Federal agents raid Fieger office

[Ruby Romaine]

December 1, 2005
By DAVID ASHENFELTER and JOE SWICKARD
Free Press Staff Writers

Federal agents raided the law office of Geoffrey Fieger late Wednesday looking for evidence that he laundered $35,000 in campaign contributions to the John Edwards 2004 presidential campaign through his employees.

"Yeah, right, I want to hear it from them." Fieger said this morning, charging he's the victim of Republican conspiracy. "I'm tired of all of this McCarthyism - period."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051201/NEWS11/51201001

[liberal N proud]

1. McCarthyism - My first thought!

[babylonsister]

2. Is Fieger the guy who represented Kevorkian? nt

[shraby]

3. Yes he did represent kevorkian.

[kskiska]

4. He had a lot to say about Schiavo, too.

Common sense stuff.

[A HERETIC I AM]

7. I lived in Detroit during that whole time.....

and he was loved and hated with equal passion.

He is a rationalist and i like him. He defended Kevorkian as best he could but in the end, Kevorkian hung himself by videotaping what was essentially an intentional pushing of a law that was recently installed because of public disfavor of the him.

Kevorkian is also a rationalist and an atheist if not agnostic. This along with his outspoken advocacy for end of life/death with dignity issues made him widely hated even though the families of those he assisted the suicides of to this day have nothing but praise for him.

[noonwitch]

37. It also should be noted that Kervorkian fired Fieger before the videotaped

death he was convicted of. Fieger likely told him it was a bad idea to videotape the assisted suicide and broadcast it on "60 Minutes".

Personally, I think Dr. Death crossed the line a few times. A couple of the people he "helped" were not terminally ill. One was a woman with cerebral palsy-her doctors failed her, if she felt that suicide was her only option.

I also think Fieger is a grand-stander, but a good lawyer. I really don't think he is stupid enough to have violated campaign finance laws. My favorite high profile case of his was the Jenny Jones case. He also was good to step up and represent the 11 year old murderer at his adult trial a few years back-he did it pro-bono, too. The kid's court-appointed attorney was in way over his head, as that was the first case being tried under the law that allows for any kid to be sentenced as an adult at any age. He also won the case, in the sense that the kid ended up being sentenced as a juvenile, after all.

Interestingly, one of my friends and her husband went to high school with Fieger (Cass Tech, I believe)-the husband still despises him, 35 years later.

[Enraged_Ape]

22. I prefer to think of him as the brother of The Knack's front man

Hey, I liked The Knack. They rocked.

[babylonsister]

5. I wonder who sicced the FBI on him, and on what grounds? nt

[Ruby Romaine]

6. there's been some really weird stuff w/ Repuke Atty Gen'l Mike Cox

confessing to affairs & claiming Fieger was trying to blackmail him.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=a1A8HNBvzutc&refer=us

[0007]

35. That name (Mike Cox) indeed gets my attention every time,

I wonder if Mike Cox runs wild with Mike Hunt?

After viewing his photo, I've intuitively come to the conclusion that

Mike Cox is indeed a prick

[Judi Lynn]

8. Feds raid Fieger's offices

Thursday, December 01, 2005
Feds raid Fieger's offices

Oralandar Brand-Williams / The Detroit News

FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents raided prominent attorney Geoffrey Fieger's Southfield offices Wednesday night.

FBI Special Agent Terry Booth said the agents executed a search warrant at the offices on 10 Mile near Evergreen as part of an ongoing investigation. He would not comment on what it involved.
(snip)

"They're just full of crap," Fieger said. "There's nothing I know about it."
(snip)

The FBI said its investigation began before Republican state Attorney General Mike Cox's probe into whether Fieger illegally funded a $457,000 ad campaign against state Supreme Court Justice Stephen Markman in last year's election.

On Nov. 9, Cox accused Fieger of trying to force him into dropping the campaign finance probe by threatening to reveal that Cox had an extramarital affair.
(snip/)

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051201/METRO/512010440/1003

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Geoffrey Feiger's an excellent person. I can't wait until this blows up in Cox's face.



