Federal Criminal Defense Blog : Georgia Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer & Attorney : Gillen Withers & Lake Law Firm : White Collar Crime, RICO, Trial : Atlanta, Savannah, GA

On Monday, Detroit Attorney Tim Attalla had charges that he helped the Highwaymen Motorcycle Club carry out a drug business thrown out by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan following a bench trial, as reported by an article on Freep.com. U.S. District Court Judge Nancy Edmunds concluded there was insufficient evidence to prove that Mr. Attalla was part of any drug conspiracy, or that he ever served as general counsel to the group.

Prosecutors had argued that Mr. Attalla allegedly assisted Aref Nagi, the former Vice President of the Club, in carrying out a drug conspiracy, including giving him advice on how not to get caught. The government also alleged that Mr. Attalla allegedly gave Nagi Viagra and Vicodin pills on at least two occasions. Nagi was convicted of racketeering in June. During trial, th government had former members of the Club testify against Mr. Attalla that he allegedly hung out at strip clubs with Nagi and also played taped phone conversations between Mr. Attalla and Nagi. The defense argued that Mr. Attalla did nothing more than advise his clients to remain silent pursuant to their Fifth Amendment rights.
 

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Two years ago, Deputy Sheriff David Swanson and Sheriff's Captain Raul DeLeon of the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department in California were indicted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California for making alleged false statements to federal investigators regarding leaks during a federal investigation of Road Dog Cycle in Denair, California. The owners of Road Dog Cycle, Robert and Brent Holloway, were also indicted for heading a racketeering enterprise, which involved members of the East Bay Dragons outlaw motorcycle club of California; the Merced, California, chapter of the Hell's Angels; and the Red Devils outlaw motorcycle club of Sweden. The defendants were charged with acts of trafficking in stolen motor vehicle parts, robbery, making extortionate extensions of credit and collecting extensions of credit by extortionate means.

Swanson was charged with allegedly leaking confidential law enforcement information to an associate of Robert Holloway who informed Holloway of search warrants which were to be executed at Road Dog Cycle. DeLeon was similarly charged with allegedly concealing his relationship with Robert Holloway and having contact with Holloway during the execution of a State search warrant at the residence of one of Holloway's employees in order to enable the employee to conceal evidence. Swanson and DeLeon faced a maximum of 15 years imprisonment.

Well, as reported by the Modesto Bee, the prosecution of Swanson and DeLeon turned out to be a case of prosecutorial overreaching when a jury acquitted Swanson and DeLeon on all charges earlier this month. Following the verdict, one juror told reporters that Swanson and DeLeon had been "railroaded." The problems in the government's case caused it at one point to offer Swanson the chance to plead to one felony count with no jail time and not even any probation. Even courthouse employees told the defense that they did not believe that he could have conspired to impede the federal investigation into the Holloways' activities.

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