3.14.2023

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts




She lost her re-election bid in 2014.

  • Well, lookie there! Told ya! From the start, Michael Irvin's lawsuit was was nothing other than attempted damage control -- a ploy which backfired royally.   Just a couple of days ago Irvin said he had been through a "modern day lynching." Now he walks away after Marriott exposes his conduct. And if I'm Marriott's lawyers, I file a Motion for Sanctions.  This was a frivolous lawsuit from the start. (There's an 11:00 a.m. press conference by Irving's lawyers. I'm interested in how they will spin this.) 
  • It looks like one of them was a 21 year old Sanger man. But from the jail records, I can't figure out who there other one is. 

  • Good grief. "The Davidson County Sheriff’s Office says Camacho had been chatting with the [Dallas] teen through a social media platform."


  • On the express lanes I-35 at Meacham Boulevard in Fort Worth yesterday afternoon, a  "car broke apart" when it was hit by a rock truck in the southbound lanes, and part of the car hit other vehicles that were headed north. It all started when the rock truck hit a TxDOT sign. The driver of that vehicle is deceased.

  • I will go to my grave never understanding how you can be prosecuted twice -- once in state court and once in federal court for the same conduct -- and it not violate the Double Jeopardy Clause.

  • The "Dallas, Texas" Twitter account posted a short video yesterday of a SWAT team moving in on a building in Oak Cliff.  Just pretend you had never been to America but only know of it as the "Land of the Free." What would you guess would be the cause of the armed raid by the government?

    • Answer: The raid of a game room. 
  • How badly does Fox News want DeSantis over Trump? They literally conducted a softball interview yesterday morning while playing catch.


  • It was hard to wrap my head around years ago when the North Dallas Tollway finally reached all the way to 380. Now traffic is so heavy they built a hug overpass. 

  • The Wall Street Journal had an opinion piece yesterday on why Silicone Valley Bank failed. Has everyone lost their minds?

  • The fired UT basketball coach, who lost his gig after an arrest for alleged domestic violence,  has got a new gig. The SEC will always welcome you with open arms. 

  • There were two  "local" trials I've been following over the last couple of weeks. Both had high profile teams of Fort Worth lawyers and both cases got wrapped up yesterday.
    • Out of Wichita Falls, James Staley III was convicted of capital murder. He received an automatic life sentence.  

    • And in Waco, the retrial of the lady also accused of killing a child ended with a guilty verdict and a 50 year sentence. This was the case where they juror was excused for reading media coverage about the trial. Interestingly, the verdict is the exact same sentence she got a couple of years ago before the case was reversed on appeal. 
  • Liberally Lean Pick 'Em Tourney sign up is here. The entries always have funny names. And the tricked up scoring system was explained yesterday. 
at 8:30 AM

3.13.2023

Random Monday Morning Thoughts




I was in Destin 10 years ago for Spring Break. Actual pic during a beach walk. Let me tell you something, those Florida beaches and water are 100% different than the Texas coast. It's night and day. 

  • Since last Friday, we had the 16th largest bank in the country fail and be taken over by the FDIC.  With the vast majority of the deposits over the $250,000 government insurance limit, there were questions whether people and companies would ever see their money. 


    • But by last night, fearing a "run" on banks across the country, the government said everyone will get their money back. 


    • And somehow, it won't cost the taxpayers a cent. I think I understand this. This wasn't a bad investment situation.  


    • One week ago: 

  • This is a very weird Wise County case out of Rhome on 287.

     
    • Police are not only looking for the driver of the vehicle which didn't stop, but they are also looking for the 911 caller who might have been a witness. Oddly, police have a vague physical description of the 911 caller but no phone number or name. 
    • And a truck can catch up to a motorcycle? "[T]he motorcycle attempted to race away and get away from the truck, but the truck continued to pursue him and chase him down, and then actually swerved toward him several times,"  Rhome Police Chief Eric Debus told  Fox 4.
    • And the Chief of Police didn't provide any wiggle room that this wasn't an accident: “This was definitely a road rage incident,” he told the Messenger.
    • Here's Rhome PD's press release:

