Appeal begins on Hill search; stay sought
on Jul 19, 2006 at 3:29 pm
UPDATE Thursday p.m. Lawyers for Rep. William Jefferson on Thursday filed an emergency motion in D.C. Circuit Court for a stay of a District judge’s ruling allowing the Justice Department to begin examining computer disks and papers seized by the congressman’s Capitol Hill office during a bribery probe. The attorneys told the Circuit Court that the Justice Department will hold off on any processing of the materials until July 26, unless the Circuit Court denies a stay earlier. The motion can be found here.
Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas F. Hogan in Washington, D.C., refused on Wednesday to return to a congressman materials that the FBI seized from his Capitol Hill office in a search as part of a bribery investigation. Hogan also refused to stay his order while an appeal proceeds. The judge’s action set the stage for an appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court by the lawmaker, Louisiana Democrat William Jefferson. An emergency request for a stay will be made to the Circuit Court, attorneys said. The case appears headed for the Supreme Court, as the congressman seeks to insulate his records from FBI review.
The judge’s opinion explaining his action can be found here, and the order is here.
Jefferson claims that the search of his office — done under a search warrant that Hogan issued earlier — violates his right not to be questioned for legislative acts and violates the doctrine of separation of powers. Hogan concluded that Jefferson “has not made a strong showing that he is likely to prevail on the merits of his appeal.” The judge, though, conceded that the case raises serious constitutional issues “dealing with the separation of powers doctrine and inter-branch comity.”
While the judge’s order clears the way for an FBI “filter team” to start going through the seized computer disks and office papers to see if any are protected by legislative privilege, the Justice Department has indicated it would not begin that process while the appeal unfolds.
