Judge asks district attorney why he didn't take Trump's tax returns weeks ago
Judge asks district attorney why he didnt take Trumps tax returns weeks ago
By Shayna Jacobs
September 25, 2020 at 3:43 p.m. EDT
NEW YORK A federal appeals judge on Friday questioned why Manhattan's district attorney declined to execute a grand jury subpoena for President Trump's long-sought tax returns when it appeared after a recent court order that prosecutors had an opportunity to do so.
Judge Pierre N. Leval said he believed that the order issued Sept. 1 by a separate three-member panel of judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit was meant to pause a lower courts dismissal of Trumps renewed bid to kill the subpoena but that it did not prevent the district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr. (D), from collecting the presidents financial records from his accounting firm in the meantime.
The stay was a stay on dismissal of complaint, Leval said during questioning of a lawyer for the district attorney. It was not a stay on execution of subpoena. ... A stay is a judicial order that temporarily prevents an event that is the subject of litigation from taking place. ... The judge added that the existence of the complaint doesnt stop the district attorney from enforcing the subpoena. ... Carey Dunne, general counsel in the district attorneys office, said the appeals courts Sept. 1 order was not interpreted that way.
[Court temporarily blocks enforcement of subpoena for Trumps tax records]
Both sides were ordered to submit by Tuesday written arguments explaining how each interpreted the order, which did not offer specific guidance on whether the subpoena was subject to the stay. Rather, it only generally granted the intervention Trump and his attorneys sought.
{snip}
Shayna Jacobs
Shayna Jacobs is a federal courts and law enforcement reporter on the national security team at The Washington Post, where she covers the Southern and Eastern districts of New York. Follow https://twitter.com/shaynajacobs
brush
(53,764 posts)when they had the chance?
WTF? turmp remains the luckiest, dumb motherfu_ker ever. His taxes were there for the taking legally and someone blew it?
Colleen8406
(13 posts)If the order was ambiguous and later interpreted to mean execution was stayed, the entire case could be thrown out. In a high profile, high stakes white collar criminal case, jurisprudence dictates being absolutely certain of each step.
brush
(53,764 posts)jaxexpat
(6,818 posts)Does anybody doubt for a moment that Barr would direct the chain of command that ends with the FBI to thwart the effort? Barr's playing a pretty precarious role in all things, Justice Department. If he loses in an important point of contention, his whole card house could tumble. Trump's financial records are key to his legitimacy and electability. Trump considers it part of Barr's job to save him on this. Is the FBI compromised to the extent that they will not, can not perform legal actions?
I think the questions are: Who is prepared to blink on the question of actually enforcing the acquisition of the accounting firm's files? What organization will perform the acquisition in such a way as to provide them available for perusal and publication? and useful in prosecution? Anybody? Ultimately, it's lawless and will prove who's packing the biggest heat. Corruption or truth.
lark
(23,091 posts)As always, someone got bribed or threatened and that's why it wasn't done.
brush
(53,764 posts)Kitchari
(2,166 posts)More ratf*cking
bucolic_frolic
(43,128 posts)Following rule of law. Wise to not snatch what might have involved ambiguous process.
BigmanPigman
(51,584 posts)jrthin
(4,835 posts)Captain Zero
(6,802 posts)nt
Illumination
(2,458 posts)oldsoftie
(12,531 posts)flying_wahini
(6,589 posts)oldsoftie
(12,531 posts)And showed him donating 10s of millions to charity or something like that.
Suburban Warrior
(405 posts)Vance let Ivanka and Don Jr. off the hook for the Trump Soho scam. I wouldn't trust him to do the right thing when it comes to the Trumps.
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/how-ivanka-trump-and-donald-trump-jr-avoided-a-criminal-indictment
Fiendish Thingy
(15,585 posts)Pepsidog
(6,254 posts)questions like "Mr. Trump, I doubt, even knows the three branches of government". Trump doesn't know them. Or, name the 48th president of the USA-now that will confuse the hell out of Dotard.
dlk
(11,552 posts)We need someone who will vigorously pursue this crime family
dlk
(11,552 posts)He needs to go.
Raster
(20,998 posts)dlk
(11,552 posts)Hes apparently one of the corrupt old boys who gives his wealthy & connected constituents a pass. Scratch the surface & theres likely lots of dirt to be found. Its pretty bad when a judge admonishes him about not enforcing his own subpoena.
Jetheels
(991 posts)but I cant believe anyone is serious that they will ever get his taxes.
Two times, Vance tried protecting Weinstein.
The wealthy look after each other.
ancianita
(36,023 posts)They lied to prospective buyers about how well Soho was selling, that's all. New York law might allow that to be a misdemeanor, but it's not a serious crime.
"Let the buyer beware" is the caveat of real estate deals, and lets most sellers off the hook in representing their properties' values. And the freedom to sell properties at any price regardless of bank appraisal values is the other bottom line in the real estate business.
So lying about the whole building's sell rate is part of the game of valuing any particular units to buyers.
Letting the kids off isn't reason enough to mistrust Cy Vance. He just knows real estate.
I prefer to think he didn't issue subpoenas as a cautionary measure, not second guessing any judge's interpretation of a stay's scope.