Justice Diaz faces new charges in Mississippi
A federal grand jury added extortion and attempted bribery charges Friday against Justice Oliver Diaz Jr. and trial lawyer Paul Minor, postponing their March 1 trial.
Minor's lawyer, Abbe Lowell of Washington, D.C., called the new charges outrageous, saying his client will plead innocent to them.
"After investigating for two years and on the eve of trial, they bring new charges only after our motions have revealed the U.S. attorney's conflicts of interest and political affiliations," he said in a statement. "This smacks of retribution that is not allowed under the law." ...
The new charges allege Minor in 2001 tried to extort $20,000 for Diaz from trial lawyers representing Dawn Bradshaw, who was awarded $9 million after poor hospital care led to pneumonia and brain damage.
The high court upheld the $9 million verdict Oct. 11, 2001. According to the indictment, 14 days later, Minor told two unnamed lawyers that Diaz "helped swing the vote ... in favor of their client, Dawn Bradshaw, and that the vote could have gone either way but for ... Diaz's influence," pointing out the justice would soon be voting on the motion for rehearing their case. -- Diaz, Minor face additional counts (Jackson Clarion-Ledger)