[U] So — Thomas Barrack Is In More Hot Water, For Withholding Documents He Used At Trial, That Were Not Privileged…

Update on Sunday afternoon, Eastern time: the able Judge Cogan has decided in an order just entered on the docket in Brooklyn, that Mr. Barrack himself likely did not intend for his counsel to thwart the discovery rules on these 84 documents. So, he will not give an instruction to the jury, or impose other sanctions on Barrack himself. Again, in my experience it is common to see a federal judge go easy on the defendant, and impliedly blame an error of counsel, so as not to make it worse for the Defendant (here, Mr. Barrack). Barrack is going to be convicted, Judge Cogan pretty much knows it — and he will lean toward limiting appeal avenues now. End, updates.

Not surprising, as it is common for white-collar felony defense lawyers to try to run “trial by ambush” tactics under the court’s radar, since the government possesses such vast advantages in resources, as compared to almost all accused indictees. Not so, Mr. Barrack — his billions, have meant tens of millions already spent on defense.

But apparently, at Friday’s session in Brooklyn, his lawyers began cross examining a government witness on a string of emails and documents… documents in the control of Team Barrack, ones that are not privileged, and ones he, and they, never showed the government (as plainly required by long standing federal criminal procedure / evidentiary rules). [The idea is to surprise, and hope to befuddle a witness before the jury and cast doubt on his or her testimony, in the eyes of the jury. But it rarely works, even though defense counsel probably correctly assess that their client is going to jail no matter what, for felonies — so breaking some evidentiary rules won’t add to his sentence much, and may get him… an acquittal by juror confusion.]

We may infer that this ticked off the able USDC trial judge Brian Cogan — as he has ordered a full disclosure by Barrack’s team — of at least 84 documents, to the US, by no later than 5 PM EDT, on yesterday — a Saturday.

This may yet result in an instruction to the jury that they may make adverse inferences against Mr. Barrack for these obvious misdeeds. Even up to and including that it is more evidence of his… awareness of his ultimate culpability, on the felonies:

…The Court is reconsidering its decision on the issues raised in [321, 322] and will rule on the issues raised therein after the Government has had a chance to respond. Defendant Barrack should produce to the Government all withheld documents that are plainly not privileged by 5:00 PM today.

Ordered by Judge Brian M. Cogan on 10/15/2022….

Were I Mr. Barrack, I would get my various powers of attorney and estate planning documents in good and refreshed order, for all my financial dealings, for at least the next ten years… I think he is going into a federal prison for at least that long, to be sure.

Which with the hideous limits on / lack of health care access in all prisons… may mean he dies… before he breathes free air again. He will be in his late seventies when he goes away.

Damn — that explains, in my mind, these flagrant misdeeds, at trial.

Onward — to see Tangerine squirm when he is convicted will be… delicious.