August 14, 2023

Here's the Georgia RICO Law

The RICO law we are discussing Georgia locking Trump under is Section 16-14 of the Code of Georgia. I post here the entire section. This is a VERY long law, so bear with me.

https://casetext.com/statute/code-of-georgia/title-16-crimes-and-offenses/chapter-14-racketeer-influenced-and-corrupt-organizations/section-16-14-1-short-title

16-14-1: Short Title
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Georgia RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act."

16-14-2: Findings and Intent of the General Assembly
(a) The General Assembly finds that a severe problem is posed in this state by the increasing sophistication of various criminal elements and the increasing extent to which the state and its citizens are harmed as a result of the activities of these elements.
(b) The General Assembly declares that the intent of this chapter is to impose sanctions against those who violate this chapter and to provide compensation to persons injured or aggrieved by such violations. It is not the intent of the General Assembly that isolated incidents of misdemeanor conduct or acts of civil disobedience be prosecuted under this chapter. It is the intent of the General Assembly, however, that this chapter apply to an interrelated pattern of criminal activity motivated by or the effect of which is pecuniary gain or economic or physical threat or injury. This chapter shall be liberally construed to effectuate the remedial purposes embodied in its operative provisions.

16-14-3: Definitions
As used in this chapter, the term:

(1) "Civil forfeiture proceeding" shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section 9-16-2.
(2) "Criminal proceeding" means any criminal proceeding commenced by the Department of Law or the office of any district attorney under any provision of this chapter.
(3) "Enterprise" means any person, sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, business trust, union chartered under the laws of this state, or other legal entity; or any unchartered union, association, or group of individuals associated in fact although not a legal entity; and it includes illicit as well as licit enterprises and governmental as well as other entities.
(4) "Pattern of racketeering activity" means:
(A) Engaging in at least two acts of racketeering activity in furtherance of one or more incidents, schemes, or transactions that have the same or similar intents, results, accomplices, victims, or methods of commission or otherwise are interrelated by distinguishing characteristics and are not isolated incidents, provided at least one of such acts occurred after July 1, 1980, and that the last of such acts occurred within four years, excluding any periods of imprisonment, after the commission of a prior act of racketeering activity; or
(B) Engaging in any one or more acts of domestic terrorism as described in paragraph (2) of Code Section 16-11-220 or any criminal attempt, criminal solicitation, or criminal conspiracy related thereto.
(5)
(A) "Racketeering activity" means to commit, to attempt to commit, or to solicit, coerce, or intimidate another person to commit any crime which is chargeable by indictment under the laws of this state involving:
(i) Unlawful distillation, manufacture, and transportation of alcoholic beverages in violation of Code Section 3-3-27;
(ii) Records and reports of currency transactions in violation of Article 11 of Chapter 1 of Title 7;
(iii) The "Georgia Uniform Securities Act of 2008" in violation of Chapter 5 of Title 10;
(iv) Homicide in violation of Article 1 of Chapter 5 of this title;
(v) Assault and battery in violation of Article 2 of Chapter 5 of this title;
(vi) Kidnapping, false imprisonment, and related offenses in violation of Article 3 of Chapter 5 of this title;
(vii) Prostitution, keeping a place of prostitution, pimping, and pandering in violation of Code Sections 16-6-9 through 16-6-12;
(viii) Burglary in violation of Code Section 16-7-1;
(ix) Smash and grab burglary in violation of Code Section 16-7-2;
(x) Arson and explosives in violation of Article 3 of Chapter 7 of this title;
(xi) Bombs, explosives, and chemical and biological weapons in violation of Article 4 of Chapter 7 of this title;
(xii) Theft in violation of Article 1 of Chapter 8 of this title;
(xiii) Robbery in violation of Article 2 of Chapter 8 of this title;
(xiv) Criminal reproduction and sale of recorded material in violation of Article 3 of Chapter 8 of this title;
(xv) The "Georgia Residential Mortgage Fraud Act" in violation of Article 5 of Chapter 8 of this title;
