My Point of View/By Rolando Larraz
Back in the day, the reputations of federal authorities were impeccable and the mentality of many people who had the misfortune of dealing with them was that “you can negotiate with the locals, but not with the feds” because “once the feds put their hands on your shoulders, you cannot escape” and the way they handled the case of the three-star general, Michael Flynn, proves it all.
Last Friday Politico reported “The Justice Department has abandoned its prosecution of President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, throwing in the towel on one of the most prominent cases brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. The move represents a remarkable reversal two and half years after Flynn initially pleaded guilty to the FBI about his dealings with the Russian ambassador to the U.S.
At that time, the case has taken a number of dramatic turns: Flynn went from the precipice of being sentenced in 2018, to abruptly switching legal teams in 2019, to trying to withdraw his guilty plea in 2020.
Flynn’s attempts to take back his plea led Attorney General William Barr in January to assign a federal prosecutor to review the case.” After the news came out that Department Of Justice backed off from the prosecution of the “most prominent cases brought by special counsel Robert Mueller” showing that former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey lied, mislead and abused the power of the office he represented, President Donald Trump made a statement that he did not know that such corruption existed in this country; the president believed that that type of corruption could happen in Cuba, Venezuela or any other country, but not in the United States of America.
President Trump may have not experienced that corruption in his own skin; he may have not dealt with the feds and he for sure has not had the misfortune of dealing with the local prosecutors and law enforcement agencies.
What the Federal Bureau of Investigation did to General Flynn is a very common behavior in Clark County, Nevada where the Las Vegas Tribune for years has contended that justice is not for all and that no one in Clark County walks out of the Regional Justice Center a free person.
It has been my humble opinion that the Las Vegas Police Department controls the prosecutors and the prosecutors control the judges and the defense attorneys in the courtroom.
Justice in Clark County and in the city of Las Vegas is a myth and the fate of the defendants is in the hands of the prosecutors; what the
feds did to General Flynn, forcing him to plead guilty, is the everyday norm in Nevada—or at least in Clark County.
A well-known local defense attorney once told the Las Vegas Tribune that “In our legal system you plead guilty and you walk; you plead not guilty and you do twenty years behind bars.”
The Sheriff is considered the most powerful office holder in the whole state; you mess with the Sheriff or one of his men in the so-called
“Ivory Tower” and you are almost dead.
The Sheriff’s Department (deputies, detectives and any other rank) tells the prosecutors how, when, and who to prosecute. Take a look at the Victor Cruz case. Cruz killed another human being but because the detective in the case, by the name of King (Metro
refused to give Detective King’s first name “for security reasons,” but we learned his first name is Gary), may know the killer and decided that the murder was “accidental” and requested that the case against him be dismissed, that is what the prosecutors immediately did—they obeyed.
It’s no different with the city of Las Vegas’s city attorney. Even if more of their cases are misdemeanor cases, they want us, the people, to plead guilty to the charges so they won’t have to upset the police officers, they won’t have to work too hard, and they can use the winning cases as part of their record when they are going to become judges.
President Trump may have been living in a different world to say that he did not know that such corruption exists in our judicial system or he is too naïve in believing that justice prevails in our court system.
At one time the Federal Bureau of Investigation may have been an honorable institution, but Robert Mueller and James Comey have given the people a good reason to beg to differ.
The Las Vegas Tribune has on many occasions questioned the reason why President Trump has kept those two men in his cabinet when it was obvious that both were loyal friends of each other and loyal servants to both the Clinton and Obama families.
My name is Rolando Larraz, and as always, I approved this column.
* * * * *
Rolando Larraz is Editor in Chief of the Las Vegas Tribune. His column appears weekly in this newspaper. To contact Rolando Larraz, email him at: Rlarraz@lasvegastribune.com or at 702-272-4634.
Back in the day, the reputations of federal authorities were impeccable and the mentality of many people who had the misfortune of dealing with them was that “you can negotiate with the locals, but not with the feds” because “once the feds put their hands on your shoulders, you cannot escape” and the way they handled the case of the three-star general, Michael Flynn, proves it all.Last Friday Politico reported “The Justice Department has abandoned its prosecution of President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, throwing in the towel on one of the most prominent cases brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. The move represents a remarkable reversal two and half years after Flynn initially pleaded guilty to the FBI about his dealings with the Russian ambassador to the U.S.
At that time, the case has taken a number of dramatic turns: Flynn went from the precipice of being sentenced in 2018, to abruptly switching legal teams in 2019, to trying to withdraw his guilty plea in 2020.
Flynn’s attempts to take back his plea led Attorney General William Barr in January to assign a federal prosecutor to review the case.” After the news came out that Department Of Justice backed off from the prosecution of the “most prominent cases brought by special counsel Robert Mueller” showing that former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey lied, mislead and abused the power of the office he represented, President Donald Trump made a statement that he did not know that such corruption existed in this country; the president believed that that type of corruption could happen in Cuba, Venezuela or any other country, but not in the United States of America.
President Trump may have not experienced that corruption in his own skin; he may have not dealt with the feds and he for sure has not had the misfortune of dealing with the local prosecutors and law enforcement agencies.
What the Federal Bureau of Investigation did to General Flynn is a very common behavior in Clark County, Nevada where the Las Vegas Tribune for years has contended that justice is not for all and that no one in Clark County walks out of the Regional Justice Center a free person.
It has been my humble opinion that the Las Vegas Police Department controls the prosecutors and the prosecutors control the judges and the defense attorneys in the courtroom.
Justice in Clark County and in the city of Las Vegas is a myth and the fate of the defendants is in the hands of the prosecutors; what the
feds did to General Flynn, forcing him to plead guilty, is the everyday norm in Nevada—or at least in Clark County.
A well-known local defense attorney once told the Las Vegas Tribune that “In our legal system you plead guilty and you walk; you plead not guilty and you do twenty years behind bars.”
The Sheriff is considered the most powerful office holder in the whole state; you mess with the Sheriff or one of his men in the so-called
“Ivory Tower” and you are almost dead.
The Sheriff’s Department (deputies, detectives and any other rank) tells the prosecutors how, when, and who to prosecute. Take a look at the Victor Cruz case. Cruz killed another human being but because the detective in the case, by the name of King (Metro
refused to give Detective King’s first name “for security reasons,” but we learned his first name is Gary), may know the killer and decided that the murder was “accidental” and requested that the case against him be dismissed, that is what the prosecutors immediately did—they obeyed.
It’s no different with the city of Las Vegas’s city attorney. Even if more of their cases are misdemeanor cases, they want us, the people, to plead guilty to the charges so they won’t have to upset the police officers, they won’t have to work too hard, and they can use the winning cases as part of their record when they are going to become judges.
President Trump may have been living in a different world to say that he did not know that such corruption exists in our judicial system or he is too naïve in believing that justice prevails in our court system.
At one time the Federal Bureau of Investigation may have been an honorable institution, but Robert Mueller and James Comey have given the people a good reason to beg to differ.
The Las Vegas Tribune has on many occasions questioned the reason why President Trump has kept those two men in his cabinet when it was obvious that both were loyal friends of each other and loyal servants to both the Clinton and Obama families.
My name is Rolando Larraz, and as always, I approved this column.
* * * * *
Rolando Larraz is Editor in Chief of the Las Vegas Tribune. His column appears weekly in this newspaper. To contact Rolando Larraz, email him at: Rlarraz@lasvegastribune.com or at 702-272-4634.
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