Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis has directed the government to respond to Keith Raniere’s Second Motion for Bond by no later than November 19, 2018.
I suspect we will see a rather piquant filing much to the point and rebutting much of what Raniere’s attorney, Marc Agnifilo, has asserted in his motion seeking to free Raniere – for a time with home confinement or perhaps for all time.
It should be a joy to read.
Also due on November 19th is a letter by the defense counsel for Nancy Salzman, Clare Bronfman and Keith Raniere on the issue of attorney-client privilege. The main concern is whether that privilege has been waived on certain emails seized by the government by virtue of the fact that the correspondence with several attorneys was evidently shared or copied to more than one current criminal defendant – potentially breaking the attorney-client privilege.
How significant this is truly is hard to say without knowing what evidence of crimes may be revealed by the emails between attorneys and Raniere, Bronfman and Salzman.
In any event, defense attorneys are billing hours on parsing this issue – researching it and making their respective client’s legal position known to the DOJ and the Court in order to sort through and determine what may very well be much ado about nothing.
This may be more form than substance. Maybe not. But the good news is that the billing rate is by the hour either way.
Also more good news for attorneys for the defense. Lawyers for the defendants asked leave to file joint motions in excess of the judge’s rule of a maximum of 25 pages per motion. Judge Garaufis has granted the motion and we may see some filings coming in at well over 25 pages.
However, the judge has directed that “each party should file its own motion papers at its respective due date. For joint motions, only one Defendant shall file the appropriate papers.”
This should add up to some notable billable hours and some good reading too.
Also expected today is Raniere’s motion to dismiss.
His second motion for bail is a delight to read – filled as it is with comparisons of Raniere to Socrates and assertions of his wondrous ethics, as well as some fanciful yarns about Raniere’s motives for his exploits down Mexico way. The dismissal should be – if Marc Agnifilo writes it – another splendid composition that should border somewhere between legal writing and the finest works of fiction.
I’m just oblivious to how people can get so sucked into an organization and freely dole out millions of dollars to someone, no matter how convincing or nice that person seems.
Could he not have channeled his energy into selling used cars? He likely would have been good at it.
I just don’t get it – I’d like to think I would never get caught up in an organization like that and probably wouldn’t because – hey, I’m cheap, a pessimist, nor do I have millions to give.
I would love to hear some audio tapes of Keith’s sessions, to try to understand how someone can get caught up in this horse****.
Vanguard week….really? Was he like a deity or something? Do people sacrifice goats etc.?
I’m curious about the motion to dismiss the sex traffickIng charges. Sex trafficking as I understand it is basically prostitution, except no one here was paid for sex. There needs to be an exchange of value right? And a pat on the head from vanguard is pretty worthless in my opinion.
A pat on the head from Vanguard isn’t ‘worthless’ when Vanguard is holding blackmail material on you or your family — therefore pleasing him becomes coercive and mandatory.
Likewise, granting women ‘special status’, ‘promotions’ or ‘stripes’ (or other organizational benefits) in exchange for either sex or for procuring sex with other women — that’s not legal either, regardless of whether actual monetary currency is being exchanged.
If you think that earning stripes and getting plum assignments/positions within NXIVM is ‘worthless’ then you’re not viewing the situation from the point of view of the women. If the women really viewed that stuff as ‘worthless’ then they wouldn’t have continued with NXIVM in the first place and would have simply quit. Remember, these women are devoting their ENTIRE LIVES to NXIVM and their ‘status’ within the organization meant more to them than their own families did — since most of them alienated family members to be with NXIVM. Most of them shit on their families to do Keith’s bidding.
Keith’s bidding became their whole world, it became something worth more than gold or diamonds to these women.
Also, importing young women illegally from other countries for sexual favors isn’t worthless, nor is it legal, regardless of whether monetary currency is exchanged.
Women were imported from Mexico for sex and/or other nefarious activities within NXIVM (like computer hacking) — and they were ‘controlled’ by Keith via the threat of being deported or by having other blackmail material held over their heads. That’s not legal either.
You need to just have faith that the government understands what elements of each charge need to be proven.
Actually, it could said be that Keith WAS paid for sex.
Barbara Bouchey reportedly gave Keith $1M. Sara and Clare Bronfman ponied up well over $100M each over the years. Karen U. bought him half a townhouse. Pam C. paid, albeit posthumously, etc.
Maybe Keith will be charged with “solicitation” next round of indictments.
“William Faulkner “- Barn Burning ! What a Great Work ! Deemed “too short” to serve in the US Military …. he when to Canada and served in the Canadian Military …… Uncommon Perseverance !
A good lawyer would have a 50/50 of getting him off. I say that because the law is word of art, definitions, precedence, standing. Emotion isn’t supposed to play a part. So proving Raniere guilty lies with the prosecution and the defense doesn’t even have to form a rebuttal if they don’t think necessary.
There is a lot of emotion involved here and it’s easy to see some get carried away. That’s not meant to be an insult but a point that the law doesn’t work by “anyone can see/realize his guilt. The co defendants are in a more precarious position than he in my opinion. As ridiculous as it is and may seem we have a great legal system but it is designed to protect the innocent A story the other day is a good example of mob justice. Two men pulled from jail, beat and set on fire because the mob thought they were child kidnappers and selling organs on the black market. Turns out they were in jail for minor offenses. This happened in Mexico
I think they have enough documentary evidence to make their case, especially on the financial crimes. I predict he will be convicted, but your concerns are quite valid. The thought of him getting off scares the crap out of me. God only knows how he would wreak his vengeance this time. You do not thwart the Vanguard.
Does the DOJ know when KAR baby mama Visa had expired?
Rumor is, she lived in Clifton Park for years on an expired Visa. Her need to go back to Mexico to renew her Visa when she did was only out of convenience so KAR could flee the country.
Good question