The Rule of Law and The Rulers Above The Law - I, II, III, IV, V
(I) COLUMBIA COUNTY COUPLE INDICTED FOR HARBORING ILLEGAL ALIENS
Evans, GA: Hugo Diaz aka Hugo Diaz de la Fuente, 43, and Blanca Diaz aka Blanca Estela Miranda Vargas, 42, of Evans, Georgia had their initial court appearance Nov. 7, 2011, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leon Barfield after being indicted last week by a federal grand jury for harboring illegal aliens for commercial advantage and then laundering the proceeds of that crime.
United States Attorney Edward J. Tarver (appointed by president Barack Obama and former District 22 Democratic Senator) said, “The federal government’s immigration enforcement responsibilities are an important priority for the Department of Justice. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to enforcing all federal criminal laws and criminal immigration laws are no exception. This investigation clearly shows the ability of federal and local law enforcement agencies to work together to achieve justice and to thwart those whose goal is to profit from criminal activity.”
Brian D. Lamkin, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, said, “Individuals that profit from the blatant disregard for U.S. law as is alleged in this matter rightfully become the focus of federal law enforcement and its many and varied resources. The FBI will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to ensure that such individuals are brought to justice and their criminal endeavors disrupted.”
Brock D. Nicholson, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations for Georgia and the Carolinas, said that one of his agency’s “top priorities in worksite enforcement investigations is to hold employers accountable for exploiting illegal alien labor. Companies that break our employment laws for financial gain drive illegal immigration into the United States and deprive our nation’s lawful workforce of employment opportunities.”Rodney E. Clark, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-Criminal Investigations said, “Seizing and forfeiting assets from those who seek to profit from illegal activity is a priority of federal criminal prosecutions. Those who deliberately harbor undocumented workers for financial gain will be held accountable for their actions. We at the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, remain steadfast in our commitment along with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to financially disrupt individuals and organizations that are determined to benefit from the fruits of their illegal activity.”
Columbia County Sheriff Clay Whittle said, “This investigation was a collaborative effort involving various law enforcement agencies. As Sheriff of Columbia County, I will continue to investigate employers who build their business model on exploiting a cheap source of labor while depressing wages for law abiding citizens. Our goal is to reduce the demand for illegal employment and protect employment opportunities for our lawful workforce. In pursuit of this goal we will continue to hold accountable those employers who deliberately hire and exploit illegal aliens.”
The indictment charges HUGO and BLANCA DIAZ with four counts of harboring illegal aliens and one count of money laundering conspiracy. HUGO DIAZ is also charged with ten counts of money laundering. Each of these crimes carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The indictment also seeks the forfeiture of the proceeds of HUGO and BLANCA DIAZ’s crimes, including multiple parcels of real estate in Georgia and South Carolina, as well as ten vehicles.
Tarver emphasized that an indictment is only an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the Government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
This all started after a raid at a home on the 2000 block of Grace Avenue in the Estates at Jones Creek subdivision, in Columbia County. That’s off Evans to Locks Road, near Furys Ferry Road.
Investigators with the Columbia County Sheriff’s office, the IRS, the FBI, and ICE searched that home Friday November 4 afternoon around 5 p.m.
Officers focused on the back part of the home which looked like a hotel-like structure.
Investigators say twelve people have been detained but there could be more.
According to Columbia County records, the $1.7 million home is owned by Diaz.
Witnesses say Diaz owns a construction company in the CSRA and has built several homes in the area.
At the left image of the Georgia Secretary of Sate Certification for De la Fuente Contractors, Inc. dated in 2005.
Investigators say other homes, possibly owned by Diaz, have been raided with the assistance of the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, Friday afternoon.
DECLARED GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT AND "ENEMY COMBATANT" BY MEDIA
[*] ANIBAL SHOW: The financial institutions that put our economy in the hole were bailout with taxpayers money for their bonuses. Hugo Diaz who was working meanwhile is jailed. The Rule of Law. Justice for All. The Diaz case might become the biggest hypocrisy of our immigration, capitalism and judicial systems if the only crime he committed was not denying he is an undocumented professional who knows about construction and Americans liked his work and price.
If there are criminal issues in this case, go ahead with the judicial process, but if this is a case
of immigration status the Governor of Vermont really knows about common sense.
On the other hand, thanks to the U.S. 'wet foot, dry foot' policy (and the 1966 Cuban Adjustment Act which left the door open to Cubans who arrive by illegal means), as soon as an undocumented Cuban sets foot in the United States, no matter how he/she arrived, he/she will be entitled to government-funded adjustment assistance. After one year, he/she can apply for permanent residency.
