There is a better way.

He's 92 years old! Convicted of murder and sent to a Utah prison he escaped and did it again at age 66. Viva L. Nash is exactly why the death penalty is so popular. This guy will die of old age before he will ever see the hot needle. I'm not fond of the death penalty but this case is not one I'd use to argue against it. This guy was stopped by an armed law-abiding heroic Phoenix citizen. I think we all wish we could make it to 92 and look that good! Many of my retired cop pals only in their 60s are in poor health and look older than Nash. I somehow don't think this was from clean living. The following was taken from records of The Arizona Department of Corrections where this fellow is on Death Row: INMATE 047754 NASH VIVA, L While serving two consecutive life sentences for murder and robbery in Utah, Nash escaped. Three weeks later, on November 3, 1982, he entered a coin shop in north Phoenix, demanded money from an employee, Greggory West, and then shot Mr. West three...

The next terrorist attack at an airport on American soil will happen this way. A suicide bomber with a three large bombs will buy a ticket, not check baggage and find himself in the middle of a screening line with hundreds of travelers. He will have a large backpack and two carryon style suitcases full of enough explosives to destroy the terminal and everyone in it. As I have said on this blog so may times. We must stop letting people fly on our planes carrying passports of countries that are at odds with the USA. We need to bring back the Fourth Amendment and stop searching Americans, What we really need are trained, armed professional cops profiling passengers from the point they enter any airport for behavior issues. These poorly trained TSA workers are part of the problem rather than the solution

Gun laws, and an all important gun fee zone again made mass murder all to easy for a twisted 14 year-old killer in Cleveland, OH yesterday. When will we learn that these gun prohibitions only affect law-abiding people and not those who rob, rape and murder? Soon we will know just how many feel-good gun laws were broken that enabled Asa Coon’s, two-gun rampage. Did the school have armed security or police present? Not a chance in yet another city run by gun-rights hating politicians. Had a teacher or security guard been armed this catastrophe could have been prevented or considerably minimized. Asa Coon wore a Marilyn Manson T-shirt and that was more than enough information that young Asa Coon was headed for trouble. Asa Coon wore dog collars, back trench coats and nail polish. Where were his parents? Have we learned to tolerate and accept any bizarre and anti-social appearance demonstrations by our children? This child was a walking billboard that spelled HELP ME! Any parent or...

I’m looking for neighbors, friends, ex-friends, co-workers and others who have talked with prosecution witnesses in the Phil Spector trial. Judge Larry Paul Fidler has issued a gag order preventing any and all witness from talking about the case. I’m working under information and belief that many of these people have violated the gag order, lied, exaggerated their claims while seeking fame and fortune. There are many people out there that know the truth. A conviction of Phil Spector would allow Lana Clarkson’s family to take all of Phil Spector’s assets in the pending civil case. How has that impacted the testimony of witnesses in this case? I suspect that there are also issues within the ranks of the prosecutors, some cops and perhaps court officials to obstruct justice and manipulate evidence and witnesses. Our system of justice requires that the truth be exposed to insure fair trials. The last trial of record producer Phil Spector was anything but fair. If you or someone yo...

That’s how Roger Rosen described his fellow Spector defense lawyer, Christopher Plourd to Judge Larry Paul Fidler as he and the rest of the legal defense team made their exit from further proceedings. Let me not fail to mention that bay area lawyer Dennis Riordan is still on board for the limited capacity of filing various motions. Don’t expect Riordan to make local appearances for Spector in the near future. The purpose of this mornings proceeding's was to sort out the retrial of the legendary record producer who still faces a murder charge in connection with the mysterious death of Lana Clarkson. Even Christopher Plourd has no clue what role he will continue to play in this pending case. The very petite lead prosecutor, Alan Jackson has not bothered to shave since the mistrial. Jackson was looking like he’s back from a week long bender with Jose Cuervo. Even Judge Fidler recognized that Spector will have a difficult time finding a qualified lawyer with a calendar that is wide...

Of all the James Bond movies I’ve seen there are two bond girls that stand out in my mind as the most fun. There was the incredibly sexy Honor Blackman who played Pussy Galore in Goldfinger and then of course Lois Maxwell who rocked in 14 Bond films as the flirtatious secretary, Miss Moneypenny. Maxwell in her 40s and 50s could always hold her own as well as any sexy Bond babe half her age. Maxwell, a Canadian born actress has died of cancer on Sunday in London. The shock I have to get over is that Maxwell was somehow already 80 years old! My thinking was that she was never a day older that she was in her last Bond film in 1985. I will never get used to death and dying because it seems so unfair. I guess we have to accept that we’re all in this together and none of us are getting out alive. Here is Honor Blackman in 1964 and the present. She looks great for 80!

