B R E A K I N G & LO CA L N E WS AT N O L A .C O M
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DA: Attorney John Fuller engaged in witness tampering
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Judge asked to remove DA from Will Smith case Emily Lane elane@nola.com
Fuller denies accusations being probed by feds Orleans District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro is alleging that New Orleans defense attorney John Fuller and two of his associates have engaged in witness tampering. Fuller has denied the allegations. Ken Daley / kdaley@nola.com
Ken Daley kdaley@nola.com
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WHAT THE DA SAYS
rleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro is alleging that prominent defense attorney John Fuller and two of his associates engaged in witness tampering or intimidation, indicating in an
internal document for law enforcement agencies that federal investigators are examining the allegations.
The accusations are contained within a document Cannizzaro distributed July 8 to the New Orleans Police Department, Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson Parish Sheriff ’s Office, Jefferson Parish District Attorney, FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, Drug Enforcement Administration and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Fuller denied wrongdoing Tuesday and called the district attorney’s allegations baseless and a case of sour grapes after recent trial defeats. A source at one of the recipient law enforcement agencies allowed the 206page report to be reviewed by NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune, but the source was not authorized to speak on its contents. The memorandum accuses Fuller and his
investigator Earl Truvia of jeopardizing witnesses’ safety by violating the confidences of some of their own clients who intended to cooperate with state prosecutors. The document also says Fuller, Truvia and attorney Gregory Carter made unauthorized jail visits to clients of other attorneys in New Orleans, with the alleged intent of dissuading inmates from testifying against defendants Fuller represented. The document alleges a similar visit by Fuller and Truvia to a defendant jailed in Jefferson Parish. “Investigations are ongoing and federal agents have requested that only essential facts and no identifying information be released at this time,” the document’s cover letter said. “We are providing copies of this memorandum and its attachments to sevSEE FULLER, B2
Fuller and an investigator jeopardized witnesses’ safety by violating the confidence of some of their clients who intended to cooperate with state prosecutors, a memo from District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro says. It also alleges Fuller and other attorneys made unauthorized jail visits to clients of other attorneys in New Orleans, with the alleged intent of dissuading inmates from testifying against defendants Fuller represented.
WHAT FULLER SAYS “I’m extremely disappointed, but not at all surprised, by the actions of the Orleans District Attorney’s office. To suggest that I have done anything unethical, illegal or inappropriate is nothing more than sour grapes from a DA’s office with its own history of serious ethical lapses. They have been embarrassed and stung by my recent string of high-profile courtroom victories. The real motivation behind this charade is an effort to create a chilling effect on my office and others who aggressively and effectively fight for the constitutional rights of our clients. But I cannot and will not be intimidated by Mr. Cannizzaro, his cronies or his tactics.”
The state’s case against Cardell Hayes, the man accused of murder in the shooting death of former Saints player Will Smith, could possibly become more complicated amid the fallout of serious allegations Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro’s Office has levied against Hayes’ defense attorney, John Fuller. Fuller has asked Judge Camille Buras to recuse the District Attorney’s office from prosecuting the high-profile case against Hayes, 29, whose charges include second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder. Fuller argues allegations made recently by Cannizzaro’s office that Fuller and his associates engaged in witness tampering were “baseless and inflammatory,” and show bias against him and his legal practice, which should not be allowed to affect his client. Fuller said Friday that he plans to make identical recusal requests on behalf of every one of his clients with pending cases. He has clients in all 12 sections of court, he said. The allegations Fuller alluded to are outlined in a 206-page, spiral-bound report compiled by Cannizzaro’s office and distributed to local, state and federal law enforcement agencies. Surveillance photos and social media screen grabs are included in the report, which outlines specific examples when the office says Fuller and two of his associates