Prosecutors in Roger Stone Case Ask to Show 'Godfather Part II' Clip

[douglas9]

WASHINGTON (CN) —Federal attorneys want to screen a clip from the “The Godfather Part II” at Roger Stone’s trial in November, claiming that it will grant insight into Stone’s alleged witness tampering.

The Department of Justice filed a motion Friday requesting approval from U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson to submit a four-minute scene as evidence.

In communications with Randy Credico, a witness in former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, Stone makes repeated reference to the mafia film character Frank Pentangeli.

The government argues familiarity with Pentangeli’s character is key to grasp the nature of Stone’s alleged witness tampering in communication with Credico.

In the scene, Pentangeli appears to give witness testimony before a congressional committee investigating organized crime leader Michael Corleone. When Corleone enters the room, Pentangeli suddenly claims he fabricated his prior testimony.

“Pentangeli looks behind him, sees Corleone and his brother sitting together, and then claims not to know anything about organized crime. In a dramatic moment, Pentangeli is asked a question about Michael Corleone’s connections to organized crime, and answers, ‘I don’t know nothing about that. Oh—I was in the olive oil business with his father but that was a long time ago,’” the DOJ motion to submit evidence describes.

Stone’s repeated references to the scene in text messages with Credico were clearly a tactic to persuade him to follow Pentangeli’s example, the government argues.

https://www.courthousenews.com/prosecutors-in-roger-stone-case-ask-to-show-godfather-part-ii-clip/

[Opel_Justwax]

1. This is bizarre and doesn't belong in a criminal trial.

Can Roger play a video of woody woodpecker showing how bizarre the prosecution is?

[emmaverybo]

4. If Stone had made allusions to a specific scene in a Shakespeare play to indicate that he wanted a

witness to lie , and he and the witness were Shakespeare buffs, would it be bizarre for the prosecution to reference the scene? Of course the analogy is a difficult one given that Shakespeare's plays are not the lingua franca of the masses, and probably not for Stone, but movies are, with The Godfather so well known for particular scenes that it is not a stretch to
consider Stone referencing it.

Creative lawyering.

[former9thward]

6. Desperate lawyering.

Prosecutors do these types of stunts when they think they have a shaky case. Federal judges in my area would not allow it.

[yardwork]

5. It's relevant because Stone himself repeatedly referenced it in communications with the witness.

The prosecution has the right to explain the context to the court. It appears to be a clear instance of witness tampering.

And, later in the film, that character commits suicide after a visit from the mob's lawyer. The implications of Stone's references are very serious.

[delisen]

2. I think should be admitted since Stone referred to it in

in the text messages he sent to Credico which govt wants to prove was witness tampering.

[asiliveandbreathe]

3. They could overlay text messages from Stone to Credico during the footage -

hear from Credico, then stone, who will probably NOT testify(guessing) - only because stone can't help himself....