Mark Fuller joins an infamous list of federal judges who managed to screw up incredibly sweet gigs

Mark Fuller

In the world of employment, being a U.S. judge has to be one of the sweetest gigs on the planet.

You have a lifetime appointment and pretty much can't be fired, no matter how poorly you do your job. You make good money, with excellent benefits, and you tend to work in relatively new, clean, comfortable, and uncrowded buildings. You have a light workload, compared to your state-court brethren, and those dupes often have to work in old, nasty, crowded facilities. Appellate courts will hear some of your cases, but they don't really review your work--and even if they do, who cares, they can't fire you or even do much to discipline you for getting cases wrong.

You get to wear a robe, people call you "Your Honor," and they rise when you enter the courtroom. You get to sit high above lawyers--many of whom are smarter than you and make more money than you, but they still have to kiss your fanny. You don't have to run for re-election, so you never have to ask people for money--unless you come to enjoy taking bribes--and you can be an utter asshole to people and almost never have to worry about the consequences.

Many cases on your docket involve allegations of discrimination on the job or in public accommodations, and if you can stand the tedium of listening to the same old arguments and facts all the time, you can ride the wave to a cushy retirement--or your death, whichever comes first

Come to think of it, you really don't have to even listen--court reporters are there to take down every word. Best of all, you don't even have to do the most important part of your job--writing orders and opinions. It's well known that clerks "ghost write" many of those for federal judges. You don't even have to research the law--very few court cases are decided on the actual law, and if a tricky issue comes up, you can get a clerk to do the scut work. More often than not, you can ask lawyers to do the research for you.

You can commit all kinds of crimes while wearing your robe, and the chances are astronomically high that you will get away with them. As for lawsuits, you are "immune" from them for anything you do in your "official capacity."

So how can anyone with three brain cells screw up this dream job? Well, a few people are stupid enough to do it, with Mark Fuller from the Middle District of Alabama being the latest example. He is set to resign on August 1, in the fallout from his arrest for beating his wife.

And that brings us to the one thing that can cause potential problems for a federal judge. When the robe is off and you are outside your "official capacity," it's a good idea to be on respectable behavior. You can still get away with a lot, but it's best not to grope women (or men) in the workplace. It's best not to loudly make racist, sexist, or homophobic statements. It's a good idea not to hit your spouse or get involved in barroom brawls. And you'd be wise to steer clear of alcohol, illegal drugs, prescription painkillers and other mind-altering substances.

Jack T. Camp

In other words, you are free and clear if you can at least fake acting like a decent human being outside the courtroom. But about once every 10 years, a judge comes along who can't manage that simple task and winds up resigning over allegations of "misconduct."

What kind of person can screw up a job where you almost can't screw up? Well, we know Mark Fuller is that kind of person. And our research shows that, since 1970, at least five other federal judges have proven to be that kind of person. How did these five other dudes (like Fuller, they all are males) get in trouble? How did they join Fuller in a judicial "hall of infamy"? Here are a few details:

Otto Kerner Jr.

* Where he's from -- Illinois, on 7th Circuit Court of Appeals (1968-1974)

* Who nominated him -- President Lyndon B. Johnson

* How he screwed up -- Kerner was charged with taking bribes related to race tracks in the Chicago area, while he was governor of Illinois--prior to his nomination to the federal bench. The bribery charges were dismissed, but he was convicted of mail fraud, conspiracy, and perjury. He was sentenced to three years in federal prison, and facing almost certain impeachment, resigned as U.S. judge.


Herbert Fogel

* Where he's from -- Eastern District of Pennsylvania (1973-1978)

* Who nominated him -- President Richard M. Nixon

* How he screwed up -- A combination of influence peddling and heavy drinking brought down Fogel. At the time of his resignation, he was being investigated for lining up a $52-million building contract for his uncle. Fogel wound up facing four counts of drunk driving and spent time at an alcohol-rehab center in Atlanta. Friends said the boredom of being a federal judge contributed to his drinking problem.


Robert Collins

* Where he's from -- Eastern District of Louisiana (1978-1993)

* Who nominated him -- President Jimmy Carter

* How he screwed up -- Collins was the first black to be appointed to a federal judgeship in the Deep South and the first federal judge to be convicted of taking a bribe. He was convicted in 1991 of taking money to influence his sentencing of a marijuana smuggler. He spent five years at several federal prisons, including the Federal Prison Camp at Montgomery, Alabama.


Edward Nottingham

* Where he's from -- District of Colorado (1989-2008)

* Who nominated him -- President George H.W. Bush

* How he screwed up -- Nottingham had "zipper issues." His troubles started when it was revealed in his divorce case that he had spent $3,000 on strippers in one night and had used an Internet dating site. One complaint alleged that he viewed pornographic Web sites on the government computer in his chambers. Finally, two former prostitutes claimed Nottingham was a client of an escort service, and one of the prostitutes said he had instructed her to lie to federal investigators about their relationship. According to news reports, Nottingham's nickname among "working girls" was "Naughty."


Jack T. Camp

* Where he's from -- Northern District of Georgia (1988-2010)

* Who nominated him -- President Ronald Reagan

* How he screwed up -- Camp had sex and drug problems, and we've reported on his case several times here at Legal Schnauzer. Camp pleaded guilty to three criminal charges after he was arrested for attempting to buy drugs from an undercover FBI agent. At the time of his arrest, Camp was in the company of an exotic dancer he reportedly had met at an Atlanta strip club. According to news reports, Camp became infatuated with the stripper when she performed a lap dance for him. She had a federal conviction from a drug-trafficking case, but Camp reportedly paid her for sex and they then would smoke marijuana, snort cocaine, and take painkillers together.

The secret lives of Dennis Hastert, Bill Pryor, and other public officials raise the ugly specter of blackmail

Bill Pryor at badpuppy.com

What happens when a married public official presents himself as heterosexual but leads a homosexual life in the shadows? It raises concerns about one of the ugliest words in the English language--blackmail.