His/her path to citizenship was secure from the moment he/she arrived.
This is what is called dysfunctional immigration system.
Somebody said that the immigration system in the USA is perfect and it works just how the economy and
the powers to be want it. They can look the other way when is needed and blame the workers with no proper documentation when the economy or the political climate need a scape goat.
_________________________________________
Harbin, R-Evans, was initially charged with driving under the influence – also a misdemeanor – in May 2007 he was pulled over by Atlanta police, who said the lawmaker slurred his words, had trouble keeping his balance and smelled of alcohol after his 2003 Nissan Maxima hit a utility pole.
The probation probably will end early when he completes his community service and his license will not be suspended. And since the officer never submitted the form to suspend his license or failed to show for the hearing, Harbin’s license was never suspended for failing to submit to the requested testing of his breath or blood upon his arrest.
Mr. Harbin, an Evans Republican who chairs the powerful House Appropriations Committee, slammed his 2003 Nissan into a power pole about 1 a.m. Sunday. He was released on $1,200 bond and must appear in court July 19.
Since the accident, he has not returned phone messages seeking his side of the story. He did e-mail a statement Tuesday expressing regret.
“I would also like to express my gratitude for the overwhelming support and concern I’ve received from my family and friends,” it said. “I am thankful to God that I was not injured, and I pledge to continue my public service to my district and the people of Georgia.”
Wednesday’s release of the police report is the first detailed explanation of what happened. Nowhere in it does it indicate that the officer realized Mr. Harbin is a legislator.
It quotes Mr. Harbin telling the officer that he had “looked down at the floor and when he looked up he saw a pedestrian in the roadway, slammed on brakes and veered into the pole.”
Officer Bryan French, who filed the report, noted, however, that he didn’t find any skid marks.
According to the report, Mr. Harbin was already in an ambulance when Officer French arrived. He said he smelled alcohol on Mr. Harbin’s breath, saw bloodshot eyes and heard Mr. Harbin slur his words. He said he asked the lawmaker to step into the road for sobriety tests.
Officer French wrote that on each of the three balance and coordination tests Mr. Harbin had “difficulty keeping balance and he seemed slightly confused” while asking repeatedly to go home.
Officer French said he walked Mr. Harbin back to the ambulance, arrested him and put him in handcuffs.
Once at Grady Memorial Hospital, where Mr. Harbin was given a physical and found to be uninjured by the accident, Officer French asked him to submit blood for an alcohol test. Mr. Harbin refused.
_________________________________
(III) News 12 at 6 o’clock / June 30, 2011
This comes after an incident on June 18 involving a city employee and Usry.
That Sunday night, Thomson Police responded to a call involving a fallen tree.
A road department employee, Scott Huff, met them there. According to a report, officers say they smelled alcohol on him.
As the officer began a field sobriety test, Mayor Usry drove up.
Usry said he was taking Huff home and something would be done about it.
The Mayor says Huff has been reprimanded and suspended for 10 days.
However, Commissioner Fred Favors called Mayor Usry’s actions appalling, but some in the town are claiming this is all politics and others say it’s a racial divide.
“We feel like what he did was morally and ethically wrong and these standards that we expect in our community have been violated,” said Commissioner and Reverend for Springfield Baptist Church Fred Favors.
He wants GBI to investigate the June 18 incident and also wants the mayor out.
“If there is an investigation not only will I, but the entire city staff, cooperate 100 percent, but outside of that, I’m moving on,” Usry said.
That’s because Mayor Usry says he stands by his decision that night.
“I still feel like it’s right. I did the right thing,” Usry said. “We weren’t trying to protect anybody, but we were trying to secure and make the accident or the storm area, we were trying to make it safe for everybody not only for the residents of the community but city workers on site.”
Favors feels the mayor interfered with law enforcement.
_____________________________________________
(IV)
12-15-11 The jury found Scott Dean guilty on the charges of touching his adopted daughter from Guatemala and exposing himself.
El jurado encontró culpable a Scott Dean por los cargos de toqueteo a su hija adoptada de Guatemala y por mostrarse desnudo a ella. 15-12-11
News 12 First at 5, February 4, 2011 EVANS, Ga.---It played out in less than nine hours, former republican commissioner Scott Dean turned himself in, was granted bond, and is now back on the streets Friday afternoon.
