Federal Presidential Pardon» george w bush

Isaac Robert Toussie

Brian J. Zeiger — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 02:47:11 +0000

Isaac Robert Toussie was convicted of fraudulently obtaining mortgages from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. He was pardoned by George W. Bush, but then, suddenly, W revoked the pardon several days later.

This pardon is most notable.

The pardon was apparently revoked after W learned that Toussie’s father had made various contributions to the Republican party and that the application for the pardon usurped the normal chain at the department of justice and the pardon attorney and wound up in the hands of white house counsel.

When you apply for a pardon with the Department of Justice, strong language appears on the application that you must wait five years after the conviction to apply for a pardon. When folks contact me, I usually won’t even do a pardon application unless the total government supervision has been expired for at least five years, let alone the conviction. The only exception to this is when the pardon clears up immigration issues, we will accept them. I digress. In the instant discussion, Mr. Toussie’s conviction wasn’t even close to the five year mark, not to mention the total period of supervision.

A significant question is posed about the illegality of W’s revocation. Does the president have the power to revoke a pardon? Apparently the answer is that if the filing of the actual paperwork has not been perfected by the pardon attorney at the department of justice, then the president can revoke the pardon.

Precedent exists regarding revocation of pardons. See In re De Puy, 7 F. Cas. 506, 510-11 (S.D.N.Y. 1869) (holding that a pardon can be revoked if the paperwork has not been perfected). Some experts prescribe to this theory as why W did not revoke Marc Rich’s pardon.

Fool me once, shame on you. Get your dad to donate money to the party and influence white house counsel behind the president’s back to get you pardoned, shame on you twice.

Toussie's Dad and W

Charles Thompson Winters

Brian J. Zeiger — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:48:09 +0000

After World War II, Winters entered into the import/export business. He was recruited to illegally export B-17 bombers to Israel. He manage to smuggle three B-17s to Israel. He conspired to violate the Neutrality Act of 1939 by helping Israel with two other men: Al Schwimmer and Herman Greenspun.The three men were prosecuted by the United States Attorney in Miami.

Greenspun was convicted but served no time in jail. He was pardoned by John F. Kennedy in 1961. Schwimmer was convicted but served no jail time. He was pardoned by Bill Clinton in 2000. Winters was convicted an served 18 months in federal prison. He was pardon on George W. Bush as part of Bush’s last day of pardons on January 1, 2009. Winters’ pardon was the first pardon of a deceased person since Henry Ossain Flipper by Clinton. The whole discussion of the posthumous pardon is obviously not much of discussion anymore.

Click here to view the embedded video.

John Edward Forte

Brian J. Zeiger — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:51:44 +0000

John Edward Forte is a grammy winning music producer who was caught at the airport with $1.4 million of liquid cocaine in a briefcase. He was convicted and sentenced to fourteen years. Forte has never accepted responsibility for the cocaine.

What makes this pardon odd, is that it does not fit the paradigm of George W. Bush’s pardons and commutations. Simply, W. didn’t pardon many folks at all. Why he pardoned Forte is somewhat mysterious. Bush did not grant a full pardon to Libby, or pardon Marion Jones, Michael Vick, or grant amnesty to any of the folks involved in the water-boarding scandal. Blows me away.

John Edward Forte

Jose Compean & Ignacio Ramos

Brian J. Zeiger — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:36:39 +0000

Jose Compean and Ignacio Ramos were United States Boarder Patrol Agents shot an unarmed illegal alien marijuana smuggler. The suspect was attempting to cross the border with a purported 743 pounds of weed, when Compean told the suspect to stop and the suspect refused to obey. Compean mistakenly thought that he heard gun shot, so Compean fired his gun at the suspect. Ramos, hearing Compean’s fire, thought the suspect had shot at Compean and shot at the suspect and hit him in the ass. The suspect fled with the bullet in his backside.

Compean and Ramos were both convicted in federal court and given huge sentences for shooting this unarmed brigand. Over 200,000 people signed a petition for a pardon, and on his last day in office George W. Bush, commuted the sentences. Think the Santa Maria had 743 pounds of weed on it in 1492?

Was there any tobacco or marijuana on the Santa Maria in 1492?

Leslie Owen Collier – Bald Eagle Killer

Brian J. Zeiger — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:40:16 +0000

In 1995 Leslie Owen Collier was a turkey farmer in Missouri. Collier was upset that coyotes were invading his turkey farm and eating his turkeys. He decided that a good way to kill the coyotes was with poison. He chose an illegal poison called Furadan. Collier mixed the Furadan with ground beef so he could kill the coyotes.

Other creatures from nature also feasted on the meat. By the time Collier was done he picked off a red-tailed hawk, a raccoon, seven coyotes, a great horned owl, and three bald eagles. He was convicted of a felony for killing the bald eagles. As a result of the conviction, he could no longer own a gun.

He went through the process of getting a pardon so he could restore his rights of citizenship. In November 2008, George W. Bush pardoned Collier. Note that since the early 1970s, Bush pardoned the fewest people per term of any President. Odd that he would pardon this guy. Guess Collier never got charged with illegal possession of Furadan.

Leslie Owen Collier killed three American Bald Eagles with the illegal poison Furadan.