We've seen it in Alabama with the rise to power of U.S. Circuit Judge Bill Pryor. We are seeing it now in the fall of former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert. We are likely to be hearing more about it in the coming days as Hastert appears in court today and his case unfolds--probably with stories of more victims and various politicos who helped cover for the speaker.

Concerns about blackmail prompted Alabama law enforcement officials to open an investigation when they received a tip, not long after Gov. Fob James appointed Pryor attorney general in 1997, that nude photographs of the new AG had appeared at the gay-porn Web site badpuppy.com. Investigators tracked down the photos and their source--in Monroe, Louisiana, where Pryor attended college. Investigators also conducted surveillance on Pryor's residence in Montgomery and noted a number of late-night male visitors, including one who went on to become a well-known national political figure.

As it turned out, Pryor's secret life actually helped his professional career. According to multiple press reports, certain Republicans hold copies of the porn photos to help ensure that Pryor pushes for favorable outcomes on cases before the U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. In other words, Pryor's dalliance with gay porn makes him vulnerable--particularly since he almost certainly did not disclose it in his Senate confirmation process--and the very conservatives who put him in power use that to make the Eleventh Circuit even more corrupt than it already was.

As for Hastert, an article written after his recent indictment indicates Capitol Hill insiders are abuzz about the possibility that the speaker was ethically compromised because of his secret life. An article from 2011 suggests Hastert's sexual secrets long ago caused him to fall victim to blackmail--on the international stage.

The recent article, titled "Hastert Questions Consume Capitol," comes from The Hill and reporter Scott Wong. Writes Wong:

House Republicans are questioning whether anyone tried to use former Speaker Dennis Hastert’s dark secret against the Illinois Republican during his two decades in Congress.

The Capitol has been abuzz about the Hastert allegations this week, and several GOP lawmakers are raising the specter of whether anyone demanded political favors in exchange for their silence.

“Was there any undue influence able to be imposed based on the knowledge of a secret that could damage him?” asked one House GOP lawmaker, who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive issue. “That’s sort of the scrutiny we all have to endure, and as you look retrospectively now at what we know: Was there an appropriate filter?

“It doesn’t have the same kind of stench to it from a political influence standpoint,” the lawmaker added. “That said, everything starts somewhere.”

Other lawmakers, quoted by name, voiced even stronger concerns:

The fact that the former Speaker put himself in a position where he could have been blackmailed is “nauseating,” remarked freshman Rep. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.). For Congress, “certainly it’s a black eye all the way around.”

Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.), too, is worried Hastert had been “compromised” while serving as Speaker — a powerful job that put him second in line to the presidency.

“Not that our founders were saints, but you’re giving payouts like that, you’re getting blackmailed. It compromises you,” Yoho said in an interview.

“When you become compromised, how does that influence somebody’s decision-making knowing they’ve got something held over their head, someone saying: ‘Yes, you will vote this way.’ ”

An article from four years ago suggests Hastert already has been blackmailed. Brad Friedman published the piece, titled "FBI Whistleblower: Hastert, Burton, Blunt, Other Members of Congress 'Bribed, Blackmailed'", on May 25, 2011, at Huffington Post. Friedman focuses on the deposition of FBI whistleblower Sibel Edmonds, and she unleashes damaging information about a number of GOP politicos, including former U.S. Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN) and former U.S. Rep and current U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO). But the most alarming allegations involve Hastert.

Here is Friedman's overview of the revelations from Edmonds' testimony:

The under-oath, detailed allegations include bribery, blackmail, espionage and infiltration of the U.S. government of, and by current and former members of the U.S. Congress, high-ranking State and Defense Department officials and agents of the government of Turkey. The broad criminal conspiracy is said to have resulted in, among other things, the sale of nuclear weapons technology to black market interests including Pakistan, Iran, North Korea, Libya and others.

Even as many of these allegations had been previously corroborated to varying extents, by a number of official government reports, documents and independent media outlets (largely overseas), not a single major mainstream media outlet in the U.S. has picked up on Edmonds' startling claims since her deposition has been made fully available. . . .

Though Edmonds was careful to not "discuss the intelligence gathering method by the FBI," she notes in her deposition that her claims are "Based on documented and provable, tracked files and based on...100 percent, documented facts."

Here is the key information from Edmonds' deposition about Hastert:

Dennis Hastert: "[S]everal categories. The acceptance of large sums of bribery in forms of cash or laundered cash ... to make it look legal for his campaigns, and also for his personal use, in order to do certain favors ... make certain things happen for foreign entities and foreign governments' interests, Turkish government's interest and Turkish business entities' interests. ... other activities, too, including being blackmailed for various reasons. ... he used the townhouse that was not his residence for certain not very morally accepted activities. ... foreign entities knew about this, in fact, they sometimes participated in some of those not maybe morally well activities in that particular townhouse that was supposed to be an office, not a house, residence at certain hours, certain days, evenings of the week."

Hastert used a townhouse for "certain not very morally accepted activities," and foreign entities knew about?

Those concerned about blackmail in the Dennis Hastert story might be too late. It looks like it already has happened. And one can only wonder, at this point, how many of his allies in the U.S. House knew about it.

Having sex with a client, in Alabama or elsewhere, can cause a lawyer to wind up in deep ethical doo-doo

Allison Bergman

A partner at a large midwestern law firm has left the firm and had her license suspended in the wake of revelations that she had a sexual relationship with a client.

Yes, in this case, the lawyer was a woman, and the client was a man--but our research indicates the roles usually are reversed. Either way, such relationships apparently happen in the law with alarming frequency, and they often lead to poor outcomes for clients and career derailment for lawyers.

The Web site Above the Law (ATL) broke the story of an attorney-client relationship gone awry in the Midwest. Allison Bergman had spent roughly 15 years at Lathrop Gage, a Kansas City, Missouri, firm with some 320 lawyers. For about 10 years during that time, she had a personal relationship with the president of a company her firm had represented for more than 100 years.

