 of his report, because – I assume – of my long-standing concern with Department of Justice tactics that pose a serious risk of convicting the innocent.


Some of the dangers posed by the DOJ’s practices with regard to “honing” the testimony of cooperating witnesses are discussed in the Introduction to Three Felonies a Day, at pp. XXXVIII to XLIII.

Below are links, as well as embedded audio, to the three WBUR segments.


NPR Connecticut: 'A Nation of Criminals?'


Talking TFD on the NPR Connecticut program Where We Live, hosted by John Dankosky, with Guest Stanley Twardy, a former U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut. We discuss, among other topics, the role of prosecutorial discretion and the question of criminal intent.

A Nation of Criminals?

"A Nation of Criminals?Where We Live, NPR Connecticut

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Boston Globe op-ed: Finneran's only crime is careful diplomacy


Those familiar with Three Felonies a Day know the story of former Speaker of the Massachusetts House Thomas Finneran. Finneran was charged with federal obstruction of justice and perjury because he allegedly lied, in court testimony, about the extent of his involvement in a legislative redistricting plan that was being challenged as discriminatory. Under questionable circumstances, Finneran entered a guilty plea in 2007. Accepting this plea as indisputable proof of culpability, the Supreme Judicial Court disbarred Finneran earlier this month.

In today's Boston Globe, I put Finneran's case in the context of the ever-increasing rate of guilty pleas in the federal criminal justice system, noting that the Feds essentially made him an offer he could not refuse.

WAMU Radio: Defining Fraud: Could You Be Guilty?

On the Kojo Nnamdi Show (WAMU - American University Radio), Harvey examines the vaguness of federal law, the recent "honest-services" Supreme Court hearings,  and the cold comfort of relying on prosecutorial discretion. Guests include Adam Liptak of The New York Times, and Randall Eliason, former chief of the Public Corruption section of the U.S. Attorney's office in Washington, D.C. (Image opens NPR audio player in new window)

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New York Times cites TFD in article on criminal justice reform


In a front-page article in today's New York Times, Supreme Court correspondent Adam Liptak writes about how former ideological adversaries are uniting under the banner of criminal justice reform. Conservatives, libertarians, and liberals have all found common ground in seeing the dangers of overcriminalization, Liptak writes, citing Three Felonies a Day as an example.

Harvey A. Silverglate, a left-wing civil liberties lawyer in Boston, says he has been surprised and delighted by the reception that his new book, “Three Felonies a Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent,” has gotten in conservative circles. (A Heritage Foundation official offered this reporter a copy.)

The book argues that federal criminal law is so comprehensive and vague that all Americans violate it every day, meaning prosecutors can indict anyone at all.

Read more to view a PDF of the NYT print edition in your browser.

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