(xvi) Forgery in any degree in violation of Code Section 16-9-1;
(xvii) Illegal use of financial transaction cards in violation of Code Sections 16-9-31, 16-9-32, 16-9-33, and 16-9-34;
(xviii) Use of an article with an altered identification mark in violation of Code Section 16-9-70;
(xix) The "Georgia Computer Systems Protection Act" in violation of Article 6 of Chapter 9 of this title;
(xx) Identity fraud in violation of Article 8 of Chapter 9 of this title;
(xxi) Bribery in violation of Code Section 16-10-2;
(xxii) False statements and writings or false lien statements against public officers or public employees in violation of Code Section 16-10-20 or 16-10-20.1;
(xxiii) Impersonating a public officer or employee in violation of Code Section 16-10-23;
(xxiv) Attempted murder or threatening of witnesses in official proceedings in violation of Code Section 16-10-32;
(xxv) Perjury and other related offenses in violation of Article 4 of Chapter 10 of this title;
(xxvi) Embracery in violation of Code Section 16-10-91;
(xxvii) Influencing witnesses in violation of Code Section 16-10-93;
(xxviii) Tampering with evidence in violation of Code Section 16-10-94;
(xxix) Intimidation or injury of grand or trial juror or court officer in violation of Code Section 16-10-97;
(xxx) Terroristic threats and acts in violation of Code Section 16-11-37;
(xxxi) The "Georgia Firearms and Weapons Act" in violation of Part 2 of Article 4 of Chapter 11 of this title;
(xxxii) Commercial gambling in violation of Code Section 16-12-22;
(xxxiii) Distributing obscene materials in violation of Code Section 16-12-80;
(xxxiv) The "Georgia Controlled Substances Act" in violation of Article 2 of Chapter 13 of this title;
(xxxv) The "Dangerous Drug Act" in violation of Article 3 of Chapter 13 of this title;
(xxxvi) Marijuana in violation of subsection (j) of Code Section 16-13-30;
(xxxvii) Payday loans in violation of Chapter 17 of this title;
(xxxviii) Insurance fraud in violation of Code Section 33-1-9;
(xxxix) Certain felonies involving certificates of title, security interest, or liens in violation of Code Section 40-3-90;
(xl) Removal or falsification of identification numbers in violation of Code Section 40-4-21;
(xli) Possession of motor vehicle parts from which the identification has been removed in violation of Code Section 40-4-22;
(xlii) Article 8 of Chapter 5 of Title 16, relating to protection of elder persons; or
(xliii) Offenses enumerated in Code Section 16-12-37.
(B) "Racketeering activity" shall also mean any act or threat involving murder, kidnapping, gambling, arson, robbery, theft, receipt of stolen property, bribery, extortion, obstruction of justice, dealing in narcotic or dangerous drugs, or dealing in securities which is chargeable under the laws of the United States, any territory of the United States, or any state and which is punishable by imprisonment for more than one year.
(C) "Racketeering activity" shall also mean any conduct defined as "racketeering activity" under 18 U.S.C. Section 1961(1), any violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 1028, or any violation of 31 U.S.C. Sections 5311 through 5330.
(6) "Real property" means any real property situated in this state or any interest in such real property, including, but not limited to, any lease of or mortgage upon such real property.

16-14-4: Prohibited activities
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person, through a pattern of racketeering activity or proceeds derived therefrom, to acquire or maintain, directly or indirectly, any interest in or control of any enterprise, real property, or personal property of any nature, including money.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any person employed by or associated with any enterprise to conduct or participate in, directly or indirectly, such enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity.
(c) It shall be unlawful for any person to conspire or endeavor to violate any of the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this Code section. A person violates this subsection when:
(1) He or she together with one or more persons conspires to violate any of the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this Code section and any one or more of such persons commits any overt act to effect the object of the conspiracy; or
(2) He or she endeavors to violate any of the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this Code section and commits any overt act to effect the object of the endeavor.