  • So Michael Irvin thought it was a good idea to sue the Marriott for slander? The Marriott fired back in a Motion on Friday with some very unflattering details. The unedited version is here. There is a 100% chance this case is going nowhere. 
    • One thing which has seen a dramatic change over the last five years is how legal motions in high profile cases have turned into press releases. 
    • But the federal judge royally chewed out Marriott for slow walking the release of the video to Irvin's lawyer. It seems that this lawyer had the honor of being Marriott's representative in federal court and taking the brunt of the judge's ire. 
  • An East Texas police chief and officer were arrested for using a confidential drug informant to buy drugs for them (as in actually for them) on the downlow. 
  • This story isn't getting near enough press. The ex-husband of a woman is suing three friends of his ex-wife for providing support for obtaining a drug to end her pregnancy with the man. The lawyers for the ex-husband are using text messages that the wife exchanged with her friends. 
    • And the lawyers representing him are the author of the Texas abortion "bounty bill" as well as the guy below, state rep. Briscoe Cain.  Women, take notice what is happening in Austin.
  • In an unrelated case, the federal judge who will probably ban the abortion pill for being "unsafe"  told the lawyers on a conference call with lawyers on Friday that he will have a hearing on Wednesday but, shockingly, the judge didn't want to place it immediately on the public docket. Someone on the call then leaked the info to the Texas Tribune. On the call, "[Judge] Kacsmaryk said he would delay putting the hearing on the public docket until late Tuesday to try to minimize disruptions and possible protests, and asked the lawyers on the call not to share information about it before then." That's the equivalent of trying to hide your court in the shadows from the press and public.

  • Other news from Friday, which should be on every front page, was that the conservative leaders of the Texas legislature unveiled their plan to divert your tax dollars from the public schools to private Christian schools:

  • Republican battles: 
    • Mike Pence finally spoke out against Trump for riling up the people who wanted to kill him on January 6th: 
    • Steven Bannon and Elon Musk are fighting: 
  • It's time for the Liberally Lean Pick 'Em Tourney. Sign up here.  The scoring system will be tricked up like last year. The first couple of rounds are critically important and might be enough to win the whole thing. Upset picks get bonuses. There will be a slight bump picking the actual one-team winner, but it might not be enough.
  • Here's the TV schedule for the first rounds of March Madness with channels and times

at 8:31 AM

3.10.2023

It's Friday -- Let's Get Out of Here

at 2:30 PM

Random Friday Morning Thoughts




The whole story is too confusing to summarize, but this was a great picture of the Dallas D.A. being called as a witness where he refused to testify. 

  • We've got a play in only two Acts.
    • Act I: Last November, in an elaborate press conference, he angrily denied allegations of sexual harassment made by six people. 



    • Act II: Yesterday.

  • The Cartel dropping off some guys who were (allegedly) responsible for the Matamoras kidnappings/murders and leaving an apology note is next level crime etiquette. 



  • Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell, 81, fell at a D.C. hotel and suffered a concussion which required hospitalization.

     
  • Not that it matters politically, but Trump has been "invited" to appear before a New York state grand jury next week in the Stormy Daniels probe -- which apparently is a clear sign he's about to get indicted. 

    • Trump then went on a a multi-post post rant where he denied every having sex with her despite paying off the National Enquirer to kill the affair story. And he still thinks its a good idea to call her a "Horseface." That alone will kill him in front of a jury. Did I mention there is no bottom?


  • Oh, my. A little excitement at the Wilmington International Airport in North Carolina last night. 

  • Man, does he ever. Audio. Language warning.

  • A nutty moment in a high profile Waco murder case involving Fort Worth defense lawyers happened yesterday when a wheels-off juror was removed because he had been monitoring social media about the trial and shared hot opinions with other jurors.  He took the 5th when questioned by the judge.  (You can see a Twitter play by play of the event on this reporter's feed if you scroll down.)

  • I'm seeing conflicting ages for the 17 year old's pregnant girlfriend. 


  • Big 12 Tourney: Texas rolls, TCU rolls, Kansas rolls, and #10 Baylor got beat because they were out-rebounded 44 to 17 in what may be the laziest team in the history of ever. I'm bitter. 

  • Time which has passed since the Wise County Sheriff's Office, despite having a full male DNA profile, has failed to solve the murder of Lauren Whitener in her home at Lake Bridgeport: 3 years, 249 days.

at 8:31 AM
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)