Teabugger O’Keefe Tweets on Pending Charges Despite Gag Order

[Ian David]

Filmmaker O’Keefe Tweets on Pending Charges Despite Gag Order

It appears that conservative filmmaker James O’Keefe is continuing to comment on his case despite the gag order of court. Raw Story and other sites are reporting that O’Keefe tweeted shortly around midnight last night that “Govt official concedes no attempt to wiretap.” It is certainly an important development if true, but O’Keefe may be accused of violating the court order. In the meantime, it appears that the stunt in New Orleans may have been an effort to cut off the telephones as opposed to wiretapping calls.

As noted in the segment below from Countdown, the affidavit accompanying the charges was curious two respects. First, the government was charging a higher category of trespass by alleging intent to commit a felony. However, the prosecutors failed to state what that felony was. The clear suggestion of the affidavit was that the “malicious” interference with the telephone system was to wiretap Sen. Mary Landrieu’s office. Second, if this was a conspiracy to wiretap, one would have expected a reference to electronic surveillance equipment found at the scene.

Now, O’Keefe is saying that the government is not pursuing a surveillance theory. Such a development is important and worth public attention. However, O’Keefe is under a gag order not to discuss the case. These orders can create difficulties for the defense when someone like O’Keefe is being widely accused of a wiretapping conspiracy. He has an obvious desire to rebut those allegations — as do his lawyers. Moreover, he was merely referencing a news development in a brief tweet. Nevertheless, it could be viewed as a technical violation.

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O’Keefe seems to relish reckless acts. His stunt with ACORN appears to have violated state laws. Even without a surveillance conspiracy, the Landrieu stunt is still quite serious. What is interesting is that O’Keefe hardly needs to directly communicate such information given the press attention in the case.

More:
http://jonathanturley.org/2010/01/28/filmmaker-okeefe-tweets-on-pending-charges-despite-gag-order/

Hat-tip to: http://twitter.com/dpleasant/status/8323040573