On Wednesday, Dean was indicted for two counts of child molestation. Shortly after his mugshot was taken, he went before a judge and a packed courtroom, and was granted a $50,000 dollar bond. But that bond comes with conditions.
Shackled at the ankles, former commissioner Scott Dean is seen escorted into court.
“Doing about as would be expected. It’s tough...it’s difficult time but he’s hanging in there,” says Dean’s defense attorney Pete Theodocion.
Wednesday, Dean was indicted for two counts of child molestation. The Assistant District Attorney outlined the case Friday morning in court.
“It’s alleged that he touched (name removed) inappropriately. It’s alleged that he exposed himself to her and made a comment that he wanted to have sexual intercourse with her. At the time she was under 16,” says the The Assistant District Attorney.
Dean had a team of supporters, including his wife Renee, by his side. His defense attorney described family life at home for Dean.
“The Dean’s adopted five Guatemalan children in 2008. The Dean’s have been involved in missionary work through their church,” says Theodocion.
Prosecutors say the investigation all began with a letter, written in concern from a close family friend.
“Because of that letter, DFACS came in and they did an investigation. Because of their investigation they removed the children from the Dean home. They also interviewed the children in this case. As a result of those interviews, that has given us the basis for this indictment,” adds The Assistant District Attorney.
Bond was set at $50,000 dollars, but not without conditions about those children.
“Primary conditions are that he continues to live outside the home, he lives with his parents and that he’s got supervised visitation right now with the male children and that there be no contact with the female children,” describes Theodocion.
Other than his letter of resignation, Dean has yet to address the allegations.
“At this point he’s going to remain quiet and let the legal process work,” says Theodocion.
On top of the other bond conditions, Dean also surrendered his passport, and the judge restricted him to the Augusta Judicial Circuit which is Richmond, Columbia and Burke counties.
He will continue to live with his parents, away from the children, and will no longer have supervised visitation with the female children.
The next step is the beginning of the trial on December 2011. Dean has pleaded not guilty
(V) Broun: Holder Not Above the Law, Should Resign Immediately
“Eric Holder has a glaring problem with telling the truth, and lying to Congress under oath is not an offense to be taken lightly. I have been calling for the Attorney General to resign for years now, as some of the worst blunders in our judicial system’s history can be traced directly back to him. A definitive case that should have ended Holder’s career before it even started was the pardoning of Marc Rich, an international criminal and fugitive that robbed our nation of tens of millions of dollars and conducted business with U.S. enemies like Iran. More recently, Holder refused to defend the Defense of Marriage Act and attempted to try 9/11 terrorists in civil courts. His mistakes with the ‘Fast and the Furious’ situation are simply the latest displays of our Attorney General’s ignorance and recklessness, out of a long list of errors. No single person is above the law and if anyone should know this, it’s Eric Holder.
“President Obama must hold the Attorney General accountable for his incompetence, and I urge him to demand Eric Holder’s immediate resignation.”
AS: Should members of Congress and Senate resign or send to jail for inside trading? Just asking.
Probably The Most Irritating Practice of Wall Street - Few In Jail
10-5-11 - In what is only the latest instance of questionable mortgage practices coming to light, a new lawsuit claims that 13 banks and mortgage companies -- including Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan and PNC Bank -- charged hidden, illegal fees to military veterans trying to refinance their homes.
The lenders, unable to charge certain fees under U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs rules, simply increased another set of fees without making it clear to veterans that they were doing so, the suit alleges.
The result was hundreds of thousands of cases where veterans trying to refinance their homes ended up paying between $300 and $1,000 more than they were supposed to, according to the suit.
The veterans' loans are some of many of misleading or fraudulent loans that banks made during the housing bubble that are only recently coming to light.
Nearly 30,000 such cases were uncovered this past spring alone, a majority of them involving real estate deals made in 2007 or before.
Many of the banks named in the new hidden-fees suit -- which was filed in 2006, but whose details were public this week -- have been accused in the past of taking advantage of military servicemembers.
In February, Wells Fargo agreed to refund some $10 million in fees to veterans after a similar lawsuit alleged that the bank charged improperly high fees to veterans undertaking the refinancing process.
Augusta, GA, 10/28/2011 - 
"A financier with colossal wealth should not exist whilst near him is a poor man in dire necessity. When we see poverty allowed to reach a condition of starvation it is a sure sign that somewhere we shall find tyranny." --The Baha'i Writings
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me.
