Afternoon Briefs: Mueller indictment of Russian firms tossed; ex-juvenile delinquent now a lawyer
Robert Mueller in 2012. Photo from Wikimedia Commons.
Judge tosses indictment of Russian firms at prosecutors’ request
U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich granted prosecutors’ request Monday to toss an indictment against two Russian companies accused of participating in an “information warfare” campaign to influence the 2016 presidential election. Prosecutors said the companies—Concord Catering and Concord Management and Consulting—were seeking sensitive information in discovery about how the United States detects foreign interference. Yet the companies weren’t complying with trial subpoenas, prosecutors said. The two companies were among 13 Russian nationals and three Russian groups accused of trying to sow discord and influence the election through social media and fake rallies. They were charged in 2018 by former special counsel Robert Mueller. (The National Law Journal, the Washington Post, Law360)
Former juvenile delinquent is now a lawyer
A woman who told a judge 13 years ago in juvenile court that she might become a lawyer has attained the dream. Carmen Day was 17 when the juvenile court judge gave her six months of probation, which was less than what was called for in a plea agreement and less than the possible sentence of jail time. She visited the judge’s courtroom again last year, when she was still in law school, to tell him of her accomplishment. Day is now a law firm associate after graduating with honors from Rutgers Law School at Camden. “I’m living my best life,” she told the Philadelphia Inquirer. (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
BuzzFeed sues for federal coronavirus correspondence
BuzzFeed Inc. has filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against several federal agencies that seeks emails and other information relating to COVID-19. The defendants include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (Law360, First Amendment Watch at New York University)
DOJ agency limits mass hearings in immigration cases
Some mass preliminary hearings in immigration courts are being suspended amid concerns about the novel coronavirus. The Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review announced suspension of the master calendar hearings for nondetained individuals until April 10. In addition, the immigration court in Seattle has closed while others continue to operate. Immigration judges, lawyers and prosecutors have called for a complete shutdown of immigration courts during the outbreak. (Bloomberg Law, the Hill, EOIR website)
