Luther Strange
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange is threatening to seek sanctions against the Massachusetts lawyer who helped file a federal lawsuit against him over the February electronic-bingo raids at VictoryLand casino.Donald LaRoche, of Brockton, Massachusetts, filed the lawsuit April 5 on behalf of Tuskegee Mayor Johnny Ford and other residents of Macon County who claim the VictoryLand raids have caused "economic devastation" in their area.
Governor Robert Bentley, codefendant in the case, already has filed an answer to the complaint, according to a report at oanow.com, the Web site of the Opelika-Auburn News. Strange's answer is due this week, but the AG already has engaged in the not-so-subtle art of intimidation. From the oanow.com report:
Donald LaRoche, who is representing Ford and others named as plaintiffs in the case, said that as of [last] Friday, attorneys representing Bentley were the only ones he was aware of who had responded to summonses. LaRoche said defendants typically have at least 21 days to respond after receiving a summons. When contacted by the Opelika-Auburn News, a spokesperson with Strange’s office said the attorney general had until [this] week to respond to the suit.
Is Strange looking forward to filing a response in the case? It doesn't sound like it:
According to court documents, LaRoche filed a motion to cease attempts to intimidate and delay on April 17 after receiving a letter from Solicitor General John C. Neiman Jr. on behalf of Strange threatening sanctions against him and Ford if the suit was not dropped within seven days of receiving the letter.
“He (Strange) is named throughout the lawsuit and we are looking forward to his being summoned into court and under oath having to testify,” Ford said.
Let's consider this scenario: Luther Strange having to testify under oath about what is driving his effort to close the VictoryLand casino, even though no court of law has declared its bingo machines to be illegal; the attorney general possibly being forced to turn over documents--e-mails, internal memos, phone records--related to the VictoryLand raids.
Would that prove to be an interesting turn of events? Is it any wonder Luther Strange is resorting to intimidation tactics?
