Subject: DAGA Election Update: Mississippi Heating Up
From: "The Democratic Attorneys General Association" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 18 Jul 2011 13:29:39 -0400

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TO:               All DAGA Supporters
FROM:             Travis Berry
DATE:             July 18, 2011
SUBJECT:          Election Update:  Mississippi Race for AG Heating up
  Links:
    1. http://us1.campaign-archive1.com/?u=abe051504b44f0a5e420d445c&id=9433673f88&e=a259a545aa

The race in Mississippi is heating up and we wanted to share this update
with you.  As you may know, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood’s GOP
challenger, Stephen Simpson is facing tough questions relating to his tenor
as judge in the state.  In 2006, Simpson issued a light sentence to a man
convicted of molesting a young child. This same man is now in custody
accused of murdering a Catholic priest before stealing the clergyman’s car
and cash, which he planned to use to take his family to Disney World just
last week. As this story develops, Simpson is facing new questions about his
time on the bench.  We wanted to share some of the coverage with you.

We will continue to bring you the latest developments as they occur.  Please
feel free to contact me at 303.831.0100 or [2][email-masked] if
you have any questions.
  Links:
    2. mailto:[email-masked]

[3]Simpson: Manieri sentence worked out behind closed doors
Cottonmouth Blog – July 15, 2011
Jerry Mitchell has [4]a story today on the Jeremy Wayne Manieri story that
brings up even more questions.  First, Mitchell details the missteps along
the way by MDOC, who apparently failed to recognize that Manieri wasn't
reporting or paying restitution any longer.  Then Mitchell gets quotes from
Republican Attorney General nominee Stephen Simpson:
  Links:
    3. http://cottonmouthblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/simpson-manieri-sentence-worked-out.html
    4. http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20110715/NEWS/107150343/Simpson-faces-sentencing-fallout?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Home

Simpson, then a circuit judge, said he gave Manieri one year in prison and
one year suspended as part of an "open plea" in which the prosecution makes
no recommendation. But behind closed doors, the prosecutor and defense
attorney had worked out the sentence, he said.

Simpson goes on to detail the problems the prosecution had with their case,
which is interesting, since [5]just the other day the AP said:
  Links:
    5. http://cottonmouthblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/simpson-says-manieri-plea-agreement.html

Simpson said prosecutors reached a plea agreement in the case, so he didn’t
have access to the evidence and based the sentence on the prosecuting
attorney’s recommendation.

“I was given no reason by the prosecution to believe that the sentence
requested by the Prosecuting Attorney was not just,” Simpson said in an
email.

Question: If the State and the defense worked out a plea agreement, why did
Simpson go through the kabuki theater of an "open" plea? Why not just
announce the recommendation of the District Attorney?

Expect more stories on this throughout the weekend....

_[6]Man waives extradition in priest's death_
Associated Press - By Holbrook Mohr – July 12, 2011
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Catholic priest who police believe was killed with
his own pistol traveled with the gun for protection and kept it in the
bedroom of the Mississippi beach house where he was shot, a colleague said
Wednesday.
  Links:
    6. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i9ZAbKjIrNXwFzfgNbTDf5MgP50Q?docId=d6b69492a39b43b49b2820bcb14591f0

A fellow cleric said the 70-year-old Rev. Edward E. Everitt usually went
alone on weekend getaways to Waveland, the quiet town on the Mississippi
Gulf Coast where his body was found Monday. A convicted felon who worked on
the house is suspected of killing the Louisiana priest, then taking his car
to Florida for a Disney vacation.

"He carried a gun for his own safety because he would be over there by
himself," the Rev. Cayet Mangiaracina said of Everitt's .380 caliber pistol.
"He kept it in his car, and then over there he kept it by his bed."

It's not clear how much Everitt knew about the past of the man who did odd
jobs for him. Jeremy Wayne Manieri, 31, has a long criminal record, but
served short sentences for crimes that include a conviction for molesting a
child, authorities said Wednesday.

Manieri had a court appearance Wednesday in Florida and waived extradition
to Mississippi, meaning he agreed to return to face charges there.

