Robert 'Bobby' DeLaughter was a circuit judge in Hinds County, Jackson, Mississippi, until 30th July. He took bribes, lied, favoured one litigant over another and generally pissed on one of the central tenets of law; that you can have faith in the judge to be impartial and even handed. None of that will appear on his charge sheet, though. Because of the elastic priorities and flexible morality surrounding the doings of the politico-legal establishment in Mississippi he has a deal, eighteen months in jail for "obstruction of justice".
The case is part of the ongoing hubris-radiation fallout from The Scruggs Affair, which has been enthralling/boring/bemusing/ enriching people of varying interests for the past two years. A few highflyers have gone to jail, including the eponymous "Dickie" and his son Zach, and an incredibly odious ex Democratic Party chairman, all caught in flagrante delicto, but anyone hoping for a wholesale clearout of these Good Ole Boys has so far been disappointed.
Apologists and PR for this parasitical scum employ a two pronged attack on those with the audacity to challenge their earwigging, sweet potato cabal; either psuedo analytical handwringing or outright denial, whilst grudgingly conceding that a one off, totallyoutofcharacter lapse of otherwise impeccable 'bastion of society' judgement may, theoretically, have broken some unimportant law.
When a whole strata of influential society evolves an amoral, self regarding and self enriching pattern of behaviour, the ones who survive the ensuing clunky, federal retribution longest will be those who know where the skeletons are.
But even bones turn to dust.
DeLaughter (right) wondering whether he would buy a used car from this man, his lawyer.
Former U.S. Attorney Doug Jones of Birmingham said, ""Bobby DeLaughter's legacy will live long past this mistake."
Jones? Former U.S. Attorney? Rings a bell. Ah, yes.
I don't understand. He only gets 18 months but doesn't give anyone up, especially not this Peters guy. How does that work then?
ReplyDeleteIts time that these people are stopped, not just in america but everywhere and the only way to do it is to make the penalties for abusing of public office so severe that they will be frightehned into behaving properly.
ReplyDeleteJones DOES ring a bell 'cause he took on the segregationist, racist, hate-mongers who blew up the 16th Street Baptist Church in '63 and brought them to justice almost 40 years later.
ReplyDeleteAh Rodney what you and Freeland's tool Lotus never saw due to distance and arrogance was the use of the Scruggs affair to settle old vendettas.
ReplyDeleteDon't you Limeys remember the events in South Carolina circa 1780? Somethings in the south never change.
Please stay on this though, it amuses me.