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posted by martyb on Thursday November 23 2017, @05:06AM   Printer-friendly
from the lawyers-who-cheaped-out-on-tech-support dept.

The Center for American Progress reports

Prosecutors and defense attorneys have only just begun to wrestle over the facts in an unprecedented series of felony trials stemming from the mass round-up arrest of hundreds of protesters on Inauguration Day. The federal government is arguing that everyone charged was an active participant, provoking alarming notions of collective punishment, but video evidence and media reports indicate that many caught in the mass arrest were not organized Antifa disrupters but rather onlookers caught in a dragnet.

[...] Lawyers from each side struggled [November 21, the second day of the trial of 6 defendants] to work up any kind of rhythm in their questioning because of the repeated interruptions necessary to navigate the gigantic pile of video evidence the government is relying upon. One might expect a serious felony trial involving thousands of gigabytes of video data covering hours of chaos in the streets to have some state-of-the-art system for playback--or at least the kind of pre-cut clips common on sports highlights shows.

But the law and order playing out in Courtroom 203 of the D.C. Superior Court has no such handy facilitation.

"I'm just going to back it up and--oops too far", Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) Rizwan Qureshi said while trying to examine one government witness Tuesday.

The system befuddled defense attorneys just as much during their attempts at cross-examination. When one of the six defendants' lawyers sought to play back video for a Metropolitan Police Department officer, her colleague's computer froze up and only played sound. As the team tried to figure it out, Judge Lynn Leibovitz leaned toward their table and suggested they all "might want to get a tech person."

Earlier in the day, defense counsel Andrew Lazerow began his questioning of a Customs and Border Protection helicopter pilot by saying he wanted to revisit a portion of video shot from the man's chopper.

"Do you know how to do that?" AUSA Jennifer Kerkhoff offered helpfully as Lazerow reached the examiner's console.

"Uh, no", Lazerow said back.

"It's okay. Here.", Kerkhoff said, rising to show her opposing counsel how to work the touch-screen system.

The interruption itself took about as long as Lazerow's brief, narrow questioning of the pilot.

The serial tech hang-ups gave the proceedings an air of farce.


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  • (Score: 0, Troll) by Ethanol-fueled on Thursday November 23 2017, @05:35AM (17 children)

    by Ethanol-fueled (2792) on Thursday November 23 2017, @05:35AM (#600528) Homepage

    You don't like what's going on in your state, then fight for states' rights in your own state.

    Don't behave like a bunch of punks. It's more complicated nowadays, but it still boils down to this. [youtube.com]

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:36AM (11 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:36AM (#600540)

      This happened in DC, which isn't a state.
      (DC residents also have no representation in Congress.)

      USA has a federal system.
      Federal law trumps (oops) state and local law.

      How interesting would things be now if USA had had a constitutional convention in 1966?
      N.B. They could have started with California (now over 38M) and Wyoming (~0.6M) not getting the same number of senators.
      (I'd hate to see the results of a convention done in the middle of the current Reactionary upsurge.)

      -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

      • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:54AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:54AM (#600543)

        DC is a piddly little place specifically carved out to be NOT a state. DC isn't supposed to have representation, but people ought to have representation, so we can conclude that people ought not live there.

        Elected representatives may be a special case. Perhaps we should mandate that they physically live in DC, but deem them to legally be living in the states that they represent.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @09:24AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @09:24AM (#600582)

          That only US Representatives may live in DC and US Representatives in DC have NONE of the rights of legally living anywhere in the US.

          As an added benefit we will be able to have them waterboarded with impunity.

          Let's see how long it takes for them to word legislation to remove all concept of enhanced interrogation from the US legal framework when they are being subjected to it every day. The same with extrajudicial electronic investigation techniques. And hey, let's not forget warrantless search and seizures of property in their domiciles over concerns of possession of cocaine and classified documents :)

          I think we might be on to something here...

      • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday November 23 2017, @11:10AM (8 children)

        by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday November 23 2017, @11:10AM (#600609) Journal

        How interesting would things be now if USA had had a constitutional convention in 1966?

        Interesting times, that is.

        They could have started with California (now over 38M) and Wyoming (~0.6M) not getting the same number of senators.

        Merely having more people is a poor reason for California to having more votes than another state in the US Senate which is about state representation not per capita representation. Let us keep in mind that this is just like the European Commisson [wikipedia.org] where each member state of the EU gets one vote. Should Germany get more than ten times as many votes as Holland?

        Ignoring that you would need a big bribe to get state votes supporting this convention, we still have the matter of it being a poor idea. Those bad ideas are a common occurrence in discussions of constitutional conventions. It definitely doesn't make me inclined to want one.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @12:35PM (4 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @12:35PM (#600627)

          You could have just said "anti-democratic".