GEORGIA EXECUTES TROY DAVIS
Troy Davis was sentenced to death in 1991 for the murder of a police officer and has been on death row since then. He was executed by lethal injection at the Jackson state prison in Georgia, USA, on 21 September, despite serious doubts surrounding his conviction.
In his final statement before being put to death by lethal injection, Troy Davis maintained his innocence of the crime and asked his friends and family to “continue to fight this fight.” He has previously given the following message to Amnesty International members: “The struggle for justice doesn’t end with me. This struggle is for all the Troy Davises who came before me and all the ones who will come after me. I’m in good spirits and I’m prayerful and at peace. But I will not stop fighting until I’ve taken my last breath.”
Final appeals to halt the execution were filed with the Georgia and US Supreme Courts by Troy Davis’ attorney on the day of the scheduled execution. The Georgia Supreme Court rejected the appeal shortly before 7pm local time, when the execution was due to take place. The US Supreme court had issued a temporary reprieve to consider the appeal which it later rejected without comments, leading to a four hour-delay in the implementation of the death sentence.
On 19 September, Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles denied Troy Davis’ clemency request. The board stated “The Board members have not taken their responsibility lightly and certainly understand the emotions attached to a death penalty case. The state board has considered the totality of the information presented in this case and thoroughly deliberated on it, after which the decision was to deny clemency.” It later denied requests to reconsider its decision.
In the afternoon of 21 September, Troy Davis was denied his request to take a polygraph test. His lawyers reported that Troy Davis had hoped the polygraph would convince Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles to reconsider its decision against clemency.
Troy Davis was sentenced to death in 1991 for the murder of police officer Mark Allen Macphail in Savannah, Georgia. The case against Troy Davis primarily rested on witness testimony. Since his 1991 trial, seven of key nine witnesses recanted or changed their testimony, some alleging police coercion.
Since Troy Davis has been on death row, more than 90 prisoners have been released from death rows around the USA on grounds of innocence. In each case, at trial the defendant had been found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
There have been 35 executions in the USA this year, 4 of them in Georgia. There have been 1,269 executions in the USA since judicial killing resumed there in 1977 after almost a decade without them. Georgia accounts for 52 of this national total.
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases and under all circumstances.
”I also think it is not beyond the realm of possibility for the federal government to create a guest worker program and then delegate to states through an [memorandum of understanding] the day to day responsibilities of administering the program. This relationship already exists and works well with states implementing environmental and food safety regulations set forth by the federal government.
A robust agricultural guest worker program, properly designed, will not displace American workers. As my testimony shows, in Georgia, even with current high unemployment rates, it is difficult for farmers to fill their labor needs. I encourage you all to work together to develop a guest worker program that is fair to the American employer, fair to the American worker, and fair to the temporary guest worker.”
Georgia mayors, county commissioners and even business-license clerks may face $5,000 fines from a panel of state-sanctioned volunteers empowered to investigate complaints about compliance with a new immigration law.
The board will be able to subpoena witnesses and strip funding from public bodies it finds have violated the law and levy fines against governments and individuals. The first-of-its-kind Immigration Enforcement Review Board is part of a law that took effect July 1, making Georgia one of six states that have taken immigration enforcement duties into their own hands.
To date, the law has provoked a federal lawsuit, a court injunction and a shortage of fruit and vegetable pickers in Georgia’s harvest season. The enforcement board’s job is to keep government officials in line.
“This is a radical privatization of government power,” said Charles Kuck, a lawyer who is part of a legal team challenging the law. “There was no evidence presented, not even anecdotal evidence, that there was a problem that needed to be solved.”
The board is unique to Georgia, not duplicated in the other five states -- Arizona, Utah, Indiana, Alabama and South Carolina -- that have enacted immigration laws, Kuck said. (Bloomberg)
Its members were appointed on September 2, 2011, by Governor Nathan Deal, Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle and David Ralston, speaker of the House of Representatives. Members will be unpaid. The law sets no eligibility standards.
Created under HB 87, the panel will review and investigate complaints related to illegal immigration and it will hold the authority to sanction those found to have violated Georgia’s immigration law.
Gov. Deal appointees:
Phil Kent
Excerpt from Kent column: “(By the way, colleges should be assisting the Homeland Security and Justice Departments in identifying foreign students who have overstayed their visas and who could pose a possible threat.)” - "Georgia’s Board of Regents just approved a steep tuition hike, yet it allows college presidents under its oversight to grant undocumented foreigners tuition breaks because lazy or “multiculturalist” admissions officials focus only on residency and shun working with federal authorities on students’ immigration status. It may take legal action to force states that have allowed tuition breaks for illegals to stop such a foolish and unfair practice."
