Day: August 6, 2008

"Give Us This Day Our Daily" Beef….

We have still more Beef Plant legal filings for you and these are some of the most informative documents to date concerning what we should expect from the prosecutors when the Moultrie trial starts. In the Government’s response to the defense motion to dismiss we find out a good bit more about which TFG employee will be singing on the stand and what he already told the grand jury:

The United States is not required to allege or prove a quid pro quo to convict Moultrie, Cawood or The Facility Group. But even if it was, Moultrie’s former employee Robin WIlliams’ Grand Jury testimony eviscerates Moultrie’s entire argument about the lack of any quid pro quo.

Robin Williams was a member of the Georgia Legislature while employed as a “consultant” for Robert Moultrie and The Facility Group. Williams attended an April 2, 2003 dinner with the public official, one of the public official’s campaign employees and Robert Moultrie. The dinner took place in Jackson, Mississippi just days before The Facility Group was announced as Project Manager of Mississippi Beef Processors, LLC. After dining with the public official, Moultrie and The Facility Group billed the costs of the dinner with the public official as well as Moultrie’s travel to the dinner back to the State of Mississippi as a business expense. Continue reading “"Give Us This Day Our Daily" Beef….”

Superseding Beef Plant Indictment: Too Many Words for Grazing?

In my short time reading legal filings, especially in criminal cases I’ve found a few whacky things but nothing quite like the latest legal filing from Team Moultrie and Greenlee’s answer. In essence team Moultrie claimed the proscecutors gave way too much information in the indictment and the “surplus” words simply must go. In another beefy example of how lawyers can play well together in the interest of fair administration of justice, Mr Greenlee considered team Moultrie’s motion to strike “Surplusage” from the indictment and agreed to remove certain passages from it:

While we do not believe that the Superseding Indictment contains surplus language, in an effort to reduce the length of the indictment, enhance clarity and perhaps reduce the length of the trial, the United States is not opposed Continue reading “Superseding Beef Plant Indictment: Too Many Words for Grazing?”

Speaking of genius, there's one in Picayune who cleans air!

Bill Wolverton is his name; and, you find him at Wolverton Environmental Services in Picayune. WLOX told his story back in June. I happened on it today after reading the current news about discussion of Katrina cottages by Biloxi’s City Council.

Dr. B.C. Wolverton has spent more than 30 years as a civilian scientist with the military and NASA. Since retiring from NASA 18 years ago, Dr. B.C. Wolverton has developed high-efficiency plant-based air filtration systems. He says he has the solution to eliminating formaldehyde inside FEMA trailers…

When formaldehyde problems began cropping up in FEMA trailers, the Sierra Club contacted Dr. Wolverton. In October of 2006, the Sierra Club placed one of Wolverton’s EcoPlanter systems in a Bay St. Louis family’s FEMA trailer. The results were amazing. Continue reading “Speaking of genius, there's one in Picayune who cleans air!”

Breaking: Jim Hood Settles with State Farm

I had to laugh when I was alerted by a reader to this story, it was her live blogging from the US Court in Natchez that landed Bellesouth on the cyber map here in Mississippi. It was her insistence that Hood did not do badly on the witness stand under Robie’s questioning and that he still did indeed have litigation ongoing against State Farm that put her on the outs with some folks who thought they knew better. In my world of finance blogging it is far better to be right and on the outs with the know it alls about a stock than wrong and losing your ass. Congratulations Belle.

Also we congratulate Jim Hood who has been viciously attacked by the combination of State Farm, Scruggs haters and the Mississippi GOP. Today’s announcement shows he stood firm and with resolve to do what was right for State Farm policyholders even in the face of the withering political criticism. I hope he enjoys the well deserved credit for the additional $74 million he got for the slabbed.

Here is the breaking story from Anita Lee:

Attorney General Jim Hood and State Farm have settled a lawsuit Hood’s office filed against the company.

Hood said State Farm has paid policyholder an additional $74 million for Hurricane Katrina claims, Continue reading “Breaking: Jim Hood Settles with State Farm”

"Common sense is genius dressed in its working clothes"

His name may not be Emerson; but, this form is evidence aplenty that an insurance agent can be a genius dressed in its working clothes.

It came via email from anonmyous reader in Louisiana which makes it an even smarter move. Courts there, if you recall my earlier post, have held an agent is not responsible when a policyholder doesn’t by all the coverage needed.

The practical application of the judge’s ruling is that consumers have no reason to believe their State Farm agent will help them find the coverage they need when it’s more than the maximum available under the federal flood insurance program.

A ruling like that, however, doesn’t necessarily keep an agent out of court; but, I bet having a form like this signed and in the policyholders’ file will do the job.

Around the GO Zone in 60 Seconds: Catching Up Edition

I’ve been faithfully saving news links of interest but have been short on time to gather them in a coherent post so today I’ll throw several out for your reading pleasure.

First off is the historic Grass Lawn property and movement in the rebuilding process. Ryan LaFontaine filed the story for the Sun Herald:

City Hall is searching for a construction company to build a detailed replica of the historic Grass Lawn mansion. 

The antebellum home, built in 1836, meant so much to Gulfport that the old house had its own place on the city’s official seal.

Hurricane Katrina wrecked the mansion in 2005, washing away more than a century’s worth of history. Last week, the council authorized City Hall to solicit construction bids.

The city already has insurance and FEMA money to rebuild Grass Lawn, and earlier this year, the City Council voted unanimously to award a design contract to architect Frank Genzer.

Then in April, the council voted against accepting a $500,000 grant from the state Department of Archives and History to help rebuild the mansion. But two weeks later, after several days of what some council members considered unfair media scrutiny, the council voted 6-1 to accept the money. Continue reading “Around the GO Zone in 60 Seconds: Catching Up Edition”