Polk County, Fla., Sheriff Grady Judd told The Associated Press that Manieri
gave a detailed confession. But Judd declined to elaborate because "it's a
Mississippi case."

Authorities say Manieri robbed Everitt then used his stolen car and money to
take his ex-wife, his 10-year-old stepson and his 5-year-old daughter to
Florida with the intention of going to Disney World. A swat team arrested
Manieri early Tuesday at a Days Inn in Polk County after police tracked him
down using the anti-theft device on the priest's car.

Manieri was being held on an auto theft warrant from Escambia County, Fla.

Peter Mills, assistant public defender in Florida's 10th Judicial Circuit,
said attorney-client privilege prohibits him from commenting on discussions
he had with Manieri.

When asked if Manieri was guilty of the crime he's accused of, Mills said,
"He's not guilty now."

"I believe that he hasn't even been charged," Mills said. "It was just an
arrest warrant."

Waveland Police Chief James Varnell said Wednesday that he's in contact with
Florida officials about bringing Manieri back to face a murder charge.

Judd, the Florida sheriff, said he believes Manieri used Everitt's own
weapon to kill him, though Mississippi authorities want to test it to be
certain.

Varnell said Manieri has a long criminal record, but somehow ended up
serving short sentences for serious crimes. Varnell said he was "very much"
disappointed in 2006 when Manieri pleaded guilty to molesting a girl, and
received what Varnell considered a light sentence.

Former Circuit Court Judge Stephen Simpson suspended a year of the two-year
sentence and also gave Manieri credit for time served, according to court
records in the case. He was required to register as a sex offender.

Simpson said prosecutors reached a plea agreement in the case, so he didn't
have access to the evidence and based the sentence on the prosecuting
attorney's recommendation.

"I was given no reason by the prosecution to believe that the sentence
requested by the Prosecuting Attorney was not just," Simpson said in an
email.

In August 2009, Manieri was indicted for failing to register as a sex
offender. He faced a five-year sentence on that charge. He pleaded guilty in
February of this year.

Circuit Judge John C. Gargiulo gave him a five-year suspended sentence after
he served had served about 16 months before his conviction, according to
court records. He was given three years of probation.

Everitt was a pastor at Holy Ghost Church in Hammond, La., and Our Lady of
Pompeii Church in nearby Tickfaw. The church is a member of the Dominican
Order and also operates a school in the community about 50 miles northwest
of New Orleans.

The house where Everitt died was used as a weekend retreat. Hancock County
officials said it was registered to Holy Ghost Dominican Fathers Inc., a
nonprofit corporation registered in Louisiana. Police say Manieri did odd
jobs around the house.

Mangiaracina and Everitt are both listed as registered agents for the
corporation, along with the Rev. Henry "Hank" Groover.

Mangiaracina said he only went to the house once and did not know Manieri,
though he had heard Everitt and Groover talk about him doing work there. He
said Groover and Everitt used the house more often than he did, though
usually not at the same time because they had different days off.

"I think they were trying to help him out and he did some work there,"
Mangiaracina said. "As far as his past, I don't know how much they knew
about that."

Groover could not immediately be reached for comment. He had also been a
priest in Louisiana until March when news reports revealed he had been
charged with sexual battery in Savannah, Ga., in 2003, according to the Rev.
Christopher Eggleton. Eggleton would not provide contact information for
Groover.

Groover took a "no plea" to the reduced charge of disorderly conduct in
Georgia, which means he didn't plead innocent or guilty and paid a $250
fine, said Donna Boles, customer service representative for the Chatham
County, Ga., Recorders Court.

Groover is the brother-in-law of celebrity chef Paula Deen. He did not
immediately respond to questions sent to one of Deen's representatives.

Authorities say Manieri took the priest's silver Chevy HHR, picked up his
ex-wife and kids and headed for a motel in Mobile, Ala.

Judd said they drove to a Days Inn in Polk County on Monday evening and
bought Disney passes with the priest's cash. Manieri was arrested by a swat
team when he stepped outside the hotel room for a smoke.

