DOJ Slammed!

"Citing misconduct by prosecutors, a federal judge dismissed criminal charges in a stock-options backdating case against two former Broadcom Corp. executives. ... Backdating involves retroactively setting the price of a stock option to a low point in the stock's value, allowing employees to reap higher profits if the stock is later sold. Rampant backdating in the earlier part of the decade led to a government crackdown. ... In dismissing the charges in the Broadcom case Tuesday, US District Judge Cormac Carney said the government behaved improperly by pressuring witnesses to testify in a manner favorable to prosecutors. ... In a related development, Judge Carney last week voiced concern that Andrew Stolper, a prosecutor in the case, had committed misconduct in February 2007 by leaking information to the press, including the Wall Street Journal, as a way to exert pressure on another defendant, Broadcom co-founder Henry Samueli", Nathan Koppel at the WSJ, 16 December 2009, link: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704398304574598163860146796.html.

What, "say it ain't so Joe", prosecutorial misconduct? AUSAs intimidate witnesses, violating 18 USC 1512? Can't be. No. This is standard operating procedure at the (misnamed) DOJ. Here the DOJ crossed swords with defendants who have enough money to fight. And the DOJ got a black eye. Tough. Blago for Attorney General, he's qualified, the DOJ said he did this, my 6 November 2009 post: http://skepticaltexascpa.blogspot.com/2009/11/turnabout.html.