Geoffrey Feiger, Attny. Gen. Mike Cox

[patdem]

9. Thanks for the picture..Feiger appears on Court TV all the time

Now I will have more respect for him!

[Judi Lynn]

10. Welcome. Likewise, I'll have more respect for him, after learning

these idiot Republicans have been trying to make trouble for him.

He's really bright, and decent.

They probably are worried he'll try to run for office, and want to knock him out of the running as soon as possible.

[AspenRose]

11. Republican dirty tricks 101

Sounds like Cox has been either talking to Rove or channeling the spirit of Lee Atwater (or both).


It stinks to high heaven. And I hope people are smart enough to see through it. Hopefully Cox will get more and more desperate, pushing the envelope more and more for folks to see right through him.

PS-My gut tells me they are messin' with the WRONG Democrat (Fieger). He's not going to take any crap.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

13. 10 Mile near Evergreen.

I bet I know the place his office is in. I used to stay at the Holiday Inn there, when I worked for Seger.

[Judi Lynn]

16. Really! He does outstanding cases. Gives lawyers a GREAT name. n/t

[louis-t]

24. When did you work for Seger?

We may know each other.

[Windy]

21. Please don't defend fieger....

He is not good for the Democratic party. He has many MANY skeletons. I know many who have and do work for him.

[ScreamingMeemie]

32. And I know many who are elected Democrats who know him and respect

him. So do you. Friend of a friend story again, eh?

[Windy]

38. self delete

must hold my temper

[Mika]

36. Some people say? LOL n/t

[louis-t]

25. The early campaign photos of Cox were very strange.

He looked like a brownshirt. Very odd.

[ScreamingMeemie]

31. I think it goes beyond Cox, and I think Fieger will make it blow

up in the GOP's face. As he said, You don't call out 100 FBI agents to raid one man's office for alledged campaign contribution fraud. :hi:

[stop the bleeding]

12. So the FBI is going to raid all of the other people on "W's" side that

got illegal donations as well?????

[stillcool]

14. Tit for Tat....the favorite..

defense for any wrong-doing...and if they can't find any dirt, they just make it up....

[AngryAmish]

15. He is not too liked in the legal community around there

or so I am told. I have no first hand knowledge.

[KT2000]

17. Really like that guy!

Read once that when a hospital failed to pay up on a case he won - he took a van to the hospital and starting loading their furniture into it to start to satisfy the award. from the court.

:evilgrin:

[JohnWxy]

18. IRS RAIDS GEOFFREY FIEGER'S OFFICE

Federal agents raid Fieger office

December 1, 2005

By DAVID ASHENFELTER and JOE SWICKARD

Free Press Staff Writers
Federal agents raided the law office of Geoffrey Fieger late Wednesday looking for evidence that he laundered $35,000 in campaign contributions to the John Edwards 2004 presidential campaign through his employees.

“Yeah, right, I want to hear it from them.” Fieger said this morning, charging he’s the victim of Republican conspiracy. “I’m tired of all of this McCarthyism – period.”

The investigation has been underway for about four months and it being directed out of the Justice Department’s public integrity section in Washington D.C., according to a person familiar with the probe who spoke on condition of anonymity because on the on-going case.

At the same time, federal agents Wednesday night began serving grand jury subpoenas for appearances in January.

Richard Steinberg who is representing Fieger said agents seized 25-50 banker's boxes of material including weekly payroll and checking account deposit records. He also said he understands that other law firms including ones in Little Rock, Ark., also have been investigated for employee donations to the Edward's campaign.

FBI spokeswoman Dawn Clenney confirmed that agents raided the law office on 10 Mile Road in Southfield, but wouldn’t discuss the details of the raid.

Fieger said agents from the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation were looking for material related to donations from members of his firm to the 2004 presidential Democratic campaign. He said there is “nothing, nothing,” that the agents will find worthwhile in what they swept up in the raid.

“It’s outrageous, outrageous,” Fieger added. “With all the terrorism that’s supposed to be going on, they have the time and resources to do it?”