Varnell, the Waveland police chief, said it's early in the investigation and
it's not clear if the woman with Manieri when he was arrested would face
charges.

_[7]Simpson faces sentencing fallout_
Clarion Ledger – By Jerry Mitchell - July 14, 2011
A case heard by former Circuit Judge Steve Simpson, who hopes to become the
state's next attorney general, is raising questions about why a man now
accused of killing a Catholic priest did not serve more time in prison.
  Links:
    7. http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20110715/NEWS/107150343/Simpson-faces-sentencing-fallout?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Home

The 52-year-old candidate for attorney general hopes to defeat Attorney
General Jim Hood and become the first Republican since Reconstruction to
hold that office.

On Thursday, Simpson called the killing both "tragic" and "unbelievable." He
said the one-year prison sentence he delivered as a judge in the 2006 child
molestation conviction of Jeremy Wayne Manieri came from a plea bargain
between the prosecution and defense.

Manieri, 31, of Waveland is charged with murder in the slaying of the Rev.
Edward Everitt and using the dead priest's car to drive his ex-wife and
children to Disney World.

Marty Wiseman, director of the John C. Stennis Institute of Government and
professor of political science at Mississippi State University, said cases
judges and governors handle can later haunt them on the campaign trail, most
famously Willie Horton in Michael Dukakis' failed 1988 presidential
campaign.

Nuances of a legal case can get lost, and "the facts can get muddied," he
said.

The Mississippi Department of Corrections has questions, too, but
Corrections Commissioner Chris Epps is focusing much of that scrutiny on
MDOC itself.

Court documents make clear Manieri, after repeated convictions and probation
violations, could have spent more time behind bars than he did. Manieri,
slated to be returned to Mississippi on Monday, escaped detection in part
because of a computer snafu that didn't flag the violations.

"This has been corrected, and we're seeing if there are any more cases,"
Epps said.

Asked if this has happened in the past, he said yes.

In 2001, Manieri ran up more than $8,800 in bills, fraudulently using
others' credit cards.

A Lamar County judge sentenced him to 10 years in prison for forgery, and
Manieri went into the six-month Regimented Inmate Discipline program.
Because he successfully completed the program, he was permitted to serve
five years' probation instead of spending that time behind bars.

But three years into that probation, he stopped paying restitution and
reporting to the probation office. On July 3, 2006, MDOC issued a warrant
for his arrest. Three months later, he entered what's called "an Alford
plea" to unlawfully touching a girl under 7, including having oral sex with
her. In an Alford plea, a defendant doesn't admit the act, but does admit
the prosecution has enough to convict.

Simpson, then a circuit judge, said he gave Manieri one year in prison and
one year suspended as part of an "open plea" in which the prosecution makes
no recommendation. But behind closed doors, the prosecutor and defense
attorney had worked out the sentence, he said.

Simpson said the reason for the lenient sentence was the prosecution had
problems with the case. ""(A relative) of the victim had failed to report
the crime and had used drugs with the defendant afterward," he said. "There
was no physical evidence, no medical evidence. It was basically the child's
word, and the child was reluctant to testify."

The prosecution felt with a conviction, Manieri would then be a registered
sex offender, he said. "The victim's family was consulted and was
satisfied," he said.

Former Assistant District Attorney Sean Tindell confirmed there were some
evidentiary issues regarding the case. He filed in the case a motion that
sought to bar defense testimony aimed at discrediting a key prosecution
witness accused of drug use.

The case took place, too, not long after Hurricane Katrina destroyed the
Waveland Police Department, he said. "They lost their evidence vault."

Defense attorney Todd Nathan Thriffiley said Thursday he could not comment,
saying he may be involved in representing Manieri again.

Under the law, anyone convicted of unlawful touching must spend two to 15
years in prison.

Former Hinds County Circuit Judge Robert Gibbs said judges in Mississippi
have the discretion to suspend sentences. "It gives the judge the leeway to
give the maximum or let the person go home," he said.

