The Sunday Update report is brought to you in part by the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo student pictured below, at my house, in Santo Domingo. Earlier today she advised me that a new (11.29.2011) filing was available for review in United States of America vs Frederick W. Thomas. Her duties also include analysis and review of prospective content to be published at WOBIK.
Frederick W. Thomas and his attorney, Jeffrey L. Ertel, have filed a Preliminary Appeal Of Order Detaining Defendant. Said document is dated 11.29.2011 and is embedded for review towards the end of this report.
I was, at least initially, surprised to see that the well known rapper, “TI”, was mentioned on page 5 of the filing.
T.I. was born in the year 1980 and his real name is Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr. He too is from Georgia. On October 13, 2007 he was arrested in downtown Atlanta, corner of North and Piedmont Avenues, for possession of three unregistered machine guns and two unregistered silencers, and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. He was set-up by his bodyguard (who was a confidential informant, and cooperating witness, for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) who, on that day, sold TI the machine guns and the silencers. Prior to the set-up the bodyguard himself had recently been arrested for attempting to purchase guns from a federal agent.
After two weeks of sitting in the Fulton County Jail (Atlanta) TI walked out of the United States District Court in Atlanta, on October 26, 2007, after Judge Alan J. Baverman granted him bail in the amount of $3 million dollars. $2 million was to be paid in cash with the other $1 million in the form of equity, i.e., property that T.I. owns.
Before picking up the above referenced federal charges T.I. already had a relatively lengthy criminal record which dates back to the 1990s. His criminal curriculum vitae includes, though is not limited to: selling/possessing crack cocaine, illegal possession of a firearm, marijuana possession, and…..physical assault of a female sheriff deputy. In addition, I believe in 2004, he was sentenced to 3 years in prison after violating probation which he was originally placed on for drug charges from 1997. However, if I remember correctly, I don’t think that he served much of that 3 year prison sentence before he was released (although I readily admit that I may be wrong about that part).
Frederick W. Thomas and his attorney, Jeffrey L. Ertel, point out on page 5 that even rapper “TI” was granted bail pending the resolution of his case. They also point to the following, in support of Thomas being granted bail:
a. Thomas has never harmed anyone in his 73 years of existence.
b. Thomas served honorably in the United States Navy for 30 (thirty) years. Fifteen years active and fifteen years in the reserves.
c. Thomas is a four (4) time grandfather and a one (1) time great-grandfather.
d. Thomas has worked his entire life and has taught himself the skills necessary to be a communications/data engineer.
e. After Thomas’ active duty in the US Navy he worked for Lockheed-Martin, Boeing, and Sperry-Rand.
f. Thomas retired four (4) years ago and with his savings he, and his wife, bought their dream home in Cleavland, Georgia. Thomas and his wife, Charlotte, have been married for more than 50 (fifty) years.
g. Thomas and his wife survive on the following:
1. A modest pension from Boeing.
2. A modest pension from Lockheed-Martin.
3. A modest pension from the US Navy.
4. Thomas and his wife both receive Social Security.
h. If Thomas remains in jail pending trial his Social Security
Benefits will cease and his wife will not be able to afford to make the mortgage
payments on their house.
i. Thomas has no prior criminal history whatsoever.
j. Thomas suffers from a plethora of physical medical problems. Half of one of his lungs has been removed by doctors. Approximately two months prior to his arrest he
was on a steady diet of oxygen and kept a tank close by at all times. Moreover, in one of the government’s own secret recordings, though recently now produced, Thomas can be heard indicating he has only recently been able to achieve 4 minutes of walking non-stop on a treadmill.
k. Thomas has not been criminally charged with terrorism. However, false allegations of terror and terrorism have led to a media firestorm labeling Thomas as domestic terrorist. In truth, Thomas is charged with nothing more than conspiracy to possess an unregistered explosive device (which he never possessed at any time) and possession of an unregistered silencer.