16-14-5: Criminal penalties for violating 16-14-4
(a) Any person convicted of the offense of engaging in activity in violation of Code Section 16-14-4 shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by not less than five nor more than 20 years' imprisonment or the fine specified in subsection (b) of this Code section, or both.
(b) In lieu of any fine otherwise authorized by law, any person convicted of the offense of engaging in conduct in violation of Code Section 16-14-4 may be sentenced to pay a fine that does not exceed the greater of $25,000.00 or three times the amount of any pecuniary value gained by him or her from such violation.
(c) The court shall hold a hearing to determine the amount of the fine authorized by subsection (b) of this Code section.
(d) For the purposes of subsection (b) of this Code section, the term "pecuniary value" means:
(1) Anything of value in the form of money, a negotiable instrument, a commercial interest, or anything else, the primary significance of which is economic advantage; or
(2) Any other property or service that has a value in excess of $100.00.

16-14-6: Civil remedies
(a) Any superior court may, after making due provisions for the rights of innocent persons, enjoin violations of Code Section 16-14-4 by issuing appropriate orders and judgments, including, but not limited to:
(1) Ordering any defendant to divest himself or herself of any interest in any enterprise, real property, or personal property;
(2) Imposing reasonable restrictions upon the future activities or investments of any defendant, including, but not limited to, prohibiting any defendant from engaging in the same type of endeavor as the enterprise in which he or she was engaged in violation of Code Section 16-14-4;
(3) Ordering the dissolution or reorganization of any enterprise;
(4) Ordering the suspension or revocation of any license, permit, or prior approval granted to any enterprise by any agency of the state; or
(5) Ordering the forfeiture of the charter of a corporation organized under the laws of this state or the revocation of a certificate authorizing a foreign corporation to conduct business within this state upon a finding that the board of directors or a managerial agent acting on behalf of the corporation, in conducting affairs of the corporation, has authorized or engaged in conduct in violation of Code Section 16-14-4 and that, for the prevention of future criminal activity, the public interest requires that the charter of the corporation be forfeited and that the corporation be dissolved or the certificate be revoked.
(b) Any aggrieved person or the state may institute a civil action under subsection (a) of this Code section. In such civil action, relief shall be granted in conformity with the principles that govern the granting of injunctive relief from threatened loss or damage in other civil cases, provided that no showing of special or irreparable damage to the person shall have to be made. Upon the execution of proper bond against damages for an injunction improvidently granted and a showing of immediate danger of significant loss or damage, a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction may be issued in any such action before a final determination on the merits.
(c) Any person who is injured by reason of any violation of Code Section 16-14-4 shall have a cause of action for three times the actual damages sustained and, where appropriate, punitive damages. Such person shall also recover attorney's fees in the trial and appellate courts and costs of investigation and litigation reasonably incurred. The defendant or any injured person may demand a trial by jury in any civil action brought pursuant to this Code section.
(d) Any injured person shall have a right or claim to forfeited property or to the proceeds derived therefrom as set forth in Code Section 9-16-16.
(e) A conviction in any criminal proceeding shall estop the defendant in any subsequent civil action or civil forfeiture proceeding under this chapter as to all matters proved in the criminal proceeding.

16-14-7: Civil forfeiture proceedings
(a) All property of every kind used or intended for use in the course of, derived from, or realized through a pattern of racketeering activity shall be subject to forfeiture to the state. The Attorney General shall be specifically authorized to commence any civil forfeiture proceeding under this chapter in matters arising under Code Section 45-15-10.
(b) Any property subject to forfeiture pursuant to subsection (a) of this Code section and any proceeds are declared to be contraband and no person shall have a property right in them and shall be forfeited in accordance with the procedure set forth in Chapter 16 of Title 9.