Manieri was under probation when he committed this crime. The document he
signed in pleading guilty said because he was under probation, he could
receive an additional sentence of three years in the case. He didn't.

Simpson said the judge who sentenced Manieri in 2001 would have handled
revocation.

That judge did revoke Manieri's probation on Sept. 18, 2007, for failing to
report to probation and pay restitution on his 2001 charge but apparently
did not include the one-year suspended sentence on the child molestation
charge. Less than two months later, Manieri was free again.

On Thursday, corrections officials had no explanation for why revocation
wasn't sought then.

In 2009, Manieri was arrested on a DUI charge in Alabama. On Aug. 5, he was
indicted for failing to register as a sex offender. On Feb. 22, the court
sentenced him to time served - 16 months in jail - and he was released.

Although after his release, he was supposed to regularly report to MDOC, he
never did.

Epps said normally a probation officer is contacted for a pre-sentence
report, but that didn't happen.

MDOC's records office, however, did receive the paperwork from the circuit
clerk's office, he said.

Unfortunately, he said, there was "a glitch in the computer system" that
kept the information from being received by the probation officer, who was
not at fault.

Hood called the Manieri case "a tragedy from start to finish. I intend to do
all I can to make sure this defendant pays the ultimate price for this
heinous murder."

[8]Steve Simpson, character witness for an accused child rapistCottonmouth
Blog – July 15, 2011
This week's brouhaha over the light sentence Republican Attorney General
nominee Stephen Simpson gave accused priest murderer Jeremy Wayne Manieri
for child molestation has drawn all sorts of media attention. It has also
brought to light another incident from Simpson's time on the bench.
  Links:
    8. http://cottonmouthblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/steve-simpson-character-witness-for.html

In 2003, Stephen Simpson, while serving as a circuit court judge, testified
as a character witness for a buddy of his who was standing trial in Biloxi
for raping and sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl. The girl babysat the
defendant's daughter, and the defendant was the girl's softball coach.
According to the Sun Herald, the girl alleged that the defendant had raped
her multiple times.

So then-Judge Simpson was called by the defense to speak on the accused
man’s behalf. (Which, by the way, according to Code of Judicial Conduct,
probably should have been prohibited by the presiding judge in the case
because of Simpson's potential influence as a sitting judge. More on that
below.) Despite the girl’s testimony, in which she stated that her coach had
sex with her at his home after asking, “Do you want to get this over
with?”, and a taped phone conversation in which the man abruptly changed the
subject of their relationship – a Harrison County jury found him not guilty
after six hours of deliberation. Can't help but wonder if Simpson’s
appearance on the stand influenced those jurors. (Sun Herald
articles [9]here.)
  Links:
    9. http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/60114227?access_key=key-1cfjcwduj23jxrtvnvh2

If you don't believe me that a sitting judge can perhaps unfairly influence
a jury when testifying as a character witness, then you might believe
Mississippi's Code of Judicial Conduct. The Commentary to Canon 2(B) of the
Code of Judicial Conduct reads in pertinent part as follows:
A judge must not testify voluntarily as a character witness because to do so
may lend the prestige of the judicial office in support of the party for
whom the judge testifies. Moreover, when a judge testifies as a witness, a
lawyer who regularly appears before the judge may be placed in the awkward
position of cross-examining the judge. A judge may, however, testify when
properly summoned. Except in unusual circumstances where the demands of
justice require, a judge should discourage a party from requiring the judge
to testify as a character witness.

For those keeping score at home, that's the [10]Edna Mae Sanders
case (unanimous reversal for not allowing an abused woman to put on her
defense to murder), the [11]John Ruble incident (Simpson skirting a judge's
order by springing his buddy from the jail on domestic abuse charges), the
light sentence for [12]a child molester who later killed a priest, and now
this. Anyone noticing a pattern?
  Links:
    10. http://cottonmouthblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/trouble-for-steve-simpson-from-court-of.html
    11. http://cottonmouthblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/response-to-commenters-question-about.html
    12. http://cottonmouthblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/campaign-for-attorney-general-is-now.html

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