Kansas City Terminal Railway (KCT) started an internal investigation in 2012, firing Bergman and president Chuck Mader at the same time. KCT also terminated its relationship with Lathrop Gage, costing the firm about $400,000 a year. Bergman left the law firm shortly thereafter, and a disciplinary complaint followed.

These sorts of issues seem to erupt at law firms, big and small, all over the country. Here is how a 2012 article at Huffington Post put it:

Reliable numbers are hard to come by, but according to one nationwide survey of attorneys, 7% admitted to personally having a sexual relationship with one or more clients, and 32% admitted to having colleagues who carry on such affairs. It's so common today that there are actually law review articles with titles like "The Legal Profession's Dirty Little Secret"!

The "dirty little secret" definitely extends to Alabama. I am aware of a male lawyer in Shelby County who had an extramarital affair with his Chilton County client in a divorce case. The client had been married to a prominent Central Alabama businessman, and court records indicate she was the victim of infidelity, domestic violence, and other forms of marital misconduct.

In a high-dollar divorce action with the facts on her side, she should have come out of the mess in solid financial shape. Instead, she lost most everything she owned, and the "justice system" treated her in a hideously unconstitutional fashion.

Was the woman targeted for abuse because the legal tribe feared she might reveal damaging information about one of its members?

If that was the case, the tribe was too late because she already has revealed the information to me--in writing.

How can one married lawyer--with a long, documented history of unethical conduct--take advantage of a female client who is on a financial, personal and emotional precipice? What can be the frightening fallout for the client, the one with whom the lawyer is supposed to have a "fiduciary relationship" of supreme trust?

We will examine those questions in a series of upcoming posts.

Here's how the "breaking" story of Dennis Hastert's taste for young wrestlers actually broke nine years ago

Dennis Hastert

The No. 1 news story in the country right now is about former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and his efforts to cover up the sexual molestation of at least one youth wrestler during his days as a high school teacher and coach. Hastert was scheduled to make a court appearance today, but that has been postponed until next week.

It took a federal indictment last week for the story to become national news. But it actually broke almost nine years ago, thanks to the investigative work of D.C.-based journalist Wayne Madsen. In fact, Madsen provided details that the mainstream press still seems afraid to touch.

How does a story of national importance stay under wraps so long? For one thing, the Wayne Madsen Report (WMR) is a subscription Web site, and quite a few of its stories likely don't get out from behind the pay wall. Also, Madsen seems to draw ire from partisans on the left and the right--not to mention a number of mainstream journalists--probably because of his willingness to tackle stories that insiders would rather stay out of sight.

Madsen saw the Hastert story brewing way back on September 30, 2006. From his WMR post on that date:

Congressional sources told WMR that Hastert, while working from 1964 to 1980 as a popular history/government teacher and wrestling coach at Yorkville High School, in Yorkville, Illinois -- a suburb of Chicago -- was the subject of persistent rumors about inappropriate contact with male members of his high school wrestling team. The culture of the times usually resulted in such alleged behavior being covered up by public and parochial school authorities. However, the rumors were enough for his Yorkville constituency to reject him when he ran for an open seat in the Illinois House of Representatives in 1980. However, Hastert lucked out when another sitting Republican House member who represented the three-seat district had a stroke and declined to run for re-election. The GOP machine bosses selected Hastert as the replacement candidate.

Madsen followed up on October 2, 2006, with a report about Hastert's role in the Tom Foley (R-FL) scandal, involving sexually charged electronic messages to under-age males serving as Congressional pages:

In August 2004, the GOP House leadership, which included Speaker Dennis Hastert, then-Majority Leader Tom DeLay, and Majority Whip Roy Blunt, took no action against Republican Rep. Mark Foley of Florida for his repeated salacious contact by email with underage male teens even though a heterosexually-married Republican congressman resigned over trolling gay web sites for 'younger men.' In August 2004, one-term Republican Rep. Ed Schrock of Virginia resigned after it became public that he was surfing gay and dating web sites in search of younger men for sex. Schrock, a political ally of his Virginia Beach constituent TV evangelist Pat Robertson and a retired U.S. Navy Captain, resigned after he was outed by a Washington, DC web site.

Wayne Madsen

However, rather than dealing with Foley's sexual habits on the Web, the GOP leadership sank deeper into cover-up mode, burying the Foley matter lest it shine a light on other GOP gay hypocrites in Congress whose anti-gay agenda would embarrass the party a few months before a critical presidential and congressional election.

It is now being reported that the House Page Board chairman John Shimkus (R-IL) actually enabled Foley to meet an underage pages for dinner dates after the House GOP leadership were aware of Foley's inappropriate communications with the teens."

How deep did the GOP cover up go? Madsen addressed that question, and it includes some very big names in Republican circles:

The House GOP leadership that now stands accused of covering up the scandal includes the GOP members of the House Page Board, Representatives John Shimkus of Illinois and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia; House Speaker Dennis Hastert; Majority Leader John Boehner; Majority Whip Roy Blunt; and National Republican Congressional Committee chairman Tom Reynolds, who reportedly received $100,000 from Foley campaign coffers after he was first informed of the allegations against the Florida Republican.

Hmmm . . . John Boehner, of Ohio . . . Roy Blunt, of Missouri. Those names certainly are familiar to most anyone who pays the slightest attention to political news. Hastert has rubbed shoulders with heavy hitters for quite a while. In a post dated October 7, 2006, Madsen provided disturbing insights into Hastert's personal life:

The rumors about another top GOP member of the House being involved in sexual encounters with young "men for hire" are confirmed to WMR by well-placed sources in Washington's gay community. The member in question is House Speaker Dennis Hastert, whose "alternate" life style is the primary reason for him and his staff covering up the scandal involving ex-Florida GOP Rep. Mark Foley and his lewd messages sent to underage male congressional pages. Hastert's penchant to receive anal sex is well-known to our sources in DC's gay community. Additionally, Hastert's reported extremely small penis is the subject of many jokes among Washington's gay circles.