Shawn Hanley
Hanley is a former U.S. Marine who served as a Deputy Assistant Secretary to President George W. Bush. He served in Iraq as a political officer with the International Republican Institute and taught Democracy Building courses at Baghdad University in 2005 and 2006. Hanley returned from Iraq and became chairman of the Fulton County Republican Party. A member of the Georgia Veterans Service Board, Hanley runs his own Procurement Consulting firm. He and his wife, Tracy, live in Roswell with their three children.
Ben Vinson
Vinson is an attorney in the Atlanta office of McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP, where he focuses on political law and state government affairs issues. Prior to joining the firm, Vinson served as Majority Caucus Counsel in the Georgia House of Representatives. He received his law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law and his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Furman University. Following law school, Vinson clerked for Judge W. Brevard Hand of the United States District Court.
Lt. Gov. Cagle appointees:
Boyd Austin
Austin has served as the mayor of Dallas since 1995. In addition to serving as mayor, he is currently chairman of the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District and of the Northwest Georgia Regional Commission Regional Planning Committee. A graduate of the University of Georgia, he is the property manager for Senior Communities Management, Inc. and a deacon at the First Baptist Church of Dallas.
Mike Yeager
Yeager is currently serving his fifth term as sheriff of Coweta County. He previously served with the Newnan Police Department, the Georgia Department of Corrections and the Sheriff’s Office of Criminal Investigations. He is the past president of the Newnan Kiwanis Club and past director of the Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce. He and his wife, Beverly, live in Moreland with their two children and are members of Moreland United Methodist Church.
Speaker Ralston appointees:
Robert F. Mumford
Mumford is an attorney with the firm Mumford and Myers. He served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2005 to 2009. Mumford is a member of the Georgia Criminal Defense Lawyers and the State Bar of Georgia. He is also a member of the Rockdale County Historical Society. Mumford holds a bachelor’s degree and a law degree from the University of Georgia. He and his wife, Bette Jo, have one child and reside in Conyers.
Terry R. Clark
Clark currently serves as a member of the Colquitt County Commission, to which he was elected in 2006. He is a member of the Lower Flint Ochlocknee Water Council and the Board of Directors of Tifton Quality Peanuts. Clark is a graduate of Abraham Baldwin College and was selected as a 2010 Master Farmer by the ABAC Alumni Association. He and his wife, Diana, have one child. They live in Moultrie.
Earlier this month, Congressman Broun introduced legislation, H.R. 2409, the Debt Ceiling Reduction Act, that would lower the debt ceiling to $13 trillion.
Augusta, GA. 4-18-11 - On April 18 Tax Day or the official deadline for filing income taxes a group of
Final wrap-up of 2011 Georgia legislative session
Democrat 1: Let us not lose sight of our mutual objectives. It is time to unite against the corporate take over of our political system. We must stand firm, especially now to further our goals of making America work again for the middle class and the less fortunate in our society. One Person Can Do So Much.
Democrat 2: I have being asking the Augusta delegation to repeal SB 31. Georgia Power has so much power that senator Davis, Rep. Smith and Howard never talked to me again.
Ed Tarver, one of the sponsors of SB 31 even got a good job. We don't need enemies with friends like him and others in the party.
One thing is talking against corporate America; it is another animal rejecting their money.
I am sure I will never get a campaign donation from Georgia Power. And I hope sometime no candidate have to sale their constituents to corporations.
Democrat 1: Not sure what you mean, "no canidate have to sale their constituents to corporations", you can't "sale" anyone's vote!
Democrat 2: When my lawmaker voted for SB 31 he/she sold me to Georgia Power. I have to pay Georgia Power every month since last year, for the building of reactors that I am against and I probably won't benefit ever but Georgia Power is already profiting. Big companies are exempt, just little customers like me have to 'contribute'. My vote is not for sale. I was sold by my lawmaker to Georgia Power. I see it that way.
Maybe the fundamental problem is that democrats don't see one vote with the same eyes. So a vote in favor of building reactors with some taxpayers, but others no, is OK for many democrats. I say if you want to build reactors use your own money and in another planet, not in my backyard and with my money.
And they are in my backyard and with my money enjoying life.
Democrat 1: I don't know that this is remotely connected to "One Person can do so much"!
Democrat 2: Never mind.
