Fieger on his indictment: We are now living in a McCarthy era

Fieger on his indictment: 'We are now living in a McCarthy era' August 28, 2007 By JOHN WISELY FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER Southfield lawyer Geoffrey Fieger is free on personal bond after he pleaded not guilty at his arraignment this afternoon on charges that he illegally funneled campaign contributions to the 2004 presidential campaign of John Edwards. One of Fieger’s lawyers, Thomas Cranmer, also persuaded the magistrate to allow Fieger to keep his passport, despite a request from prosecutors to have him surrender it. Fieger has a home abroad and business reasons to travel, Cranmer argued. “I see nothing to indicate that Mr. Fieger is a risk of flight,” said Magistrate Judge R. Steven Whalen, who told Fieger the only condition of his bond was that he must not break any laws. Fieger didn’t speak at his arraignment but at a news conference at his office this morning, he called his indictment “scurrilous” and said he was singled out for prosecution because of his political affiliations. “We are now living in a McCarthy era,” Fieger said. “I have always been the target.” At that conference, Fieger appeared surrounded by 10 lawyers, including famed defense lawyer Gerry Spence, who read a statement from Alan Dershowitz, another famous lawyer who is working on the Fieger defense. Spence wouldn’t say directly if Fieger broke the law but said he didn’t believe that reimbursing employees for political contributions was illegal under current law. Lawyers at the news conference, held in a sunlit mock courtroom in Fieger’s office complex, portrayed the U.S. Justice Department as the defendant, accusing it of rewarding officials for prosecuting Democrats and punishing and firing those who prosecuted Republicans. “This selective prosecution has been political and partisan from the very beginning,” Dershowitz said in a statement read by Spence.“There is no way a Republican who did precisely what Geoffrey Fieger is accused of doing would have been prosecuted by this Justice Department and this administration.” Spence plans to ask the judge to dismiss the case, claiming “selective and vindictive” prosecution. The Justice Department on Friday unsealed an indictment charging Fieger and his law partner, Vernon Johnson, with illegally reimbursing their employees and others for about $127,000 in political contributions to the 2004 presidential campaign of John Edwards.Fieger also is charged with conspiracy, obstruction of justice and causing false statements.