In July [2006], Hastert was hospitalized at Bethesda Naval Hospital for cellulitis, a bacterial skin infection. In the Feb. 7, 2003 issue of AIDS Treatment News, doctors reported that they saw 'a large increase in aggressive, antibiotic-resistant 'staph' (Staphylococcus aureus) skin infections in gay men in some areas -- and a separate epidemic in certain prisons. Symptoms include boils or blisters; treatment can be difficult, and sometimes requires hospitalization. One HIV doctor in Los Angeles who used to see about one case a year is now seeing two a week. In the past this infection occurred mainly in hospitals.' The reports of serious skin infections among gay men was also reported in the Los Angeles Times on Jan. 27, 2003.

On October 9, 2006, Madsen wrote about Hastert's unusual relationship with chief of staff Scott Palmer, a story that had drawn the attention of Lawrence O'Donnell at Huffington Post:

There is also much focus on the relationship between House Speaker Dennis Hastert and his chief of staff, 56-year old Scott Palmer. Hastert and Palmer, Hastert's longtime unmarried adviser, live together in a DC townhouse along with Hastert's Deputy Chief of Staff, Mike Stokke, while Hastert's wife Jean lives in Yorkville, Illinois and stays at a hotel when she visits Washington. [Mrs. Hastert even stayed at a hotel, instead of her husband's townhouse, when she traveled to Washington on Valentine's Day in 2007].

WMR has also learned of additional Senate links to the Pagegate scandal. There is much focus on GOP Sen. George Allen's predominantly white male staff. There is also interest in the activities of a senior GOP Senator from a Rocky Mountain state. [That senator turned out to be Larry Craig (R-ID) who resigned in 2009 after he was arrested for trying to engage in homosexual activity with an undercover vice cop in a men's room at Minneapolis International Airport].

Madsen hinted that Hastert and other Republicans were involved in dark activity on an international scale:

WMR's State Department sources have also reported that the visits of Hastert and other congressional leaders and staff members to certain Southeast Asian nations and the Northern Marianas should come under the scrutiny of the House Ethics Committee, now officially investigating 'Pagegate.' The Northern Marianas became infamous in the scandals involving Tom DeLay and Jack Abramoff because of the presence in the US slave labor territory of Asian children being used as prostitutes. Conveniently, Foley co-chaired the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children, which would have had authority to investigate charges of child prostitution in the Northern Marianas.Hastert visited Vietnam, along with Palmer, in April of this year and spent three days in the country. Hastert, along with Illinois GOP Rep. Ray LaHood, canceled a visit to Thailand and Vietnam in January 2006. Hastert was also in Thailand in January 2002."

Moving to present day, Madsen notes in a post dated May 29-31, 2015, that other journalists long have scoffed at his reports on Hastert:

Our in-depth reporting on Hastert and "Page-gate" and the pederasts within the GOP received a harsh reaction in the DC media. Wonkette, a blog then written by the current reporter for The Guardian newspaper Ana Marie Cox, wrote this about our reporting: "The problem is, Wayne Madsen just makes shit up. We hear from well-placed sources that no one is having sex with Dennis Hastert. Scott Palmer may be remarkably close to his boss, but he’s not blind." Cox, whose Wonkette reports contained a number of unusual references to anal sex, earned the nickname, "Anal Marie Cox." By attacking the messenger, Cox, like so many of her fellow whitewashers in journalism, was rewarded with her present gigs at The Guardian and GQ magazine.

WMR stands vindicated by the federal indictment of Mr. Hastert.

Wayne Madsen, indeed, stands vindicated. To put it bluntly, he kicked the rear end of most everyone in journalism on the Hastert story. I'm sure a letter of apology from Ana Marie Cox is in the mail at this moment.

Meanwhile, much remains unknown about the Hastert scandal, so Wayne Madsen is likely to have more opportunities to break big news.

Mark Fuller was the face of a system that allowed shadowy characters, like Bob Riley, to avoid scrutiny

Mark Fuller

The resignation of U.S. judge Mark Fuller likely is seen, for now, as the byproduct of a domestic-violence case. But the story goes much deeper than that.

In many ways, Fuller was the face of a "justice system" that went badly off the tracks during the George W. Bush administration--and has remained off track under Barack Obama and his hapless attorney general, Eric Holder. Our system is designed to prosecute crimes, but under Bush, it began to prosecute people--especially those who happened to be Democrats.

Fuller played a central role in the most notorious political prosecution of the period--and perhaps in American history--when he presided over the case of former governor Don Siegelman in the Middle District of Alabama. Siegelman remains at a federal prison in Oakdale, Louisiana, for a crime he did not commit--for a "crime," in fact, that does not exist under U.S. law.

But this is where the Mark Fuller story becomes breathtakingly dark. Under judges like Fuller, and prosecutors of the Bush Department of Justice, it's not just a matter of innocent people winding up behind bars. Such a broken system allows individuals who have genuine ties to criminality to operate with impunity.

Take, for instance, another former Alabama governor--Republican Bob Riley. He has indisputable ties to GOP felon Jack Abramoff, the architect of perhaps the most brazen political crimes to ever take place on U.S. soil. In fact, Abramoff admitted in his book that he helped funnel $20 million of Mississippi Choctaw gambling money into Alabama to help Riley "beat" Siegelman in the 2002 governor's race--an election marked by the mysterious overnight disappearance of Siegelman votes in heavily Republican Baldwin County. This supposedly was due to a "computer glitch," but retired Auburn University professor and researcher James Gundlach said a technical problem could not produce such a result without human intervention.

Have Bob Riley or his associates been seriously investigated for any of this? Doesn't look like it. The signs of criminal activity are everywhere, but we no longer prosecute crimes--we prosecute people. And Bob Riley is the kind of white, conservative insider who has been allowed to operate above the law.