tampered with witnesses or jeopardized witnesses’ safety. The report does not make allegations related to Hayes’ case, but Fuller’s co-counsel in the Hayes case, Gregory Carter, is one of Fuller’s associates included in the report. Fuller ’s motion argues Cannizzaro’s office should be recused because of a “personal interest in the case ... which is in conflict with fair and impartial administration of justice.” The motion cites a NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune article about the 206page report. “These public accusations, without formal charging, demonstrate District Attorney Cannizzaro’s personal animosity toward John T. Fuller and Associates,” the motion reads. Allowing the DA’s office to prosecute his ongoing cases, he argues, “places those defendants in the midst of the controversy, violates their constitutional right to due process.” The prosecution of Fuller’s clients, the motion states, “could be seen by the public” as the district attorney’s “desire for retaliation and retribution.” A recusal hearing in Hayes’ case is scheduled Wednesday. At least two judges have already ruled on the identical recusal requests made on behalf of other clients Fuller represents. Those two judges ruled differently. Orleans Criminal District Judge Byron C. Williams refused Fuller’s motion to recuse the DA’s office in the case of Fuller client Bryant McClendon. Fuller appealed, and the issue SEE CASE, B2
Hustler Club ordered to remove provocative covers Greg LaRose glarose@nola.com
Art, like beauty, is often in the eye of the beholder. According to an attorney for Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club, that definition includes the sexually provocative covers of Hustler magazine that line its front windows in the 200 block of Bourbon Street. The New Orleans City Council didn’t weigh in as art critics Thursday when asked to decide whether the covers should come down, but their decision supporting removal could possibly lead to a lawsuit from the business. The Vieux Carré Commission, which regulates preservation in the French Quarter, cited the Hustler Club in April for violating the prohibition against excessive signage and ordered them to remove all 48 magazine covers from its façade fenestration. The club appealed the citation to the VCC and lost. On Thursday, the club’s attorney brought the matter before the Orleans City Council, arguing the magazine covers are art and therefore constitutionally protected as free speech. Attorney Michelle Cumberland told council members the covers shouldn’t be considered signs because they do not advertise a product. “The Hustler Club does not sell
U.S. Supreme Court when the Rev. Jerry Falwell sued him for libel. Flynt had published a parody in Hustler that depicted Falwell describing sex with his mother. “These magazines may not appeal to everybody as art, but this aesthetic and freedom of expression is certainly not inconsistent with the historic character of Bourbon Street,” Cumberland told council members. “And the commitment to the freedom of imagination and expression is deeply embedded in our national psyche, buttressed by the First Amendment and supported by a long line of ... decisions by the Supreme Court.” Council members said it was not up to them to determine whether the covers qualLarry Flynt’s Hustler Club could sue the New ified as art, the suggestion of which drew a Orleans City Council, which directed removal brief laugh from Councilwoman Stacy Head of the Hustler magazine covers on the busi- during Cumberland’s comments. Instead, ness’s windows in the 200 block of Bourbon they were being asked whether they fit Street. Chris Granger / cgranger@nola.com within the Vieux Carré Commission’s definition of a sign. A representative of the city planning these women,” she said. staff said the covers are signs because listed The covers were created by a civil liberties under each cover is a club’s specials or seradvocate, Cumberland said, apparently refer- vice, some with prices. These signs violate ring to Flynt, who leaned on the First Amend- VCC guidelines that prohibit placing them ment to earn a landmark victory before the SEE HUSTLER, B3
St. Tammany drafts rules to regulate drilling side effects Robert Rhoden rrhoden@nola.com
St. Tammany Parish officials are drafting laws to exert some control over the side effects of oil and gas drilling operations. The initiative comes two years after Parish President Pat Brister, in the wake of publicity about Helis Oil’s plans for fracking near Mandeville, said St. Tammany needed more authority over drilling-related traffic, noise and waste products. Her plan was put on hold in June 2014 when the parish sued the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources to block Helis’ project, administration spokesman Ronnie Simpson said. Now that the courts have ruled against the parish, Brister and the Parish Council are moving forward to craft ordinances for introduction in August, SEE RULES, B3