The circle of life keeps on keeping on.
This corndog has done nothing wrong
Lawyers for Rick Perry asked the court on Monday to again end the prosecution of the former governor, saying the indictment is faulty and the actions he took in issuing a veto are allowed by law.
[…]
On Monday, Perry’s team attacked amendments that McCrum had added to the indictments that accuse the former governor of coercion and misuse of public office. The court had found that the initial indictments lacked enough specificity about the facts of the crime.
The defense team attacked the added facts, saying the “were not found by the grand jury.” The lawyers also asserted that Perry’s actions fall under an exception for “coercion.”
The law allows the governor to go back and forth, debate and in effect horse trade with legislators over bills. His lawyers are trying to argue that because his alleged criminal action involved a veto of legislative funds, that he is protected by that exception.
The prosecution is arguing that the person he supposedly coerced is not a legislator and Perry was illegally using his power because what he was attempting to control was an office beyond his scope and not connected to the Legislature.
See here, here, and here for the background, and see here for a copy of Team Perry’s latest motion. I said in my last update that I thought the prosecution was having to get mighty intricate with its explanation for why Perry’s actions were criminal, and that I thought it didn’t bode well for them. It looks like the defense is stretching a bit, too, so maybe their case is stronger than I thought. I’m still concerned that the law in question is enough of a misfit to bring the whole shebang down, but it’s in Judge Richardson’s hands again. At least, I assume it is; there may be more filings to come, and perhaps another hearing. We’ll see. The Trib has more.
Perhaps the 4th time is the charm. I personally think the coercion of a public official charge looks most likely to stand up to scrutiny. If he had just vetoed the bill, then nothing happens. But to use his power to attempt to bully an elected official out of office is another matter. And if Perry is so convinced he did nothing wrong, let a jury decide.
Guess Perry’s lawyers keep throwing stuff up against the wall, but nothing is sticking.