How do we know? In 2008, Huffington Post's Sam Stein wrote an article about U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and his investigation of the Abramoff scandal. The article, titled "McCain Withheld Controversial Abramoff Email," shows how McCain took steps to protect one of his political allies. That ally's name was Bob Riley. From the Sam Stein piece:

On the stump, Sen. John McCain often cites his work tackling the excesses of disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff as evidence of his sturdy ethical compass.

A little-known document, however, shows that McCain may have taken steps to protect his Republican colleagues from the scope of his investigation.

In the 2006 Senate report concerning Abramoff's activities, which McCain spearheaded, the Arizona Republican conspicuously left out information detailing how Alabama Gov. Bob Riley was targeted by Abramoff's influence peddling scheme. Riley, a Republican, won election in November 2002, and was reelected in 2006.

What was that information? It was an e-mail from Abramoff to fellow GOP felon Michael Scanlon. And it shows that they didn't "target" Riley to be harmed by their criminal scheme; they "targeted" Riley to take part in it. (The e-mail can be viewed at the end of this post, along with an on-target cartoon submitted by reader Michelle Looney.) Writes Stein:

Bob Riley

In a December 2002 email obtained by the Huffington Post -- which McCain and his staff had access to prior to the issuance of his report -- Abramoff explains to an aide what he would like to see Riley do in return for the "help" he received from Abramoff's tribal clients.

An official with the Mississippi Choctaws "definitely wants Riley to shut down the Poarch Creek operation," Abramoff wrote, "including his announcing that anyone caught gambling there can't qualify for a state contract or something like that."

The note showed not only the reach of Abramoff, but raised questions about Riley's victory in what was the closest gubernatorial election in Alabama history.

The impact on Alabama politics did not end with the controversial 2002 race. Writes Stein:

Siegelman soldiered on after the 2002 loss, running again for governor against Riley in 2006. By then, the extent of Riley's connection to Abramoff was still unknown. Moreover, Siegelman was still under investigation for allegations of bribery. The inquiry, detailed in an extensive 60 Minutes report last night, raised many ethical red flags, mainly over political interference from the Bush administration, specifically Karl Rove. On June 22, McCain issued his Senate report without mentioning Riley's name. And one week later, Siegelman was convicted without the Abramoff email ever being made public.

"If you had a document that showed something that had not been reported about the financial reports and the direct expectations for that money," said a source familiar with the case, "that certainly would have called into attention the government's case against Siegelman."

The bottom line? Riley had John McCain, in the U.S. Senate, covering up his ties to Jack Abramoff. And he had Mark Fuller, on the federal bench, taking care of his prime political opponent--Don Siegelman.

This is the real story behind Mark Fuller. Yes, he is a bad guy who beat his wife in a private setting. But his behavior in the public setting was just as bad--and much more far reaching. That's where he used taxpayer dollars and a lifetime appointment to trample the U.S. Constitution.

Did Mark Fuller abuse his wife? Yes. Did he also heap abuse on our democracy? Absolutely.

He should pay for both crimes, not just one. But we see signs that his resignation largely is designed to short circuit any inquiry that could shine much-needed light into dark corners of the federal judiciary.

Abramoff e Mail Bob Riley by Roger Shuler

(Cartoon submitted by Michelle Looney)

UAB football supporters win a major battle, but the struggle for long-term success is just beginning

UAB football at Legion Field

The big news in Birmingham yesterday came when UAB President Ray Watts announced that he was reinstating the university's football program, which had been cut six months ago. Despite my ugly experience with being unlawfully terminated after 20 years on the job at UAB, I still care a lot about the university. I wasn't planning on writing a post about yesterday's events, but when a reader asked what I thought about it in the comments section from one of yesterday's posts . . . well, I discovered I had a lot to say on the subject.

After all, I saw the UAB football program grow from its earliest days under Coach Jim Hilyer, and I saw it reach bowl status in Division I under Watson Brown. During my sportswriting days, I covered SEC games all over the Southeast. But some of the most entertaining football games I've ever seen were UAB games in the aging but still intriguing confines of Legion Field. I've still never seen a quarterback who could launch a prettier pass than UAB's Darrell Hackney. And his missiles to receiver Roddy White, now a standout with the Atlanta Falcons, were beautiful in their strength and precision.

My response to the reader's question grew too long for the comment box, so I decided to turn it into a post. Here is how that exchange went, and my response includes material that would not fit in the comment section:

Q: Hey Schnauzer, how do you feel about yesterday's news that UAB is getting its football program back.

A: I was glad to see it, on the surface, because a university of that size in Birmingham, AL, should have a D-1 football program. UAB recruited players primarily in Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida, so those are important scholarship opportunities for kids who largely get bypassed by the SEC. 

I say "on the surface" because I heard a lot of "ifs, ands, and buts" in Ray Watts' talk, and I don't think either he or key members of his administration can be trusted. The way I heard it, if fund-raising goals are slow in being reached, the plug could be pulled again, maybe 4-5 years down the road.

With that hanging out there, how is Bill Clark going to attract and retain top-notch assistant coaches? How is the coaching staff going to recruit and keep top-notch players? If I'm Bill Clark, I have major concerns about moving forward under Ray Watts' leadership--and the "leadership" of a Board of Trustees that probably still is out to kill or handicap the program.

All of the qualifiers in Watts' talk make me think that perhaps only the "method of execution" has been changed. The original plan was a quick death by chopping off the head. The new plan might be more gradual, by slowing choking the program to death.

Aside from all the dark possibilities going forward, UAB fans should take time to celebrate. They stood up, led by the writings of UGA Prof. John Knox and legislative pressure from Rep. Jack Williams, and truly embarrassed both the board and the UAB administration. Their voices were heard, and they didn't go away quietly. Good for them.

