C-Span's Brian Lamb misses little-known Congressional abuse of power.

This morning, a caller to C-Span's Washington Journal (hosted by Brian Lamb) briefed guest Ruth Marcus on situation of woman incarcerated for six months for attempting to publicly speak at a Senate Judiciary Committee. The caller mentioned the woman's name, but neither Lamb nor Marcus had heard of her or the situation of her imprisonment in a DC jail for six months.

Neither also seemed all that interested, and went on to talk about whatever, a bit about John Murtha and the Abscam scandal... the mainstream media, which Marcus credits for meaty reporting that allows her to do her job as Washington Post editorial writer and commentator... Rush Limbaugh's tagging the media, "drive-by" media... Now they have time for only two more calls... so we begin our search for truth.

C-Span Journal

A quick check on the net reveals...


Free Elena Sassower, DC Prisoner #301-340

To: D.C. Court of Appeals, Senior Judge, Frank Nebeker; D.C. Superior Court, Honorable Chief Judge Rufus King, III; D.C. Commission on Judicial Disabilities and Tenure.

The Center for Judicial Accountability, Inc. (CJA) aims to put an end to back of the bus justice, which has made judicial victims out of decent, honest, and loyal Americans. When litigants do not have the "right" political connections with the judges who decide their fate, they are the oppressed "underdogs" when they go up against those who do. The result, unfortunately, is biased and dishonest decisions, which knowingly disregard the Rule of Law, for which these corrupt judges must be held accountable. The criminal case, United States of America v Elena Sassower is the perfect case in point.

The petition set forth below provides the critical information. For more specific details and substantiating documents, go to the homepage of CJA's website at judgewatch.org, and click on "Paper Trail to Jail," and "Tale of Two Transcripts."

Excerpt
WHEREAS, WE believe that the First Amendment is DEAD when a patriotic, law-abiding, and dedicated American like New Yorker Elena Ruth Sassower, nationally recognized judicial reform advocate and Cofounder and Coordinator of the Center for Judicial Accountability, Inc., a national, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, working for years to ensure that only the best qualified lawyers become, and remain, judges, is arrested, incarcerated and serving a SIX MONTHS prison sentence in a jail in our nation's capital for "Disruption of Congress." All this, for speaking out to protect the public interest in the integrity and impartiality of our judiciary. Her wrongful sentence was vindictively ordered to begin forthwith, i.e., on June 28, 2004 , the very day of sentence, so as to ensure that she celebrated the 4 th of July weekend in the DC jail, with her release not due until CHRISTMAS DAY,

WHEREAS, this totally bogus charge was based on Ms. Sassower's having respectfully asked the following question at a May 22, 2003 U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Public Hearing to confirm a number of President Bush's nominees to LIFETIME federal judgeships, including NY Court of Appeals Judge Richard Wesley, who was being nominated to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals (including New York, Connecticut and Vermont) her precise words deserve to be remembered forever:

http://www.petitiononline.com/elena/petition.html

Center for Judicial Accountability

http://www.judgewatch.org/

"Disruption of Congress" Case

http://www.judgewatch.org/DisruptionofCongresscase.htm

elena sassower

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=elena+sassower&btnG=Search

On June 28, 2004, Elena Ruth Sassower was sentenced to six months imprisonment in the D.C. Capitol Jail by Judge Brian F. Holeman of the D.C. Superior Court for "disruption of Congress," a federal misdemeanor. Below are details of Sassower's offense, as reported by the Westchester Crusader four days before her sentencing. ..

JUSTICE NOT JAIL TIME FOR JUDICIAL ACTIVIST
The Center for Judicial Accountability, Inc. (CJA) is calling for "justice not jail" for Elena Sassower, its Coordinator, who on June 28th returns to our nation's capital for sentencing before D.C. Superior Court Judge Brian F. Holeman, following her week-long jury trial before him and conviction on April 20th on a spurious criminal charge of "disruption of Congress," which the organization plans to appeal based on "a litany of reversible errors of law and fact."

CJA is a non-partisan, non-profit citizens' organization co-founded more than a decade ago by Ms. Sassower, an Ivy League graduate, to depoliticize the processes of judicial selection and discipline by increasing citizen participation. On May 22, 2003, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a "public hearing" to confirm President Bush's nomination of New York Court of Appeals Judge Richard Wesley to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, covering New York, Connecticut and Vermont. The "hearing" was adjourned without any inquiry as to whether anyone present wished to be heard - at which point Ms. Sassower rose and made her polite inquiry, "Mr. Chairman, there's citizen opposition to Judge Wesley based on his documented corruption as a New York Court of Appeals Judge. May I testify?"

Ms. Sassower was thereupon taken out, arrested, handcuffed behind her back, incarcerated for 21 hours, during which she was kept incommunicado, and criminally prosecuted for "disruption of Congress." By contrast, protestors at last month's May 7th hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee who interrupted the hearing by shouting out for Defense Secretary Rumsfeld to be fired and unfurled a "FIRE RUMSFELD" banner were NOT even arrested.

The Center views the case against Ms. Sassower for "disruption of Congress" as a vicious assault on citizens' rights - and retaliation for CJA's longtime public advocacy in exposing the corruption of the federal judicial selection process.

http://www.tulanelink.com/tulanelink/sassower2_box.htm