The Don Siegelman case in Alabama is the best known example of an apparent political prosecution by the Bush Justice Department. But the Paul Minor case in Mississippi is every bit as questionable as the Siegelman case. And a recently filed appellate brief in the Minor case provides insight into how a federal judge, a Reagan appointee, unlawfully put three men in federal prison.
U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate is the bad guy in the Minor saga. And the appellate brief lays out in detail how a corrupt judge can circumvent the law--in fact, can create his own law from the bench--in order to get a politically desired result.
The brief makes a special point of noting the role of the alternative press in getting the Minor case before the public's attention, citing Scott Horton of Harper's.org, Larisa Alexandrovna of Raw Story, Adam Lynch of the Jackson Free Press alternative weekly, and Alabama blogger Legal Schnauzer.