Conclusion: Frederick W. Thomas should not be denied the fundamental right to bail. The Eight Amendment to the United States Constitution states: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” This fundamental right allows the accused to be free before conviction. This allows the defendant to marshal a defense and also prevents unjust punishment of the wrongfully accused. It would seem that prohibiting excessive bail would mean that bail should be made available and affordable to everyone.
Please exercise your free speech in the comments section below. Speak your mind, give us your thoughts, both objective and subjective. Share your ideas, hunches, inklings or your expertise. Please provide recommendation and corrections if you spot errors in fact within this blog report. Lastly, remember that posting a comment is much like casting a vote, so please do so!
?
She ain’t got no tits.
I agree wholeheartedly with your conclusion:
”Frederick W. Thomas should not be denied the fundamental right to bail. The Eight Amendment to the United States Constitution states: ’Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.’ This fundamental right allows the accused to be free before conviction. This allows the defendant to marshal a defense and also prevents unjust punishment of the wrongfully accused. It would seem that prohibiting excessive bail would mean that bail should be made available and affordable to everyone.
I believe Mr. Thomas’ lawyer from the Federal Defender Program, Jeffrey L. Ertel, Esq. did a good job in presenting the case that bail should be allowed for his client. I hope the judge will see the wisdom presented, but fear that this will not be the outcome, since this is a case tangentially concerned with ‘domestic terrorism’, although Mr. Thomas is not being formally charged with that crime.
From the article: What is driving his case is the allegations that Mr. Thomas is a “domestic terrorist” and allegation that is overblown and inaccurate but has led to a media “firestorm” that has prejudiced Mr. Thomas in his attempt to receive a fair trial and a fair and impartial detention determination.
The following quote from Lily Tomlin seems appropriate in explaining my fear that bail will not be granted for Mr. Thomas. I hope I’m wrong on this!
”No matter how cynical you get, it is impossible to keep up.” Lily Tomlin.
btw. While I was searching for the above, classic quote from Ms. Tomlin, I also ran across the following quote, which also seems appropriate for the general conditions we are now facing in America.
“Ninety eight percent of the adults in this country are decent, hardworking, honest Americans. It’s the other lousy two percent that get all the publicity. But then, we elected them.” Lily Tomlin
This case regarding Mr. Thomas, and the other three defendants as well, is very sad and tragic, for a number of reasons!
Without question, Frederick Thomas needs to be afforded the opportunity to post reasonable bond so that he can help prepare an adequate defense.
Also, and I know you don’t agree with me on this Lucas — I think Mr. Thomas probably needs to obtain some mental health medical attention to help treat his likely condition of progressive ‘dementia’ related to his advanced age, and aggravated by his chronic poor health!
IT IS A DAMN SHAME THAT THE GOVERNMENT HAS, IN ALL PROBABILITY, CHOSEN TO ‘ENTRAP’ THIS UNFORTUNATE SENIOR CITIZEN IN THEIR ‘DOMESTIC TERRORIST’ WEB IN ORDER TO ADVANCE THEIR OWN AGENDA ITEMS!
The following explains some of my thoughts on what I believe, ideally, SHOULD transpire regarding the treatment of defendant, Frederick Thomas.
I am not knowledgeable regarding the actual laws that can be utilized, if any, to accomplish this task. That is, I am just speaking as a lay person on how I think the matter should be handled, for the benefit of civilized society AND the defendant involved. After all, shouldn’t THIS be what laws are actually set up to accomplish — protection of BOTH society and the alleged, but as yet unproven, law-breaker?
If proven guilty, the transgressor is then appropriately ‘punished’ by the Judicial System to protect society from additional violations by that same transgressor, and also to serve as a deterrent to others who might otherwise have considered committing the same crime.
I think Mr. Thomas is suffering to some degree from the mental condition commonly known as ‘dementia’, as I have mentioned in several previous comments on this thread! If true, this would help explain the great disparity between his former, rather exemplary lifestyle and his recent statements and activities, which can best be described as ‘bizarre’ and ‘dangerous to civilized society’.
