Yesterday, NMC discussed David Rossmiller’s 10 questions about Scruggs. That interesting exercise re-stirred the dozen questions that’ve been bugging the hell out of us too (ach, wotta surprise: the two of us focus on the same names first and last) . . .
1. [NMC] Who was the “high ranking public official” who called Ed Peters about a tax prosecution against Roberts Wilson in 2000?
2. [lotus] When and where was the last verified sighting of Ed Peters in public (and where and how has he kept busy since)?
3. [NMC] What’s the full story on the 3% of the tobacco fees paid to Joey Langston — who is getting what parts, and are the Butler family (whom Joey’s brother Shane represented in a tobacco case) sharing some of that money?
4. [lotus] How did P.L. Blake, raised beside the Tallahatchie River in a shack made from an abandoned schoolbus, go from Miss. State and Canadian League football-player to Fifty Million Dollar Man? I’ve heard that he hooked up with Senator Eastland and went from there. But went where and to whom?
5. [NMC] What exactly was Steve Patterson doing while employed at the Langston Law Firm up there in Booneville?
6. [lotus] How did Joe Biden get so chummy with these Mississippi boys, and how has that worked for him over the years?
7. [NMC] What was the Kentucky project Patterson and Balducci were chasing in early-to-middle 2007?
8. [lotus] I hear Dickie and the gang were “throwing around money like a manure-spreader in the field” after the tobacco settlement. Who got how much? (Is this #6 in sheep’s clothing?)
9. [NMC] What exactly did Patterson and Balducci tell Jim Hood to convince him to drop the State Farm prosecution?
10. [lotus] Why, when Breland Hilburn had for years been putting everybody to sleep with the pace of Wilson v. Scruggs, did he in late 2000 or early 2001 suddenly come to and start pouring out orders (including middle-of-the-night ones in barely-English)?
11. [NMC] Just how many cases are caught up in that Peters-DeLaughter connection thing?
12. [lotus] Did people know to go to Peters to get to DeLaughter, or did DeLaughter just say, “Hey, Ed, here’s a case with $$$ in it”? If (a), how did they know, and why did Peters switch from entering his appearances (Kirk v. Pope) to not doing so (Wilson, Eaton, and maybe others)?
lotus, re #4 we know Blake ,through Hiram Eastlands comments regarding the coffee pot ( I think it was probably bourbon or scotch), had a connection with James O. Eastland way back in the early 1970′s. He borrowed a lot of money and started a big time farming operation between Greenwood and Ruleville. We know he got involved in the grain elevator business in Texas( borrowed money and purchased them from Billy Sol Estes) and one can only guess what was involved in this.. Somewhere in here he met Steve Patterson who was at the now defunct Mississippi Bank and borrowed more money. My take on this is to come as far as he did he had to have some strong connections and my best guess is they were tied to Senator James O. Eastland in some way. Oh, at one point in time he owned a pro basketball team — the “Memphis Tams”. I don’t think his record for paying back loans was very good thus his relationship with Dickie Scruggs through his bankruptcy case.
Y’all look at the Judicial Performance motion on Kirk v. Pope– Peters had NOT made an appearance when he made the ex parte contact with Delaughter at his house. Incredibly, DeLaughter says this IN HIS ORDER. Only several days after the Order was entered did Peters enter his appearance.
4. P.L. Blake: In 1983 Don Barrett became the state director of the Farmers Home Administration. If I remember correctly, P.L. Blake received the largest FmHA loans during Barrett’s tenure as director.
Didn’t someone say in the last week or two they saw Peters in downtown Jackson? One Jackson Place, maybe?
Joe Biden, Joey Langston, Joe Biden, Joey Langston…Follow the money.
Somebody reported seeing Peters at or near One Jackson Place (for some reason, in my mind I see him at Chik-Fil-A but that’s not what was reported). I’m pretty sure, though, that Ed Peters has a doppelganger in Jackson.
Lotus, re: #6, Biden’s not the only Washington pol who was close to Dickie ‘n em. I distinctly remember reading a Washington Post article that claimed John McCain “turned over his office” to Moore and Scruggs during the Capitol Hill tobacco fight of the 90′s.
Here’s a less reliable source for that info (look under the Scruggs heading midway down):
http://www.overlawyered.com/politics-ii/
I know, OMTL (hey, good to see you!). That Frontline documentary we were discussing last night also featured interviews with McCain and Dick Morris the Vile.
Good to be seen, Lotus. Regarding #11, this is the list as I know it (I may be forgetting some, if so, y’all feel free to add ‘em):
1. Wilson v. Scruggs
2. Kirk v. Pope
3. Eaton v. Frisby
4. State v. Middleton
MSlawyer // Mar 20, 2008 at 9:31 pm
I saw Ed Peters in the Chick-Fil-A in downtown Jackson last week. He was with 3 other men. I stared at him with my mouth hanging open, and he and they scurried on out.
It was at Chik-Fil-A! The downtown dining scene is kinda sad. (Although the food at Steve’s is very good).
Steve’s Downtown Deli is good, and provides sandwiches to prisoners being detained at the U.S. Marshal’s Office. So they’re eating well in spite of their unfortunate predicament.
Jane, you don’t care for those old downtown stalwarts, the Mayflower and the Elite?
The broiled fish and broiled oysters at the Mayflower are wonderful, and the gumbo is decent.
Mayflower broiled scallops…. faboo
Regrettably, no, as to the excellent peanut soup, Jane. Sammiches only. They are being punished, after all.