At least that’s what I predict. It’s very difficult to find a qualified lawyer to take over a murder trial that may take as long as seven months from the point of picking a jury. The better the lawyer, the busier he or she will be. Finding someone qualified with the time to prepare and try the case will be difficult at best. Judge Fidler is Hell-bent on taking advantage of Spector’s difficult position forcing him to trial even before he’s found new counsel. The chances of one or more new lawyers filing a Notice Of Appearance in court Wednesday morning are zero. It’s only reasonable to assume the current legal team has made commitments to their other clients expecting the Spector case would have been over by now. Will Judge Fidler destroy Phil Spector’s right to legal counsel under the Sixth Amendment of our Constitution? CA vs Spector is no case for an amateur criminal defense lawyer. This is a complex case that will make huge intellectual demands requiring the lawyer to be part ...

I’ve learned some amazing facts about the California Private Investigator Examination. Of the people that can qualify to even take the test 85% fail the examination. Who are these failed applicants you ask? A high percentage of them are retired federal, state and local law enforcement officers including FBI agents! Many try to take the test again and still fail. Having taken and passed the test I can say It was not a logical test and there were a few questions with more than one right answer. I have always had a gift for test taking and was disappointed to find out that the tests are only scored as pass or fail. I wanted to know what my score was and will never know. These PI license applicants need not fear flunking the test because these guys simply set up shop as “Investigative Consultants” and rake in cash to do what they’re not licensed to do. The public and lawyers use these guys because they assume that they are somehow qualified. These rogue operators make excuses for ...

Surveillance cameras are everywhere these days but our friends across the Atlantic have led the way with unleashing Big Brother technology on their citizens. They have recently admitted that their cameras may record the actual crime but thousands of criminals escape detection simply because nobody is able to identify the perpetrators. The Brits are working overtime to find out ways to improve their ever growing crime problem that’s been fed by draconian gun bans that provided better working conditions for muggers, rapists and killers. We seems to follow every British trend since the day that the Beatles landed in New York. What is the next step you ask? Why the National ID Card will soon roll out complete with RFID technology alerting every camera with the personal data of those within the cameras range. Of course this too will fail too as criminals make sure their ID cards are not in their pockets while doing their deeds. The fun part of this technology will be in the form of fi...

The call made by many today is for genocide intervention in Darfur, Africa. Darfur is only an example of a much larger problem of what happens when governments have onerous and effective gun control laws. Of course rogue governments are far more successful when they have unlimited powers to search the homes of civilians in order to disarm them. Constant, wholesale slaughter and genocide has been a reality in Africa. Many hundreds of millions of Africans have been tortured and murdered, too often by or with the help of their own governments. If all African citizens had firearms this kind of carnage would be impossible to carry out. The Liberal American approach to bring an end to the wholesale murder in Africa is to involve United Nations and American troops. Who pays for that kind of intervention and with how many American lives? Doesn’t sending arms and a few advisors to teach vulnerable Africans who to use them in order to survive make a lot more sense? Groups like the Genoc...

As most educated Americans know this is the Day the Supreme Court convenes after their long summer recess. This time of year various news organizations publish information about some of the cases before our Supreme Court that may somehow impact our lives. The case that gun-rights advocates and haters alike are watching intently is Parker vs. District of Columbia . That case goes to the core of the Second Amendment. Either Americans have the absolute right to keep and bear arms or not. The weak and astonishing argument made by those who want guns banned is that the Second Amendment conveys that right to states rather than the people. Clearly the states are the government and inherently have the power to have arms without the Second Amendment. Our Militia is not a government regulated organization but individual Americans with arms that can band together and deal with rebellions, insurrections, war and keeping the peace. The militia is also there to safeguard American freedoms shou...

Phoenix-47 year-old David Hans Schmidt was found dead in his townhouse of an apparent suicide. Schmidt was a reporter, turned publicist, turned wheeler-dealer, turned admitted extortionist who began his current career in earnest when he represented disgraced Olympic skater Tonya Harding helping her sell her own raunchy honeymoon video. Schmidt liked to stay close to TV reporters and such always looking for a fast buck for information. Soon the reporters I know distanced themselves from Schmidt and his nefarious merchandise. Too often Schmidt’s schemes had an extortionate odor to them as he made or tried to make deals with various celebrities such as O.J. Simpson, Paris Hilton, and Hugh Grant. Schmidt would try to “sell” the star's salacious and embarrassing items such as photos and videos he’d somehow gain control over. Schmidt got a lot more than he anticipated when he tried to sell Mr.& Mrs. Tom Cruise copies of their own private wedding photographs. He was tethered to a...