My wife and I were privileged, a few years ago, to have taken a DVD-based college course titled, “Biology and Human Behavior: The Neurological Origins of Individuality”. This excellent lecture series was conducted by Dr. Robert Sapolsky, Professor of Neuroscience at Stanford University and was made available through ‘The Teaching Company’. Furthermore, I am a chemist, by both formal training and experience.
The ‘CHEMISTRY’ involved with human brain function is awesome and truly wondrous when it is working properly. Conversely, when this highly complex ‘chemistry’ ceases to function properly, for any number of reasons, the results can sometimes be truly FRIGHTENING! It is as simple as that!
I think, judging by the RECORDED STATEMENTS made by Mr. Thomas, that he COULD pose a serious risk to society, and specifically to the lives and well-being of legally constituted governmental officials, along with their staff members and anyone else in the vicinity at the time of Mr. Thomas allegedly planned violent criminal activity. (I will not discuss the questionable competence or performance of the government officials allegedly targeted, since Mr. Thomas has no right to make life or death decisions for these individuals.)
I am a STRONG DEFENDER of an American Citizen’s 2nd Amendment Constitutional Right to keep and bear arms. I am a long-time member of both the ‘NRA’ and ‘Gun Owners of America’. Mr. Thomas, a gun-enthusiast and former sport hunter, had accumulated over time, a large collection of guns and ammunition, and I think that is fine under normal circumstances.
However, when I viewed in the court reports what he allegedly said on the surreptitiously recorded tapes, I got the immediate impression that he COULD have killed people with some of those guns. In my opinion, this was NOT the mentally-stable, job-holding, husband, father, and grandfather Mr. Thomas talking, who had existed previously.
Sure, Mr. Thomas has probably long and loudly complained about the growing power of the Federal Government. So do I, and a LOT of other folks! However, KILLING PEOPLE is something entirely different than complaining, organizing, writing letters, voting, etc.
I think the irrational ‘PARANOIA’ exhibited in his recently recorded statements is largely the result of ‘GOVERNMENT ENTRAPMENT ACTIVITY’ combined with ‘MALFUNCTIONING BRAIN CHEMISTRY’ due to Mr. Thomas’ advanced age, and aggravated by his chronic poor health.
What is the REASONABLE and PROPER things for the authorities to do?
(1) I think Mr. Thomas should be afforded the opportunity to post reasonable bond so that he, with the help of his court-appointed lawyer, can prepare a proper defense.
(2) I think he should be referred to a competent mental health professional to assess his mental condition. If a mental illness such as ‘dementia’ is diagnosed, appropriate procedures and medications should be offered to help alleviate the condition.
(3) I think his collection of guns and ammunition should be confiscated and perhaps auctioned off, with the proceeds going to Mr. Thomas and his family.
(4) I think he should be prohibited, for an appropriate period of time, from associating with other individuals in any type of organized ‘militia’ group.
(5) I think he should be given a fair trial.
In some ways, this case is really not all that different from an ‘INTERVENTION’ to TAKE THE CAR KEYS AWAY from some elderly person who has lost the mental capacity and physical ability to drive a car on the public highways. … IT HAPPENS ALL THE TIME! … NO BIG DEAL!
‘Taking the car keys away’ is usually just the action of common folks trying to PROTECT both their loved-one and also any innocents in society that might be hurt or killed in a otherwise ensuing, tragic car accident.
I seriously doubt that ANY of the above 5 recommended procedures will be undertaken or even considered! This is all very sad and tragic for Mr. Thomas and his family.
There I go, just being cynical again!
@ Bruce:
Thank you for your detailed participation in this discussion.
I have not been able to reply yet because I am having minor problems with the internet. Should be resolved by tomorrow night.
Thank you.
Pingback: Treachery: Lucas D. Smith passes polygraph test. Pedophile FBI informant Joe Sims fails polygraph test. | Lucas Daniel Smith's Blog