I hope the public remembers this: There is no question UAB can have a successful football program at D-1. Watson Brown has already proven that. Before Gene Bartow retired as athletics director, and administrative dysfunction took over, Brown built a really nice team. The Blazers of the Darrell Hackney, Roddy White, Steel Shield era would have been a real threat to beat Alabama or Auburn, on the right day. During that general time frame, UAB did beat LSU and Mississippi State from the SEC. 

The Blazers also went nose to nose in the same conference with very good teams from other metro areas--schools like TCU, Louisville, Cincinnati, East Carolina, South Florida, SMU, Tulsa, Central Florida, Memphis, and more. UAB has been left behind during conference realignment in a watered-down C-USA--and that happened probably because of weak leadership on the Birmingham campus.

To get back where UAB really belongs, it needs to get the kind of forward-thinking leadership that will seek membership in a league like the American Athletic Conference (AAC), where many of the teams noted above now reside. As a university, UAB has very little in common with the schools it now shares space with in C-USA. The Blazers need to get their competitive legs back under them and move toward the AAC. When UAB has real leaders, it is an extremely attractive partner with other "brand name" metro schools. Blazer sports teams got left behind only because school "leaders" shrugged their shoulders and let it happen--all the while, the Tuscaloosa-driven board of trustees also was dragging down the Blazers.

A note of caution: The rebuilding process for UAB football is likely to be difficult. Momentum from last year's surprising 6-6 season has been lost--almost all of the players and coaches who made that happen are gone. Some 1-11 and 2-10 records might be part of the rebuilding process, and if fans give up during those tough times, it will be an excuse for another round of "pull the plug on the Blazers."

If UAB fans are serious about having football, and a comprehensive student experience the sport represents, they need to recognize that the struggle is just beginning. They need to hang in there with their financial support and physical presence, even when losses start piling up early. They need to continue to push for Ray Watts' ouster, with strong UAB input on naming his successor. And with the leadership of folks like John Knox and Jack Williams, they need to push for reform of the UA board.

With the right backing, UAB football can not only exist, it can thrive. Watson Brown and his staff and players proved that when they were operating under a trustworthy athletics director (named Gene Bartow). The UAB football swoon began when Bartow retired as AD and a series of weak and/or clueless presidents took over the campus. 

Blazer football can be good--and extremely entertaining--again someday. And it won't hurt Alabama or Auburn one bit. The campus needs a new Dick Hill as president and a new Gene Bartow as AD. If that happens, look out. UAB could have plenty of bowl games in its future.

Author who revealed Dennis Hastert's taste for young males also broke story about Bill Pryor and gay porn

Dennis Hastert

Who looks worst in the Dennis Hastert sex scandal? That undoubtedly would be the former U.S. House speaker himself, who now stands accused of agreeing to pay $3.7 million in hush money to a former high school wrestler Hastert sexually abused during his teaching and coaching days in rural Illinois.

Who looks best from this sordid mess? That might be Wayne Madsen, a D.C.-based investigative journalist who first reported in fall 2006 on Hastert's predilection for youthful male wrestlers. Madsen also reported in the same time frame that Hastert's sexual preferences were well known among the D.C. gay community.

Here we are in 2015, with Republican politicos expressing shock about last week's indictment, charging Hastert with lying to the FBI and violating banking laws to withdraw money for keeping his "misconduct" a secret. But Wayne Madsen broke the story, at least the crux of it, almost nine years ago.

We now know, from numerous sources, that the alleged "misconduct" mentioned in the Hastert indictment involved the homosexual molestation of a young wrestler decades ago--this from a Congressman who consistently voted against gay rights during his career.

Speaking of Republican hypocrites on gay issues, that brings us to U.S. Circuit Judge (and Alabama native) Bill Pryor. Madsen wrote in 2009 on his subscription-only site, The Wayne Madsen Report (WMR), about Pryor's connections to 1990s gay pornography, stating that the judge's secret made him a reliable and blackmailable "gatekeeper" for conservative interests on the Eleventh Circuit, which covers Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. Who might be pulling Pryor's strings on the appellate bench? Well, his campaign manager in a run for Alabama attorney general was Karl Rove, and the two reportedly remain close.

I picked up on the Pryor story in fall 2013 and produced a series of posts, along with a full-frontal photograph, that took the story national, perhaps viral. Above the Law, the most widely read law blog in the country, even picked up on the story.

Wayne Madsen

(Note: I was arrested roughly a month after I started publishing the Pryor story, ostensibly because of a defamation lawsuit filed by Republican lawyer Rob Riley. In fact, I published a post about Pryor's ties to the tobacco industry and GOP operative Jessica Medeiros Garrison on the morning of October 23, 2013. I was arrested that evening, and like Rob Riley, Garrison has filed a dubious defamation lawsuit against me, one I am fighting at this moment. Do I think it is a coincidence that my arrest was closely connected in time to my reporting on Bill Pryor? No, I do not.)

It probably is widely assumed that I broke the Bill Pryor/gay porn story, but it originated with the following item four years earlier on Wayne Madsen's Web site. (We've received permission to use certain articles from the subscription site.)

June 15, 2009 -- Is there a closet door closed at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta?

William H. ("Bill") Pryor, Jr., the former Attorney General of Alabama who was involved in the political prosecution by the Bush administration of Alabama Democratic Governor Don Siegelman and who squeaked by U.S. Senate confirmation after being nominated by George W. Bush to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, appears to have a little something in his "closet." Pryor was confirmed by the Senate in 2005 in a 53-45 vote, his nomination being secured by a bi-partisan agreement between Senator John McCain and thirteen "Gang of 14" senators to force an "up or down" vote on three stalled Bush federal court nominees. Pryor was 43 when he was sworn in as a federal judge.

According to WMR sources in Alabama, Pryor, who now acts as a gatekeeper on the 11th Circuit for the Bush interests in Florida, Alabama, and other states in the jurisdiction, advertised himself during his younger days on a gay website called "Bad Puppy." There are also rumors from informed sources that naked photographs are held by some top Republicans and conservatives as an insurance policy that Pryor rules the correct way on issues on the 11th Circuit bench.