During the Phil Spector trial testimony we all learned that the normal investigative procedure for the L.A. County Coroner’s Office was obstructed by the District Attorney’s office. Lana Clarkson suffered a fatal intra-oral gunshot wound and based on early statements made by Phil Spector that this was an “accidental suicide” a standard psychological autopsy was both warranted and needed. The goal of such post-mortem examinations is to learn the true manner and cause of death with the history of the decedent’s alcohol, drug abuse and depression issues. There was no psychological autopsy because DA’s office officials conspired with L.A. Coroner’s Office officials to engage in a cover-up to hide this crucial evidence from the defense, Superior Court, Grand Jury and ultimately any trial jury. This was a case of deliberate obstruction of justice rather than a simple mistake. It was done in an effort to frame the suspect Phil Spector on a bogus murder charge. Phil Spector has the option ...

I’ve known a lot of criminal lawyers in my time and have worked with the Some of the best anywhere. Unfortunately there are a large number of media hounds that make high profiles for themselves as their clients go to prison. I put some serious thought into who should be the new lead lawyer for Phil Spector. As the readers of this blog know, I sincerely believe Philip Spector is an innocent man. I would not wish on Spector any more of the headline grabbers or legal pundits. My first choice would be Bay Area lawyer Gerald Schwartzbach who won a not guilty verdict for actor Robert Blake. Schwartzbach is brilliant, charming and has a great style. For a second chair I’d go with appellant lawyer, Dennis Riordan who was a late entry to the old team. Spector had lots of great experts but lacked a needed firearms expert like author, Massad F Ayoob who’s been on the right side of some nearly impossible cases. For investigators I can recommend myself to work with a little gal Schwartz...

The vote was 10-2 in favor of a murder conviction against the legendary record producer Phil Spector. Judge Fidler did all that he could to unfairly lead the jury to a conviction. Under these circumstances the mistrial is a huge defense victory. Further court action including dealing with the L.A. District Attorney’s announced decision to try this case again has taken place. The involved lawyers will get whatever feedback the jury will give them and use it to formulate their game plans. The lawyers will be back in court next Wednesday for further proceedings. Judge Fidler had what could only be described as a sour grapes facial expression as he announced the mistrial. Prosecutor Alan Jackson has tears in his eyes. I suspect that prosecutors will have an even more difficult time with their witnesses as they forget the lies they told during the first trial. Of course the parade of bimbos from the ranks of Spector’s old bedmates may well be reluctant to face cross-examination again. ...

The jury and Judge Fidler communicated with each other this morning. The clerk announced that the jury ended deliberations and the Judge will have a court session at 1:30 PM. We will again hear the word MISTRIAL ! This can only mean a final deadlock. Perhaps we will soon know the current split of the jury's vote and its direction. Of course Judge Fidler will be unhappy and may try again to force a conviction with some new scheme.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's officers have launched an investigation into a MY SPACE posting under Phil Spector's young wife's name today. That posting has since vanished from the site. It’s no secret that I’m no fan of Judge Larry Paul Fiddler’s handling of Phil Spector’s murder trial. The judge has consistently ruled to make conviction a sure thing. He’s allowed the prosecution unusually wide leeway of what they could use against Spector. I hate Fidler’s actions because they threaten every American’s rights. I met the judge nearly five years ago when he and that attractive Court TV reporter/lawyer, Beth Karas gave a seminar that I attended at the Investigative Reporters and Editor’s conference in San Francisco. Judge Fidler was as nice a fellow as I’ve ever met. Fidler struck me as knowledgeable, glib, articulate, and a fun kind of guy. Fidler seemed very fond of news reporters. When Phil Spector was indicted I came to the courtroom and saw a not so small but opiniona...

The murder trial of Phil Spector can be called nothing but a pseudo-legal train wreck. Judicial abuses and excesses designed to do anything but grant Spector a fair trial appeared at every opportunity. The damage done to Spector’s due process rights under our constitution is now well established. From the abuse of judicial discretion by bringing in alleged witnesses claiming Spector engaged in gunplay in unreported and uncharged,long past events well before many of the jurors were born. Another huge problem I have is their stories are all exactly tailored to fit articles published well before the women came forward. When witnesses testify and use identical words, gestures and phrases it’s always a sure sign of perjury. That’s what happened here.. Today it’s obvious that the jury is deadlocked, evenly divided 5-7 because half the jury saw through the hate and lies. Half chose to simply stick with the scientific physical evidence. I hope damage done to Phil Spector by Judge Fidler’s ...

The joy of this blog is I can bring anything I want here. This is a welcome break from the very heavy things I’ve been writing about. I’m a fan of musical theater and enjoyed the music of one of my favorite plays for more than two decades now. I’ve also grown up with the songs of a great lady whose voice has never failed. Sit back and enjoy the next couple of minutes with the incomparable Petula Clark. On second thought Les Miserables is anything but a "light" story! The music however is wonderful.