Legal News

More on Stevens-Gate: What Happened at the DOJ . . . And Introducing Henry Schuelke

By Ashby Jones

Couple of Stevens-gate matters to get you caught up on today, LB Readers.

The DOJ, Under the Microscope: For starters, click here for a nice story by the Washington Post’s Carrie Johnson examining the situation within the DOJ that led to the series of high-profile botches.

According to Johnson, among other issues the DOJ team on the prosecution “miscalculated by not seeking more time to prepare for the high-stakes corruption trial and fell victim to inexperience and thin staffing.”

Last year’s compressed trial timeline forced government lawyers to prepare in a mere seven weeks, which only intensified other challenges — like the defense’s voluminous requests for documents.

Furthermore, lead prosecutor Brenda Morris was brought in relatively late in the game. Described as having a reputation as a “magnetic presence” in the courtroom, Morris was tasked with leading the charge at trial. But her late entrance reportedly required the other lawyers to spend hours getting Morris up to speed on the case, keeping them from tackling boxes of documents related to the case.

Others close to the case allege that competition with other U.S. attorney’s offices may have pushed the unit to act in an overly aggressive manner. Thomas C. Green, a Washington defense lawyer who recently won the acquittal of Anibal Vilá said: “I think what happens is that they get caught up in the competition and there’s no experienced voice of reason who says we cannot do this, we should not do this, we must not do this. These two cases could not have happened if the vetting process was in place and operating as it should.”

A spokeswoman for the department, Laura Sweeney, rebuffed such charges to the Post. “For more than 30 years, the Public Integrity Section has been effectively prosecuting public officials, regardless of political affiliation, who abuse their office and their obligation to the American people,” she said.

Introducing Henry Schuelke: So who is this Henry Schuelke, the man charged with leading the investigation into the Stevens prosecution? An AP story out Monday provides a clue.

Nearly every person who has worked with Schuelke interviewed by The Associated Press used the same words to describe the New Jersey native: “low key.”

But Schuelke clearly also has a side that thrives on thrill. He likes fast cars and motorcycles, his friends say, and he drives a Porsche to work in Washington from his home on the Chesapeake Bay.

Attorney E. Lawrence Barcella, who has known Schuelke for nearly 40 years, said Schuelke is a married father of two adult children who dotes on his grandchildren. “Hank is very smooth, very laid-back kind of guy, not given to outbursts of anger, not the kind of guy who is a table-pounder,” Barcella said. “He’s somebody who is scrupulously balanced, which I think is what you are looking for.”

Schuelke’s firm, Janis, Schuelke & Wechsler, usually represents individuals and teams up with larger firms that represent the corporations involved. Schuelke’s clients have included former Enron treasurer Ben Glisan, Tyson Foods lobbyist Jack Williams and White House aide Carolyn Huber during the Whitewater investigation.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on April 13, 2009 (boomark / email).