Wayne Madsen is a polarizing figure in the world of journalism. He seems to have developed enemies on the left and on the right.

I've found that journalists who have bipartisan enemies are usually the sort who take on tough stories and report accurately about them. Madsen clearly was way ahead of the pack on the Dennis Hastert story. We will provide ample evidence of that in an upcoming post.


(To be continued)

Order released today by Eleventh Circuit shows that Fuller was staring down the barrel at impeachment

Mark Fuller

A judicial panel today issued an order saying the conduct of Alabama federal judge Mark Fuller might "constitute one or more grounds for impeachment."

That means Fuller was facing serious consequences when he announced his resignation last Friday, in the wake of his arrest last summer on domestic-abuse charges. From an article by Alyson Palmer at the Atlanta-based Daily Report:

When U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller of Alabama tendered his resignation on Friday, his fellow judges apparently were preparing to send his case to a national judicial body for consideration of possible impeachment by Congress.

On Monday the Judicial Council of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued an order saying the conduct of Fuller, who was arrested on domestic abuse allegations in Atlanta last summer, "might constitute one or more grounds for impeachment." The order referred the matter to the Judicial Conference of the United States, which has the ability to send a judicial discipline matter to the House of Representatives for impeachment.

U.S. Circuit Judge Gerald Tjoflat acted as chief judge in the Fuller matter. Ironically, Tjoflat also served on a three-judge panel that denied initial appeals in the Don Siegelman case. Fuller is best known for overseeing the Siegelman trial, which has come to be seen by many legal experts as perhaps the most notorious political prosecution in U.S. history.

Tjoflat also served on a panel that corruptly denied an appeal of my unlawful termination at the University of Alabama's Birmingham campus (UAB). Evidence shows I was fired from my job of 20 years for writing accurately on this blog about Fuller's unlawful actions in the Siegelman case. UAB's own IT investigator showed that I never wrote my blog on work time or equipment, and the university's own grievance committee found I should not have been terminated. In fact, no evidence was presented at the grievance hearing that I should have been disciplined at all. But then UAB president Carol Garrison went against her committee and upheld my termination anyway.

During my lawsuit, U.S. District Judge William M. Acker Jr. violated black-letter law by granting UA summary judgment even though no discovery ever was conducted in the case. In fact, a discovery schedule was not even set. Despite that clear violation of procedure and case law, Tjoflat's panel used a "Do Not Publish" opinion to deny my appeal.

In other words, Gerald Tjoflat now is acting like a tough guy against Mark Fuller. In fact, Tjoflat is a dubious character who has acted for years as Fuller's enabler.

Is Tjoflat now trying to quietly clean up some of the stink that he helped create? Sure looks that way from here.

What lies ahead for Fuller? Alyson Palmer provides some insight on that:

Friday's letter from Fuller to President Barack Obama, saying the judge would resign effective Aug. 1, would appear to moot the question of impeachment as a practical matter. But Monday's order signifies that judicial leaders within the Eleventh Circuit were willing to hand down the most significant disciplinary consequence within their arsenal.

Gerald B. Tjoflat

The Judicial Council consists of all of the Eleventh Circuit's active members, minus its most junior member and Chief Judge Ed Carnes, who hasn't been participating in the Fuller matter, as well as the nine chief judges of the district courts within the Eleventh Circuit. The opinion noted that the chief judge of the Middle District of Alabama, where Fuller sits, did not participate either. Judge Gerald Tjoflat of the Eleventh Circuit acted as chief judge on the matter in Carnes' stead, and Tjoflat's signature appears on Monday's order.

An August police report said Fuller's then-wife accused him of assaulting her at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in downtown Atlanta. He later agreed to a domestic violence intervention program and alcohol and substance abuse assessment to resolve the resulting misdemeanor battery case against him. Fuller's Atlanta criminal defense lawyer has said that Fuller made no admission of guilt and that, upon completion of the program, the case against him would be dismissed and his arrest record expunged.

Cases like the resignation of Judge Mark Fuller are so rare that they happen about once every 10 years

Mark Fuller

How rare is it for a federal judge, such as Mark Fuller in the Middle District of Alabama, to give up his lifetime appointment and resign?

We don't have precise numbers on that question, but our research indicates a case like the one involving Fuller--who announced on Friday he is stepping down, effective August 1--happens only about once a decade, in what might be called "the modern era."

For some broad historical perspective, we turn to a 1993 study titled "Why Judges Resign: Influences on Federal Judicial Service (1789 to 1992)." It states:

This study focuses on the 188 judges who, over the last 200 years, resigned from the bench for stated reasons other than age or health.

That study was conducted 22 years ago, and it showed a rate of less than one federal-judicial resignation per year. According to my math, if you draw that rate out to 2015, you get 207.68 resignations in American history. (My math can be iffy; that's why I was a journalism major. Feel free to correct my numbers in the comment section.)

A 2012 law-review article from the University of Pennsylvania brings us closer to the current day, focusing on the years 1970 to 2009. It also looks at judges who resigned in that 40-year period over allegations of misconduct. Here is what we find out, with some gory details included:

Four judges resigned after allegations of misconduct. Otto Kerner and Herbert Fogel resigned in the 1970s. In 1993, Robert Collins was convicted of bribery and imprisoned; he resigned after an impeachment resolution was introduced in Congress. In 2008, Edward Nottingham resigned in the midst of a Tenth Circuit investigation into allegations that he had told a prostitute to lie about the nature of their relationship.

Another intriguing case from the 40-year period involved impeachment, retirement, and resignation over allegations of misconduct. It apparently does not count as a strict resignation, but the allegations were dandies:

In 2009, Judge Samuel Kent was convicted and imprisoned on charges stemming from sexual misconduct with two subordinates. Although ineligible for a pension, he initially attempted to claim retirement on disability, which the Fifth Circuit denied. After his impeachment, Judge Kent attempted to submit a resignation to take effect a year later; when Congress proceeded toward trial, he resigned effective June 30, 2009.

