Jim Bell defense fund

Has anyone talked to Jim to find out what he wants? I wouldn't be surprised
if he wants to represent himself without the assistance/interference of an
attorney. (I think that'd be a big mistake, but he's an adult and should be
allowed to make his own choices.) 

Is he currently represented by a court-appointed attorney? Are they working
out of the federal public defender's office, or are they in private
practice? I'm not familiar with the Tacoma federal PD's office (nor am I
sure that one exists) but the federal public defenders in Oregon typically
did a pretty good job for their clients, frequently better than that
available from the cheaper/less experienced end of the spectrum in the
private bar. A court-appointed attorney may also be more familiar
with/comfortable with clients who want to take an active part in their
defense. (Sometimes, defendants will choose to represent themseves, but
with the aid of an attorney to help them understand courtroom
protocol/procedure, and to give help/advice with the trickier issues.)

It's also possible that organizing only a small defense fund will turn out
to be worse than no defense fund, if it eliminates his eligibility for an
appointed attorney but fails to generate enough money to attract a good
private attorney. If the government really wants to screw him, forcing him
to represent himself or be represented by someone inexperienced or
uninterested or underfunded seems like a good way to do that. My hunch is
that an attorney from the private bar will want somewhere between $15K and
$30K to take this to trial, could be higher. Someone who asks for a lot
less probably doesn't intend to do very much work, unless they're doing it
on a pro bono basis. 

If people are serious about this, I suggest getting in touch with Jim or
his family to see if it's actually helpful/useful, and setting it up such
that any money raised goes directly to the attorney, not to Jim or his
family. (not because I don't think they're trustworthy, but because gaining
extra cash/assets may make him ineligible for a court-appointed attorney -
but if the cash/assets aren't available to him because they're being held
by some unconnected cypherpunk, it'd be much harder/impossible to deny him
appointed counsel.) Also, given Jim's tax status, it's possible that the
IRS will try to seize/levy against any funds that come into Jim's control,
which would turn the "defense fund" into the "pay Jim's taxes fund". 


--
Greg Broiles                | US crypto export control policy in a nutshell:
gbroiles@netbox.com         | 
http://www.io.com/~gbroiles | Export jobs, not crypto.
                            |

On Sun, 1 Jun 1997, Greg Broiles wrote:

> 
> Has anyone talked to Jim to find out what he wants? I wouldn't be surprised

Jim isn't easily reachable by phone at the moment.

> Is he currently represented by a court-appointed attorney? Are they working
> out of the federal public defender's office, or are they in private

Yes. He is being represented by a Federal public defender, who indicated
to me he would appreciate whatever help the cypherpunks could provide.

-Declan

Declan McCullagh wrote:
> On Sun, 1 Jun 1997, Greg Broiles wrote:
> > Is he currently represented by a court-appointed attorney? Are they working
> > out of the federal public defender's office, or are they in private
> 
> Yes. He is being represented by a Federal public defender, who indicated
> to me he would appreciate whatever help the cypherpunks could provide.

Declan, it would be great if you could find out how exactly we can help
jim bell, for instance where can we send $$.

Thank you.

	- Igor.

>>> Has anyone talked to Jim to find out what he wants?
>>Jim isn't easily reachable by phone at the moment.
>
>Can he be visited? Perhaps there is a CP near him that could go and ask?

He likely has access to a pay phone; if so, he can probably make collect
calls, and maybe calling-card calls. The easiest way to talk to him on the
phone will be to send him a letter, telling him your phone number, and
telling him that you'll accept the charges if he calls you collect. The
phone call will be expensive - many jails set up sweetheart deals with
sleazy long-distance companies to handle all outgoing long-distance calls.
Since the prisoners can only call collect, and only with the one phone
company, if you want to talk to them, you pay the rate charged. :(

It's probably possible to visit him in person, although there's a good
chance it'll be via a (monitored) closed-circuit phone and plexiglass
screen. Most jails limit "contact" visits to attorneys. Likewise, anything
that's mailed to him will be opened, read, and inspected before he sees it,
unless it's from his attorney. Metal things (like staples and paper clips)
will be removed. It's probably possible to send a small amount of money (<
$20, or so) to the jail where he's held to be placed in his trust account,
which he'll be able to use to buy stamps, stationary, cigarettes (does he
smoke?), toiletries or maybe food from the commissary. It's also sometimes
possible/necessary to provide him with a change of clothes, if/when this
gets to a jury trial. Most jails won't let you mail books to prisoners, but
will accept books (sometimes only softcover) if they're mailed directly
from publishers. 

If he's got an attorney from the federal PD's office, he doesn't need money
for his defense - it won't help, and might just screw things up. I don't
think the PD's office would even accept it.

The best thing to do is find out where he's being held (seems like the
early report(s) said he was in a county jail in Tacoma? - sometimes county
jails hold prisoners on federal charges, and bill the feds for it) and call
there and ask what you can do, how you can write to him, if you can send
him stuff, what the visiting hours are, etc.

If someone does talk/write to him, you should remember that there's a
strong possibility that your communication(s) will be monitored/recorded,
and that anything he says/writes may be admissible against him at trial. 

Welcome to America. This is what we do to people before they even get a
trial. 

--
Greg Broiles                | US crypto export control policy in a nutshell:
gbroiles@netbox.com         | 
http://www.io.com/~gbroiles | Export jobs, not crypto.

At 12:19 AM 6/3/97 -0400, Declan McCullagh wrote:
>
>
>On Sun, 1 Jun 1997, Greg Broiles wrote:
>
>> 
>> Has anyone talked to Jim to find out what he wants? I wouldn't be surprised
>
>Jim isn't easily reachable by phone at the moment.

Can he be visited? Perhaps there is a CP near him that could go and ask?


--Lucky Green <shamrock@netcom.com> PGP encrypted mail preferred.

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