16-14-8: Statute of limitations
Notwithstanding any other provision of law setting forth a statute of limitations, a criminal proceeding or civil action brought pursuant to Code Section 16-14-6 shall be commenced up until five years after the conduct in violation of a provision of this chapter terminates. If a criminal proceeding or civil forfeiture proceeding is brought by the state pursuant to this chapter, then the running of this period of limitations, with respect to any cause of action arising under subsection (b) or (c) of Code Section 16-14-6 which is based upon any matter complained of in such criminal proceeding or civil forfeiture proceeding by the state, shall be suspended during the pendency of the criminal proceeding or civil forfeiture proceeding by the state and for two years thereafter.

16-14-9: Civil remedies as supplemental and not mutually exclusive
The application of one civil remedy under this chapter shall not preclude the application of any other remedy, civil or criminal, under this chapter or any other provision of law. Civil remedies under this chapter are supplemental and not mutually exclusive.

16-14-10: Recognition and enforcement of judgments of other states; reciprocal agreements with other states
(a) A valid judgment rendered by a court of a jurisdiction having a law substantially similar to this chapter shall be recognized and enforced by the courts of this state to the extent that a judgment rendered by a court of this state pursuant to this chapter would be enforced in such other jurisdiction.
(b) The Attorney General shall be authorized to enter into reciprocal agreements with the attorney general or chief prosecuting attorney of any jurisdiction having a law substantially similar to this chapter so as to further the purposes of this chapter.

16-14-11: Venue
In any criminal proceeding, the crime shall be considered to have been committed in any county in which an incident of racketeering occurred or in which an interest or control of an enterprise or real or personal property is acquired or maintained.

16-4-12: Cases of special public importance
The state may, in any civil action or civil forfeiture proceeding brought pursuant to this chapter, file with the clerk of the court a certificate stating that the case is of special public importance. A copy of such certificate shall be furnished immediately by such clerk to the chief judge or, in his or her absence, the presiding chief judge of the court in which such civil action or civil forfeiture proceeding is pending; and, upon receipt of such certificate, the judge shall immediately designate a judge to hear and determine such civil action or civil forfeiture proceeding. The judge so designated shall promptly assign such civil action or civil forfeiture proceeding for hearing, participate in the hearings and determination, and cause such civil action or civil forfeiture proceeding to be expedited.

August 6, 2023

Go woke, go far from broke: Barbie clears $1 billion worldwide

https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl1077904129/?ref_=bo_hm_rd

Barbie has been in theaters 16 days. This makes it the 7th-fastest movie to gross $1 billion, putting it between Avatar: The Way of Water which did it in 14 days and Furious 7 which did it in 17.

August 5, 2023

From the DC sentencing hearing

Judge Chutkan: "Prosecution, the defendant has been found guilty on all four counts. What are your sentencing recommendations?"

SC Smith: "Your Honor, in Count 1, Conspiracy to Defraud the United States, we request four years in prison. In Counts 2 and 3, Conspiracy to Obstruct an Official Proceeding and Obstruction of an Official Proceeding, we request nineteen years per count. On Count 4, Conspiracy against Rights, we request 10 years. We request that the sentences run consecutively and that his sentence be served in the Minot Air Force Base, ND, stockade."

Judge Chutkan: "Prosecution, may I ask as to why you chose these exact numbers?"

SC Smith: "Certainly, Your Honor. The Prosecution is well aware that the judge in this case prefers to sentence defendants to longer periods of time than the government requested, and we wanted to give you the headroom to do that."

Judge Chutkan: "And may I request your reasoning as to why you want the defendant to serve his sentence on an Air Force base that doesn't have a stockade?"

SC Smith: "Because it's the one place on earth he would hate the most. We called up there, and Minot Range Control says they've got a couple old buildings no one is using they'd be willing to let us have for free. Throw down a little cheap linoleum, put in a kitchen and they'll be perfect."

August 4, 2023

There are three problems with Trump's planned defense

From what I am hearing, Trump is planning to go into court and prove that he really won the election after all so it was okay for him to have done what he did to take back what was rightfully his.

Let’s skip over the part that there are limits to what you can do to take back what is rightfully yours. If my bank accidentally deposits my paycheck into someone else’s account, I can’t legally go to the bank with a loaded Uzi to encourage them to correct their error. Nor can you legally start a riot at the Capitol to encourage the Vice President to ignore the will of the voters and give you an office you lost.

The first problem Trump has is that both the facts and the law are so far out of his favor he can’t even pound the table. Sixty lawsuits alleging the election was stolen were heard. He lost them all. That the election was legitimate is established fact.

The second problem is that he will have to take the stand in his own defense to pull this off. When he does it’s not going to go like he thinks. It ain’t gonna be “yes, Mr. President, you were aggrieved by this stolen election and you did everything you could to keep your office so we’re going to immediately throw the entire Democratic Party in prison, allow you to be president for the rest of your life, annul the sentences and guilty verdicts of everyone involved in the visit to the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and award you $25 billion to do whatever you want with.” Naah… it’ll be way different than that.

The third and most important is he doesn’t have the judge. If he was facing a Trump-appointed get-out-of-jail-free card like Aileen Cannon or Matthew Kaczmaryk this might work. He had the eternally bad luck to draw Tanya Chutkan, who has been quite joyfully pitching January 6 rioters in jail for longer than the Justice Department requested. The first time Trump or his lawyers claim the election was stolen a warning from the bench will be issued. The second time it will be jail for contempt. No president ever got thrown in jail for contempt before, but there’s a first time for everything

August 3, 2023

Any predictions on who the six co-conspirators are in the latest Trump indictment?

https://d3i6fh83elv35t.cloudfront.net/static/2023/08/trump-indictment.pdf

Jack Smith states that six co-conspirators worked with Trump.

Number Three is described as "an attorney whose unfounded claims of election fraud the Defendant privately acknowledged to others sounded 'crazy.'" We can pretty safely assume that's Sidney Powell.

Who do you think the other five are?

August 1, 2023

I saw the Barbie movie this afternoon

Comments follow:

1. Somehow they managed to make a movie with Will Ferrell in it that I actually liked.

2. Yes, it's woke as fuck. That's what makes it so good.

3. The production design ALONE is worth the cost of admission.

4. The four most delightful characters in the company were Kate McKinnon's Weird Barbie, America Ferrara's Barbie-loving Mattel employee Gloria, Rhea Perlman's Ruth, and Helen Mirren as the Narrator.

5. The last few minutes of the film are truly touching, as it is revealed who the old lady Margot Robbie's Barbie met at a bus stop really is.

6. The second most charming scene is the one where Gloria does Stereotypical Barbie's makeup, as she would have done with her real Barbies as a child.

7. Most children, and many adults, won't understand most of the jokes in this movie. The picture borrows heavily from such classic films as 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Matrix and Brazil. Figure on seeing this a few times so you can catch all of them; a lot of the jokes whip by so fast they're gone before you notice.

8. Not only is it a two-hour Barbie commercial, it's a commercial for GM's line of electric cars. Gloria drives a Blazer EV SS electric SUV, while Ken chose a Hummer pickup.

9. It'll be more fun if you get all dolled up for the occasion. The more hot pink you're wearing, the better.

10. Go. Just go. You'll love it.

July 30, 2023

The 2024 GOP presidential field is an interesting one

It offers:

Trump.

Trump in go-go boots.

Long haired Trump in red lipstick.

Trump with a pixie cut and plum lipstick.

Trump’s VP.

Black Trump with a shaved head.

Trump who is a storefront church preacher.

Trump from North Dakota.

Trump from New Jersey.

Black Trump who tried to overthrow Gavin Newsom.

Trump who was one of Clinton’s impeachment managers.

Trump who was thrown off the 2020 Michigan governor ballot for signature fraud.

And now, antivax Trump.

July 27, 2023

Little Rotten Johnny at Career Day

Teacher says to the class, “Children, tomorrow is Career Day. Come to school dressed in clothes like the ones you would wear at your job, and be prepared to tell us what career you want and why.”

The next morning Little Rotten Johnny came to school in a suit and tie. Teacher called on him first.

“I want to be a Republican congressman.”

“And why do you want that job, Little Rotten Johnny?”

“Because it’s the perfect job for me. All you have to do all day is rage tweet, steal, take credit for things you voted against, show Hunter Biden dick pics on National television and screw other men’s wives. I’ll fit right in.”

“Johnny! Republican congressmen are admirable, honest, hard-working people!”

“Since when?”

July 24, 2023

The end of anti-Woke hysteria? Barbie draws $155MM in North America alone

“Go woke, go broke.”

That’s what our right-wing overlords have been telling us. Make a movie, a beer commercial, a t-shirt that doesn’t fall in line with the excruciatingly narrow view the Right has of What We May Be and What We May Do, and go bankrupt immediately. Good upstanding films like Sound of Freedom - that’s what you want.

And then comes Greta Gerwig. She directed what is quite possibly the most woke movie it is possible to make…and like a pink-painted 2x6 upside Ron DeSantis’ go-go-boot-wearin’ empty melon head, in three freakin’ days it went into the black. It did $155 million US and Canada box office, $337 million worldwide. Since a film only needs to make double its production budget to cross into profit-making territory, Gerwig’s $100 million fantasy flick became profitable sometime on Saturday. It is quite appalling…well, for all the people who hate “woke” without even being able to define woke.

And it did it without “pay it forward” money laundering schemes that led scores of exhibitors to project Sound of Freedom to “sold out” auditoriums with six pairs of actual eyeballs in them. No sirree, $155 million worth of moviegoers, many wearing frilly dresses and pink lipstick like the title character, walked into movie houses and REALLY WATCHED THE MOVIE!

I suspect three things are at play here.

First, it’s a fun movie. Even the people screaming about how all this wokeness is going to bring on the immolation of America liked it, but they’ll never admit to it.

Second, it’s something new. It isn’t based on a comic book, a remake of some flick from 50 years ago that we just hadda make because we already rented the camera and bought the hairspray, or another “Christians are SOOOO persecuted” two-hour whinefest.

But the most important, to my eye, is that people are getting fed the hell up with the Hard Right dictating our lives. They want to control what we can do to our bodies, put in our bodies, read, watch, do and think. We’ve had it. We are speaking up. If the opening salvo is to swipe a bit of sparkly shadow across our eyelids before heading out to see a silly movie…well, so be it.

July 21, 2023

First Patriot Front trial: five defendants, five convictions

https://cdapress.com/news/2023/jul/20/patriot-front-members-convicted/



The maximum sentence for this crime is one year in jail and a $5000 fine. These guys' biggest problem right now is Coeur d'Alene, ID, as hard right as it is, has VERY long memories of the Aryan Nations and other white supremacist groups. I think they'll get the maximum punishment. I will keep you fine folks apprised as to what their fate becomes - I'm writing this before the courthouse opens.

Their defense attorney, one Robert Sargent of Spokane, WA, reported that &quot t)hey were citizens who had a right to have their words heard and did not have an intent to harm anyone." Cd'A Deputy City Attorney Ryan Hunter responded with, "They knew going in there that their conduct was likely to cause a disturbance of the peace, if not a full riot." They came to town with shields, hats reinforced with hard plastic inserts, knee pads, shin guards and gloves. They hid their faces with masks and put their phones in cell signal-blocking bags. They also came with a bullhorn through which their leader Thomas Rousseau would give a speech, the text of which was entered into evidence, that fits into Idaho's definition of fighting words and is therefore speech not protected by the First Amendment.

Here's the best part: Two of the defendants, both of Conroe, Texas, stated in testimony that when they got on the road to come to Coeur d'Alene, they didn't even know which state they were going to. Conroe is a suburb of Houston. According to Google Maps, the shortest route from Conroe to Coeur d'Alene is 2046 miles long.