Fuller's resignation will take effect almost exactly one year after his arrest for battery of his wife in an Atlanta hotel room last summer. The beating reportedly grew from an argument that started when Fuller's wife accused him of having an extramarital affair with a law clerk.

We've had four federal-judicial resignations over a 40-year period, so that makes the math pretty easy (even for a journalism major)--cases like the one involving Mark Fuller happen about once every 10 years, in what we will call the "modern era."

Samuel Kent

As for impeachment, that is even more rare. The Federal Judicial Center reports 15 in our nation's history. Mark Fuller apparently was headed in that direction if he had not chosen to resign. That tells us there likely is more to this story than one instance of domestic violence. Here is a rundown of impeachment cases from ballotpedia.org.

What judge does Fuller most resemble in relatively recent history? Our vote would go with the notorious Samuel Kent, from the Southern District of Texas. Here is what Above the Law wrote about the august Judge Kent in 2009:

Will he stay or will he go? For the longest time, Judge Samuel Kent (S.D. Tex.), the federal judge who pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in connection with his molestation of two female court employees, has been playing games about his departure from the bench. But now he has finally raised the white flag, resigning effective on Tuesday, June 30.

The Houston Chronicle provides more details about the Kent case. His chief accuser was a woman named Cathy McBroom:

The odds favored her silence.

Cathy McBroom, a twice-married federal court case manager with a high school degree versus a formidable federal judge, a towering mercurial man who ruled like a king over Galveston’s lone U.S. court.

U.S. District Judge Samuel Kent seemed untouchable, appointed by a U.S. president, approved by Congress to serve for a lifetime. His sentencing Monday — two years after McBroom first accused him of attempting to sexually assault her — brought both vindication and sorrow. . . .

Kent admitted to sexually molesting both McBroom and his former secretary Donna Wilkerson and pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice for lying to judges who investigated his misconduct. Wilkerson came forward after the judge’s first indictment in August. . . .

[McBroom] said the incident that prompted her to action — though it was not the first time Kent attempted to assault her — came in March 2007 when McBroom was summoned to Kent’s Galveston chambers. She says the judge, a foot taller and 150 pounds heavier, forced his mouth on her breast and pushed her head toward his crotch with an explicit and obscene oral order. She fled in tears.

It was a crime, she thought. Yet calling the cops seemed unthinkable.

“I felt like as a federal judge, he had everyone in his back pocket. Who could I report this to?”

Congratulations, Mark Fuller. You will go down in judicial infamy with Judge Samuel Kent. That is some "fine company," indeed.

Alabama Republican Bob Riley once called Dennis Hastert a "family man" who "understands kids"

Dennis Hastert

Former Alabama governor Bob Riley once praised then U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert as a "family man" who "understands kids."

In fact, Riley said of Hastert: " I can’t imagine him not doing everything he could to protect kids."

The praise went both ways, with Hastert making a trip to Alabama to endorse Riley during the 2002 gubernatorial primaries.

That's the same Hastert who was indicted last week on federal charges that he lied to the FBI about $3.5 million he agreed to pay to an undisclosed person to "cover up past misconduct." Multiple news outlets, citing anonymous sources, report that Hastert was paying a former male student to keep quiet about allegations of sexual abuse from Hastert's time as a teacher and wrestling coach in Illinois. According to an indictment, Hastert made withdrawals totaling $1.7 million to evade detection by banks.

In other words, a man who was two heartbeats away from the presidency now stands accused of paying hush money so a victim would not out him as a child molester.

And Bob Riley claims Dennis Hastert "understands kids"? I guess it depends on the meaning of the word "understands." How dark a meaning can that word hold?

The Riley quote comes from an October 2006 interview with The Cullman Times, as Riley was running for re-election as governor. Riley was asked about U.S. Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL), who had just stepped down amid allegations that he had sent sexually explicit Internet messages to underage male Congressional pages. Hastert reportedly sat on information about Foley for months, and his eventual resignation as speaker apparently was tied to the scandal.

Various news outlets now are reporting that the married Hastert was rumored to be involved in gay relationships during his political career in Washington, D.C.

Bob Riley

As for the Bob Riley interview, Cullman Times reporter Jimmy Simms wanted to know if Riley thought the Foley scandal would hurt his re-elections chances--or the chances of other Republicans. Here is the exchange:

Q: Do you see any repercussions in either your re-election campaign or the election or re-election bids of Republicans in general in Alabama as a result of the controversy surrounding former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley?

A: At a national level there may very well be some repercussions. Personally, if there was ever any attempt to cover it up those responsible should resign. I’ve known Dennis Hastert for many years. He’s a good friend. He’s a family man. He was a high school coach, and he understands kids. I can’t imagine him not doing everything he could to protect kids.

Bob Riley thought Dennis Hastert would do everything he could to "protect kids"? Again, that must depend on some unusual definition of the word "protect."

Maybe Riley's words were a form of political back scratching. After all, Hastert said nice things about Riley during the 2002 governor's race. From a Troy Messenger report:

In his endorsement, Hastert noted Riley’s record of voting with groups such as the Christian Coalition, National Rifle Association and National Right to Life Committee.

"Bob is a natural leader and consensus builder who will serve this state well," Hastert said. "If Bob Riley is half the governor that he is a Congressman, Alabama’s best days are ahead of it."

Note that Hastert essentially is praising Riley's "family values." This praise came from a man who now stands accused of paying hush money to keep his past as a child molester under wraps. Earlier in his endorsement, Hastert had praised Riley for his honesty, even though the governor would go on to be indisputably linked to GOP felons Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon.

As it turns out, Bob Riley apparently didn't know Dennis Hastert any better than Hastert knew him.

Someone apparently did know Hastert intimately and made an odd phone call during one of the Speaker's appearances on C-SPAN. That call might have been a tip off about what eventually was to come out of Dennis Hastert's closet. Here is a video from that C-SPAN appearance: