Monday, December 08, 2008

for 9 DEC 08: PARTNERS IN CRIME?



The envelope was dropped mysteriously on my doorstep during the middle of the day. I never heard it arrive, as I was sleeping. Fill-in work at night has forced me to rest by day lately -- and if the neighbors would please cooperate by not testing their noisy cars, I could rest a bit better.



But anyway: the envelope contained a three-page typed letter and a DVD -- all of it dealing with incoming District Attorney Julia Slater, and her longtime law firm partner. The anonymous letter called Mark Shelnutt "The Puppet Master." Only in this case, he's not even working from behind a curtain....



The DVD contains court transcripts of seven separate hearings from March 2007 to March 2008 in a Harris County drug case. It also has video recordings of three hearings - each far too lengthy for us to post at YouTube or a similar site. Besides, none of them have dancing dogs or brawling hockey players.



The three-page letter notes the Harris County drug case had nine defendants. Four of them were represented by four attorneys from Mark Shelnutt's law firm. "Shelnutt had represented ALL the defendants at one time," the letter says. "This is a Conflict." Really? What if they all deny they did it, and say "The Man" is hiding somewhere in Eufaula?



Some of the court transcripts we received actually deal with a perceived conflict involving Mark Shelnutt. We were directed to comments by attorney Derrick Wright -- who said his client was told by Shelnutt where to find drug money owed by some defendants. Shelnutt's law firm even represented the client in a divorce case. I never knew this firm had more customers than Ken Nugent.



At this February hearing, Mark Shelnutt responded by saying Derrick Wright "slandered" his character - adding: "None of that's true." Then at a March hearing, Shelnutt noted Wright had "been disciplined by the State Bar for lying." If you didn't know better, you might think they both were running for political office.



Judge Bobby Peters eventually determined Mark Shelnutt's law firm had a conflict of interest. "The law firm is out of this case for these individuals," he declared. That meant Julia Slater was ruled out as a defense attorney for one drug suspect - and Peters may have put himself in position to fill in for Donald Trump on "The Apprentice."



Julia Slater admitted there were conflicts in that case, when I asked her about it Sunday. But she disputes the idea that she'll be Mark Shelnutt's "puppet" once she becomes District Attorney. Slater notes she's acquainted with most of the defense attorneys in Columbus. And based on her campaign promises, she may meet the rest in Recorder's Court.



The three-page letter goes on to link Julia Slater and her law partner further:



Now. Julia Slater wins the DA's office with Mark Shelnutt's help. Julia Slater will now be giving all kinds of deals to the Shelnutt firm. If you are guilt of a crime, hire Shelnutt. You'll get the best deal in town. The change Slater so actively campaigned for will be going from putting criminals in jail, to giving the best deal to the highest bidder.



If you don't think so, go to the 8th floor of the Government Center, look down the hall way across from the law library and you'll see a glass door for the Marshal's Office Conference room. Inside you will see Slater interviewing the current employees of the DA's office. You will also see Shelnutt sitting right next to her. Pulling the strings. Slater has announced to the legal community that she has asked Al Whitaker, a defense attorney who just lost the Superior Court Judge's seat to Gil McBride, and lost to Gray Conger in the DA's run off four years ago, to be her new Chief ADA. Guess he figured if he couldn't get the deals Shelnutt is gonna get, he may as well get a steady paying job.



So, you think Shelnutt will continue to pull the strings with Slater in Office. Why would you bring in a Defense Attorney who is not coming to the DA's Office, into the interviews of the people in the DA's Office? Why would you continue to associate with a person up for a Federal Indictment? Would you want a DA who gives unbeatable deals to the defense attorney who put her in office, helped pick her staff, and may bring her down as well.



This is what the public didn't know.



I can remember when this sort of anonymous accusation was made before the election - not after the fact, when it's too late to change the outcome.



We were too busy for a few days to take the author up on the challenge to visit the Government Center - but others apparently did. The Ledger-Enquirer reported Mark Shelnutt sat through Julia Slater's interviews with potential staff members. Richard Hyatt's web site openly wondered why Slater would do this. And transfers from Chicago probably said, "Our officials handle things more carefully than this."



Julia Slater explained to me she's asking all the questions in job interviews. Mark Shelnutt is alongside her merely for note-taking, she says -- and he's not the only one. Slater named Andy Sparks as another witness to the questioning. Yet so far, no Sparks are flying in his direction.



Julia Slater notes Mark Shelnutt is worth calling, as he once was an Assistant District Attorney. But she repeated the statement she made during the campaign, that Shelnutt is NOT under a federal investigation [3 Oct]. The sooner a Democrat becomes President, the more confident that statement is likely to be.



But Julia Slater is confident she can prosecute cases fairly next year, even if Mark Shelnutt is at the defense table. But it's clear from this anonymous envelope that at least someone in Columbus is skeptical. Keep something in mind, though: Shelnutt gained some low bonds for suspects while Gray Conger was District Attorney -- and if Slater goes any lower, she might as well hand out "Get Out of Jail Free" cards.



An early deadline means several e-mails will be held for another day. Let's quickly wrap up Monday headlines:


+ Place Properties terminated plans to buy the old Baker High School property, citing a lack of financing. Maybe now the outside will get a long-overdue new coat of paint.



+ The Muscogee County School Board approved a contract for new Superintendent Susan Andrews. WRBL reported she'll have a base salary of $170,000. So how much more will she make, if Kendrick wins another state title in girls' basketball?



+ Police arrested 11 Jordan High School students for staging an outdoor protest. They apparently support the mysterious teacher who's accused of having affairs with students. In some countries, this would be called a harem.



+ WXTX "News at Ten" reported Auburn University students plan a march today, in support of former football coach Tommy Tuberville. If the marchers do this well enough, we might have the start of a football flag corps.



+ Alabama's Nick Saban was named the Southeastern Conference football coach of the year. Alabama's Julio Jones was named freshman of the year. And I'm a bit surprised former Auburn offensive coordinator Tony Franklin wasn't named scapegoat of the year.



+ Instant Message to Zoo Atlanta: So I'm clear - Xi Lan is the name of a baby panda, right? It's not the name of some prescription drug that's sponsoring the panda exhibit?



BUT SERIOUSLY: It was sad to learn Monday of the death of Atlanta radio host Mike Kavanagh. I worked with him at CNN Headline News, writing scripts he would read on the air. But if you ever heard him, you realized he had a fabulous voice for radio. News anchors with beards don't tend to stay on TV that long.



Mike developed an interest in financial planning during his years at CNN. It came in very handy, as he eventually hosted the Sunday morning "Money Matters" program on WSB-AM in Atlanta. If my money wasn't committed elsewhere, I certainly would have left it in his hands - as he seemed to care about his customers, as well as his co-workers.



Funeral arrangements have not been announced for Mike Kavanagh -- but if they're scheduled in Atlanta, I plan to attend. Kavanagh died of a heart attack Saturday, on the day he turned 57. How curious and sad that he helped people prepare financially for retirement, yet never reached it himself.



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