Reply #15: This is NOT a "Hail Mary Pass", it's a PLEA BARGAIN

[Walt Starr]

DeLay will plea "nolo contendere" because he "under advise and consent of counsel did knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily" waive the statute of limitations on the conspiracy charge.

You only do that if you're facing much tougher charges that don't have a statute of limitations or a much higher statute of limitations.

It's all right there in the indictment for eveybody to see:

"The Grand Jury further presents that, with the advise and consent of counsel, the defendent, Thomas Dale DeLay, did heretofore knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waive application of Articles 12.01 and 12.02 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure to the indictment presented herein. In particular, the Grand Jury present that with the advice and consent of counsel, the defendent, Thomas Dale DeLay, did knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waive the requirement that an indictment for the felony offense of criminal conspiracy, the object of which is felony other than those listed in Subdivisions (1) and (5) of Article 12.01 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, may be presented within three years from the date of commission of the offense, and not afterward, insofar as such requirement pertains to the indictment presented herein,"

Bottom of page three of the indictment:

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0928051delay3.html

and the top of page four of the indictment:

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0928051delay4.html