          N.B. Nebraska's unicameral seems like a good idea by comparison.
          ...and Guy Fawkes had a pretty good idea when he wanted to blow up the House of Lords.

          -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

          • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:21PM (3 children)

            by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:21PM (#600749) Journal

            You could have just said "anti-democratic".

            The US isn't a pure democracy. Here, the US Senate is built in as a counterweight to the House of Representatives which is based on per capita representation. Works fine as far as I'm concerned.

            • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @08:22PM (2 children)

              by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @08:22PM (#600797)

              You're making my point for me.

              USA isn't a democracy at all.
              USA is an oligarchy.
              It's the way it was set up.

              N.B. In a democracy, the majority of the people rule; in an oligarchy, the majority of the money rules.
              In the USA, the majority of the people want[1] [googleusercontent.com] (orig)[1] [popularresistance.org]
              - their taxes to be spent on single-payer healthcare,
              - their taxes to be spent on universal tuition-free education as far as the individual can take that,
              - better labor relations,
              - deep cuts to corporate welfare (in particular to dirty energy),
              - less spent on militarism.
              I don't think that I need to tell you how that works out.

              [1] I recommend adding the filter ##div.widget to your AdBlocker before visiting that page.

              .
              Now, a place that was actually set up as a democracy is Switzerland. [wikipedia.org]

              -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

              • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday November 23 2017, @08:27PM (1 child)

                by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday November 23 2017, @08:27PM (#600800) Journal
                Senate is not an oligarchy. They are representatives of their states.
                • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @10:14PM

                  by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @10:14PM (#600852)

                  You've got your work cut out for you finding someone in that bunch who isn't rich.

                  ...and, again, there are a lot of USAians who are underrepresented in that disproportionate body.

                  You may remember a previous thread on this topic [soylentnews.org] where I linked to a map with proper Senatorial districts. [archive.li]

                  ...and, per your comment there, state lines are VERY "arbitrary".

                  ...and this doesn't even get into DC, which has no representation there.
                  ...or the numerous colonial possessions of USA.gov where people hold USAian citizenship but have no representation in Congress.

                  -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

        • (Score: 1) by ewk on Thursday November 23 2017, @02:17PM (1 child)

          by ewk (5923) on Thursday November 23 2017, @02:17PM (#600665)

          "Should Germany get more than ten times as many votes as Holland?"

          No... appr. 85 million versus appr. 17 million, so let's say about 5 times as many.

          --
          I don't always react, but when I do, I do it on SoylentNews
          • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday November 23 2017, @04:22PM

            by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday November 23 2017, @04:22PM (#600701) Journal
            I glanced at the population for both before posting and somehow screwed up the number for Holland.
        • (Score: 1) by mmarujo on Friday November 24 2017, @06:09PM

          by mmarujo (347) on Friday November 24 2017, @06:09PM (#601095)

          The EU has an "interesting" solution to this problem...
          It used to be that a resolution had to be agreed by all the countries.

          Now a resolution has to have 50% + 1 of both people and countries. The biggest 4 or 5 countries can't force the union to do something, neither can the smaller countries even if they banded together.

          Always found it infuriating to read in the paper that "The EU is forcing us to do it" when it was approved by those supposed to represent me...

    • (Score: 1) by ants_in_pants on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:02AM (4 children)

      by ants_in_pants (6665) on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:02AM (#600544)

      What if what you don't like is the fact that a government has more power over your life than you do?

      --
      -Love, ants_in_pants
      • (Score: 1, Flamebait) by Ethanol-fueled on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:58AM (3 children)

        by Ethanol-fueled (2792) on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:58AM (#600550) Homepage

        Then move to Somalia. And buy some big guns, Muahaha.

        • (Score: 1) by ants_in_pants on Thursday November 23 2017, @08:23AM (1 child)

          by ants_in_pants (6665) on Thursday November 23 2017, @08:23AM (#600559)

          Yeah, because lots of warlords means freedom.

          The old "Somalia is anarchy" line is outdated anyway. Most of the country has some form of stable government nowadays. And it never really made sense, except as a knee-jerk reaction to ignore arguments.

          --
          -Love, ants_in_pants
          • (Score: 2) by dry on Friday November 24 2017, @03:10AM

            by dry (223) on Friday November 24 2017, @03:10AM (#600911) Journal

            I can think of a few other countries where the government has less power over your life. One thing they all have in common is warlords of some type.

        • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:24PM

          by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:24PM (#600752) Journal
          And let us not forget that Somalia in its current state is better than when it had a government [wikipedia.org].
  • (Score: 5, Funny) by c0lo on Thursday November 23 2017, @05:39AM

    by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Thursday November 23 2017, @05:39AM (#600529) Journal

    ... and anti-speech.

    A glitch in the courtroom systems caused the volume to automatically snap back to zero each time a user switched from one video to another or turns the screens off and back on. The judge asked the clerk to look into it. An hour later with a different witness on the stand, Qureshi tried to keep his patter with the woman going as he introduced another snippet.

    “Now I’m going to ask Ms. Kerkhoff to hit play,” Qureshi said to his witness. The frozen frame on the screens leaped into motion, but silently. “And of course, the volume’s stopped,” Qureshi said with a sigh.

    If you don't know who to blame

    Not every moment of witness testimony required video. Lawyers examining witnesses consistently shut off the courtroom’s half-dozen large video screens when they weren’t needed.

    Or at least, they tried. The glowing rectangles didn’t always cooperate. At one point when the screens were supposed to be dark, the Microsoft Windows lock screen showed up on all the monitors. The background image was an artsy stock photo of small loaves of bread cooling on a drying rack.

    (grin)

    --
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
  • (Score: 0, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @05:43AM (8 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @05:43AM (#600530)

    "might want to get a tech person."

    All the tech people are in jail. I am not kidding. When the FBI accused me of domestic terrorism on a bullshit trumped up charge, I was kept in jail for hours longer than necessary because the computers weren't working properly. I was waiting in hand cuffs and leg irons when one of the agents joked that I could get the computers working again.

    All you motherfucking voters can suck my ass. Fuck you. Fuck America.

    • (Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:00AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:00AM (#600534)

      You were in jail for one day of your life, so all tech people are in jail.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:39AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:39AM (#600541)

      Can you be specific about your solution?

      -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

      • (Score: 3, Funny) by FatPhil on Thursday November 23 2017, @09:46AM

        by FatPhil (863) <pc-soylentNO@SPAMasdf.fi> on Thursday November 23 2017, @09:46AM (#600593) Homepage
        It probably involves a "manifesto"...
        --
        Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
    • (Score: 2) by t-3 on Thursday November 23 2017, @12:49PM (2 children)

      by t-3 (4907) on Thursday November 23 2017, @12:49PM (#600634)

      Complaining about hours in jail? The laughter, it hurts. Try solitary with no lights for 30 days you whiny bitch.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @02:41PM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @02:41PM (#600669)

        Sounds peaceful. Did you take advantage of it? And, would you like some cheese with your whine?

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:37PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:37PM (#600780)

          Give it a try and see how long you last.
          No computer. No TV. No radio. No reading material.
          Just you and 4 walls.

          There have been folks who poo-poo'd waterboarding--until they allowed themselves to be subjected to that.
          They each lasted a tiny matter of seconds before calling off the experiment. [google.com]

          -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:53PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @06:53PM (#600762)

      When the FBI accused me of domestic terrorism on a bullshit trumped up charge

      Isn't that the official designation of dick pics?

  • (Score: 2, Offtopic) by crafoo on Thursday November 23 2017, @03:46PM

    by crafoo (6639) on Thursday November 23 2017, @03:46PM (#600695)

    I'm going to blame javascript. It's a safe bet. But also Microsoft Internet Edginess (or whatever they have to call it now to re-brand but keep the IE logo). It's a hell of a thing. I remember thinking how wonderful and glorious things would be in 10 years. I was naive though. There are so many other motivations, driving forces, end-goals for software creation. Creating good, useful software is maybe #55 on the list. And the good stuff is hidden in a tiring sea of over-marketed failures. I don't really blame the lawyers here. The software industry has produced about 99% trash. Video playback has actually gotten worse, not better lately. aaaaand, we circle back around the javashit being to blame.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @04:47PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 23 2017, @04:47PM (#600710)

    Stop trying to make antifa happen, it ain't gon' happen

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 24 2017, @09:44PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 24 2017, @09:44PM (#601152)

      Actually, it happens all the time now.

      Since the noteworthy event in Boston in August where you skinheads were outnumbered 40,000:50, every time you white supremacists have gathered, you've been outnumbered by protesters at least 10:1.

      You racist nationalists are a tiny minority and the rest of us are tired of your stupid sieg heil shit.

      -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

  • (Score: 1, Flamebait) by Entropy on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:38PM

    by Entropy (4228) on Thursday November 23 2017, @07:38PM (#600781)

    Sorry the innocent bystanders were caught up because they were next to Isis "protestors". I'm sure they had the best intentions and were merely close by the radical terrorists that should have been arrested. Or was it Antifa terrorists? Same thing, anyway.

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