Judge Rejects Cucinelli Case V. Michael Mann, UVA: Fraud Or Falsehood "Simply Not Stated" - NYT

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RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The state attorney general has failed to back up accusations that a former University of Virginia climate change researcher defrauded state taxpayers in obtaining government grants, a judge ruled Monday.

Judge Paul M. Peatross Jr., who is retired but filling in on the Albemarle County Circuit Court bench, determined that the university could be subject to an investigation by the attorney general, Ken T. Cuccinelli. But Judge Peatross found that Mr. Cuccinelli’s two administrative subpoenas for the records of the researcher, Michael E. Mann, failed to spell out the nature of his alleged wrongdoing.

“What the attorney general suspects that Dr. Mann did that was false or fraudulent in obtaining funds from the commonwealth is simply not stated,” Judge Peatross said in his ruling. The ruling left open the door for Mr. Cuccinelli to try again.

Mr. Cuccinelli, a conservative Republican who is skeptical about global warming, accuses Dr. Mann of violating the state’s Fraud Against Taxpayers Act by using manipulated data to obtain grants. The university had asked Judge Peatross to dismiss the subpoenas and argued that Mr. Cuccinelli’s actions could impair academic freedom and discourage scientific research. University officials and others also said the investigation was an effort to take aim at Dr. Mann’s conclusions rather than uncover fraud.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/31/science/earth/31climate.html?_r=1