My questions to Jones included ones about Beck's unusually advanced age at 69 for a U.S. attorney appointment. Most important, however, were the questions of conflict of interest. . . . To recap, the question is how Beck, defense attorney for the key prosecution witness Nick Bailey in the scandal-ridden prosecution of Siegelman, could possibly supervise the same middle district U.S. attorney's office that exhibited so many well-documented but yet unpunished abuses as those involving in the Siegelman/Scrushy convictions.
How did Jones respond? First, it should be noted that he apparently would not grant an interview, answering questions that Kreig submitted but not allowing for any followup. Second, it appears that Jones essentially issued a statement rather than answering the questions put to him. Here is the reply:
George is eminently qualified to be US Attorney. He is a veteran lawyer who is respected by judges and lawyers on both sides of the aisle. He will be fair and balanced, and not driven by any political agenda, which is especially important for that particular U.S. Attorney position. This is not a lifetime appointment. So I am not concerned at all about his age. I think that office needs a seasoned lawyer with a steady hand regardless of age, and he certainly fits that bill.
With regard to his representation about Nick [Bailey], it is not a question whether he might be conflicted. He will be conflicted from any involvement in the case. I think that the real question will be whether it causes the entire office, including the Assistant U.S, Attorneys who prosecuted the case, to also be recused. A strong argument can be made that this case is so controversial that the entire office should be recused, and either another U.S, attorney appointed to oversee the case or someone out of Main Justice. That's a decision to be made by the hierarchy at DOJ.
Finally, all I can say about any questions that have after the fact been raised regarding my representation of Gov. Siegelman while also working on a civil matter against Richard Scrushy is that Don was well aware of the civil case and it was never an issue with us and that is all that matters to me. Moreover, as you know I did not represent him at trial due to a trial conflict with another matter and it is the trial where the rubber meets the road with regard to such issues. Scrushy was ultimately dismissed from our case without any settlement or judgment against him.
Let's take a closer look at what Jones is saying:
* "George (Beck) is imminently qualified to be U.S. attorney"--This is the kind of gibberish that lawyers tend to say about other lawyers. But what is the truth of the matter? Consider Kreig's reporting about Beck's representation of Nick Bailey, the key government witness in the Siegelman case:
By the time of a Feb. 24, 2008, investigation of the case by CBS 60 Minutes, however, one of the nation's most popular television programs would inform the world that Beck and Fuller let the government witness, Bailey, be coached and/or coerced by prosecutors up to 70 times, without providing legally required details to the defense to enable pretrial preparations. . . .
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