I’m with you regarding the Elite – nothing to write home about. But I love the Mayflower Greek salad and the seafood. The fried chicken on the Friday lunch is great, too, and brings in quite a crowd.
re #5, Patterson was the lobbyist for the Langston firm.
jane where us Steve’s
yum!
One question and one comment:
A question I would add to the above list is why did Trent Lott really resign when he did?
My comment, in response to Nomiss’s early post – read the Mississippi Supreme Court’s description of PL Blake’s FmHA shenanigans in Blake v. Gannett Co., in which Blake [unsuccessfully] sued The Clarion-Ledger for libel in its reporting on those shenanigans. Of some interest, one of Blake’s attorneys in that case was Fred Thompson, the recently vanquished presidential candidate. He ran [runs?] with some big dogs….
Well hey, sutpens100, where ya been?
Here’s a 1997 story (pdf) about it.
Here’s the cite in Southern Reporter, 2d: Blake v. Gannett Co., Inc., 529 So.2d 595 (Miss.1988). I have a pdf copy of the decision but dont know how to upload it – can I email it to you?
Yes, please do.
Fred Thompson, REALLY, now? I guess that means we can add him to the list of Dickie’s friends in high places along w/ Joe Biden, John McCain, Hillary Clinton…all presidential candidates …wonder if ole Kucinich factors in (ha!ha!)
Here we go, courtesy of sutpens100:
Blake v. Gannett (12-page pdf)
Entrance to Steve’s Deli is on Congress Street, between Capitol and Pearl. Sorry, Jane.
Or just follow your nose?
i am a little behind the curve here, but it would seem that the one’s who entered in to the plea agreement the latetest would get the worst deal…, not the sweetest – any thoughts on the matter?
I had the bread pudding at the Mayflower once. Tasted like a soggy doughnut. And what’s up with those little bitty glasses?
sammy 30, yes, that’s usually the way it works — but we’re in hide-n-watch mode on this one, and anything to do with Wilson could reset the whole meter.
Sammy, you also have to factor in culpability, major vs. minor participant in conspiracy, strength/weakness of the Govt’s evidence against particular defendants, etc – e.g., even if it was Zach’s brilliant idea to “earwig” Judge Lackey, the evidence I’ve seen linking Zach to the actual bribe looked the weakest compared to that against his co-conspirators. Maybe Sid would have buried Zach with his testimony had Zach gone to trial, but one suspects the Govt wasn’t so sure about that. That may explain why Zach was allowed to plead to a lesser offense that wasn’t even included in the indictment – he just didn’t leave as many fingerprints. And, of course, the Govt is holding Zach’s “you could file briefs on a napkin” e.mail in its backpocket – presumably the case vs. Zach is stronger in Wilson than in the Lackey matter. In short, if you’re concerned about Zach getting a sweetheart deal, the USA will have another bite at the apple. And, of course, when it comes to sentencing, Judge Biggers is not bound to accept the Govt’s recommendation; having heard the testimony given in the motions hearings, His Honor may not feel as charitably toward Zach.
However, I think that in Judge Biggers own words, when he seemed more than surprised at the plea agreement… he felt there was meat on those bones with Zach
Agreed as to the Judge’s apparent surprise. He may surprise Zach.
Mmm, Steve’s…it’s been a couple of years since I lived and worked in Jackson but I used to be in Steve’s almost every day. Glad to hear that he’s still going strong. I love the pot pie.
I would always get the meatloaf and mashed potatoes on Thursday and I generally don’t even like meatloaf.
Y’all killin’ me. I’m gonna hafta do a eatin’ tour of Mississippi lawyer-hangouts one of these years.
There are some really good ones — including the Elite for enchiladas and the Mayflower for shrimp remoulade (although maybe not the bread pudding). And I’m killing myself right now as I’m starving…
Better start a new thread for the Beef Plant scandal, Lotus…
MT, bet everybody thinks you”re just gettin hungry w/ that comment…you wanna explain bout the indictments?
Good point… Alan’s got it up on YP:
http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/7287/#33129
And now Sid Salter’s blog on the CL confirms that Ronnie Musgrove is the “public official” named in the indictments
Holy Cow!!!! (pun intended)
Pretty good for a Sailor, Sailor
Alan has added another post and Sid keeps banging ‘em out too…
Sailor and lotus, that’s a good title for the beef plant thread–Holy Cow!!!
^ ^ ^ Upstairs wid us, pliz ^ ^ ^
I’m just trying to catch up here after a long day at work. Yes, I’m the one who claims to have seen Ed Peters coming out of Chik-Fil-A. No, I can’t swear it was him, because, as Jane says, he may have a double.
I love Steve’s, too. The lasagne on Wednesday’s is good, and his salads are really awesome. My next favorite place downtown is Two Sisters Kitchen, but I can only eat there about once a year, or I’d outgrow my lawyer clothes.
Headed upstairs now to read about the beef plant.
With this thread and the Holy Cow thread, something has started me thinking. Back several elections ago, Scruggs “loaned” Musgrove and Tuck fairly large amount of money. Were these loans re-paid? If not would this be classified as undue influence upon the elected officals. The spider web catches another victim.
The fried chicken at Two Sisters is the best I’ve ever eaten…and if anyone tells Ms. Razor or my granny I said that, I’ll tell them ya’ll are a bunch of leftist radicals that don’t eat meat, pull the wings off flies, put puppies out at the local dump and root for LSU AND Alabama.
Shaves – your secret is safe here – really – the internet is just a fad – nobody ever looks here anymore
In reading all of the threads and looking at the overall picture is it not amazing that so many of these characters can be tied in together for such a long period of time. No doubt it goes back, at least,to the J.O. Eastland dynasty. As I have said earlier “these worms have been wiggling together for a long time”!