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Kim Dotcom has temporarily halted the forfeiture of $67 million in seized assets to New Zealand pending a judicial review:
After claiming that assets seized during the 2012 raid on Megaupload were obtained through copyright and money laundering crimes, last July the U.S. government asked the court to forfeit bank accounts, cars and other seized possessions connected to the site's operators. Dotcom and his co-defendants protested, but the Government deemed them fugitives and therefore disentitled to seek relief from the court. As a result District Court Judge Liam O'Grady ordered a default judgment in favor of the U.S. Government against assets worth an estimated $67m.
Following a subsequent request from the U.S., New Zealand's Commissioner of Police moved to have the U.S. forfeiture orders registered locally, meaning that the seized property would become the property of the Crown. Authorization from the Deputy Solicitor-General was granted April 9, 2015 and an application for registration was made shortly after. In response, Kim Dotcom and co-defendant Bram Van der Kolk requested a judicial review of the decision and sought interim orders that would prevent the Commissioner from progressing the registration application, pending a review. The Commissioner responded with an application to stop the judicial review.
In a lengthy decision handed down this morning, Justice Ellis denied the application of the Commissioner while handing a significant interim victory to Kim Dotcom. Noting that the "fugitive disentitlement" doctrine forms no part of New Zealand common law, Justice Ellis highlighted the predicament faced by those seeking to defend themselves while under its constraints.
[...] "The big fights are yet to come and I can't wait to expose the US government and Hollywood for the most unlawful and corrupt law enforcement action ever taken against an Internet service provider. US attorney Jay Prabhu, the DOJ clown who lost control of the Megaupload domain recently, will only find a job at the MPAA after we are done with him," Dotcom concludes.
[More after the break...]
New Zealand's Security Intelligence Service chief Rebecca Kitteridge apologized to Kim Dotcom over the weekend after insulting emails were obtained by the New Zealand Herald:
Security Intelligence Service chief Rebecca Kitteridge has apologised to Kim Dotcom for the behaviour of her spies, who swapped emails about the internet entrepreneur's weight and wife while mocking his chances of getting New Zealand residency. An extraordinary cache of emails has emerged from an Official Information Act request by the Weekend Herald, including one in which an SIS staff member sends a picture of Dotcom to others, saying, "What a fatty po po." [...] Ms Kitteridge's apology is the second Dotcom has secured from the intelligence agencies. The Government Communications Security Bureau had to say sorry in 2012 after it was caught carrying out illegal surveillance.
Last month, Dotcom was awarded millions drawn from his seized funds in order to pay for accrued legal expenses, as well as a $128,000 monthly stipend for ongoing expenses. Dotcom's U.S. extradition hearing has been delayed to no earlier than September 1, 2015.
Original Submission
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Friday June 05 2015, @03:38AM
... the Supreme Court does not write "advisory opinions". That is you can't just ask SCOTUS to declare a law unconstitutional, you have to actually violate it somehow, face prosecution then defend yourself in the trial, appellate and supreme courts. It happens all the time that SCOTUS turns away a defendant over some petty issue, for example if a state court could have granted relief but you didn't seek it in the state, then you'll lose with SCOTUS.
This kind of thing is predominant among the reasons that I get arrested a lot. So far the best I've achieved is to get my cases dismissed.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday June 05 2015, @03:54AM
See Jewel vs NSA [eff.org]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by Gravis on Friday June 05 2015, @10:47AM
This kind of thing is predominant among the reasons that I get arrested a lot.
no, the reason you get arrested a lot is because few people know how to deal with the many forms of mental illness. what you see as normal behavior may be far outside the social norms and being unable to handle the situation themselves, they call the police. the police are easily offended people so they don't want to deal with you and thus prefer to arrest you, charge you with something and be done with it rather than work out what the problem is.
i could be wrong but i get the feeling you are homeless and are refusing medical treatment for your schizophrenia probably because thus far they have hit you with the strongest stuff that turns you into a zombie or clouds your mind instead of a nuanced approach to finding medications that addresses your illness without the terrible adverse side effects. am i close?
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Friday June 05 2015, @07:17PM
I've been in treatment for my illness since November 1984. I spent $60,000.00 of my own money to pay just one psychotherapist when I was living in Santa Cruz.
What leads you to believe I'm refusing treatment? That I'm homeless?
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 05 2015, @11:37AM
Which is garbage, because it (likely intentionally) makes it nearly impossible to challenge unconstitutional laws, especially if what is being done is being kept secret, or the government invokes the "national security" excuse (which shouldn't at all interfere with a trial). We are all harmed when the government violates the constitution, so "standing" and other excuses they use to dismiss cases make no sense.