U.S. Attorney Stephen Murphy III declined to comment on the raid, saying he had been recused from the case by the Justice Department, but said members of his office were working on the investigation. Murphy referred calls to the Justice Department in Washington, D.C.

Murphy said he couldn’t discuss the reasons for the recusal, but it apparently resulted from $300 in contributions he made in 2004 to the re-election campaign of Michigan Supreme Court Justice Stephen Markman, who figures into the recent controversy surrounding Fieger and Michigan Attorney General Michael Cox. At the time, Murphy was a General Motors staff lawyer. Murphy was asked to step aside to avoid any appearance of conflict of interest.

Fieger said Cox, Oakland County Prosecutor David Gorcyca and Murphy are in cahoots.

He said one of the agents told an employee, “We want to get Fieger.”

Fieger, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate in 1998, has said he might run against Cox. The two are locked a messy brawl with Cox alleging that Fieger tried to derail an investigation of Fieger’s funding of an anti-Markman campaign ad by threatening to expose an extramarital affair involving Cox.

“Now we’ve got Cox, Gorcyca and the U.S. Attorney all coming at me,” Fieger said.

[LSparkle]

19. OMG -- they've tangled with the wrong guy this time

Feiger has MAJOR cojones and will fight this tooth and nail, like a mad dog. He will NOT go quietly ...

[ScreamingMeemie]

34. He already made Frank Turner look like a preschooler who wasn't

getting his way last night on ABC. Mrg and I were both stunned. :hi:

[Windy]

20. I'm no fan of Fiegers, however...

there was a report in the Detroit Free Press this morning that stated the Feds were looking at contributions to the Kerry/Edwards campaign from other lawfirms too. Sounds like the administration is focusing on Dems to deflect the focus from their corruption, or to go after Kerry as he is coming out hard against Bush and the admin's policies re: Iraq. Reprehensible. Apparently the contribution dollar amount attributed to Fieger and his office was only 35,000. I don't think he's the fish they are trying to fry. The investigation would cost more than $35,000.


I don't believe that this investigation is solely focused on him, despite Fieger's rants. He believes he is the center of the known universe! :o)

[newswolf56]

23. Think, people (don't just react)! This is undoubtedly the opening gun...

of an attack on John Edwards' candidacy in 2008.

Why? Because Edwards -- unlike any other potential candidate -- is already talking about the vital need to restore the New Deal: a move the capitalist oligarchy fears and hates every bit as much as it fears and hates Communism.

Why? Because the basic principle of the New Deal is recognition of the historical truth of class struggle: the fact that capitalism is definitively malevolent, and that if it is to be made useful to a democratic society, it must be caged, controlled, and above all prevented from reverting to its core ideology of fascism.

What we are getting here is an early glimpse of the extent to which the oligarchy and its Bush Administration puppets -- already more brazenly fascist than any administration in U.S. history -- will go to retain power in 2006 and 2008.

[Windy]

26. You got it!!

[PassingFair]

30. Organized take-down of Fieger has been "on" for a few weeks

...here in Michigan, News...

Kinda been following it in the state forum...

Fieger is NOT a man to swerve in a game of chicken. The bad guys REALLY want him out of ANY position where he could get the goods on them.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=159x4618

[ScreamingMeemie]

33. He plays it so well he even dupes some of "our own"....

;) But, he's sharp as nails and they've made a HUGH!1111 mistake. I'm series about this. These are stickily lies.

[Judi Lynn]

39. It would seem the only people who would hate/fear him are politically

motivated. He's a tremendous force. Completely admirable. The right-wing would obviously despise him. He wouldn't have supported their brilliant obsession with keeping Ms. Sciavo's brain-dead form alive.

You're right to be series! It is a HUGH!1111 mistake to try to railroad this man.

[VegasWolf]

27. Bushism is making McCarthyism look like childs play. I used to wonder

how McCarthyism could have ever been allowed to happen. Now I know.

[wishlist]

28. This is only way Repubs can try to smear Mr Clean John Edwards

Since they never found anything with which to smear the reputation and character of Edwards, the only possible smear tactic was to target the campaign contributions of law firms that supported him.

[AX10]

29. McCarthyism all over again.