Today, June 10, I was a guest on two radio talk shows in which I defended Martha Stewart. In one case (KTSA, San Antonio), I was a lone guest and the interviewer, too, believed the charges were ridiculous, so it was a friendly time.
In the other situation (KCNN, Kansas City), I was paired with a former federal prosecutor, and it was more wild, as I continually pushed my point that the securities fraud charge against Stewart was, in effect, a prohibition against one’s self-defense. In my closing comments, I pointed out that in the federal system, U.S. attorneys now openly believe it is a crime for people to defend themselves.
Furthermore, when I noted that the federal grand jury process is now entirely controlled by prosecutors, my opponent agreed, saying that it is true that one could literally get an indictment against a watermelon (his words). He then went on to say that this was OK, as the whole thing has to be proven in court, anyway. In other words, this guy defended the process of bringing frivolous indictments against someone.
I was not a polite person and I am sure I irritated my host, but someone has to speak up. The federal criminal system is an abomination, and even the rising tide of drug convictions in state courts has been driven by federal policies. The Martha Stewart case is just one tiny speck of sand on a vast beach of federal abuse. Unfortunately, this must play through our culture and through our body politic. I don’t know where we are headed, but I am not an optimistic person here.
