Author: TSA Press

Why
did
Sheriff
Mickey
Stines
shoot
Judge
Kevin
D.
Mullins?
That’s
the
question
dominating
Letcher
County,
Kentucky,
since
September
of
2024,
when

the
shocking
incident
occurred.

Almost

immediately
rumors
began
swirling
speculating
exactly
what
was
behind
the
crime.
We
know
that
Mullins
and
Stines
ate
lunch
together
the
day
of
Mullins’s
death.
And
several
other
people
were
in
attendance
at
the
business
lunch,
and
one
overheard
Mullins
ask
Stines
if
they
needed
to
meet
privately
in
his
chambers.
Surveillance
video
shows
Stines,
moments
before
the
shooting,
using
his
phone
to
call
someone,
then
using
Mullins’s
phone.
Both
calls
were
made
to
Stines’s
daughter,
and
the
daughter’s
phone
number
was
saved
on
the
judge’s
phone.

According
to
Stines’s
attorney
Jeremy
Bartley,
misconduct
allegations
against
former
deputy
Ben
Fields
and
Mullins
are
“going
to
be
crucial”
in
Stines’s
defense
—
he
has
pleaded
not
guilty
to
murder
of
a
public
official.
Three
days
before
Mullins’s
death
Stines
gave
a
deposition
in
a
civil
case
brought
by
Sabrina
Adkins
alleging
women
under
house
arrest
were
extorted
for
sexual
favors
in
exchange
for
more
lenient
treatment.
According
to
the
complaint
in
that
case,
it
all
happened
in
Mullins’s
chambers.

Adkins’s
attorney
said
“It’s
like
they
were
running
a
brothel
out
of
that
courtroom.”

Now
more
people
are
coming
forward
with
eye-popping
stories
of
what
happened
behind
the
scenes
in
Letcher
County.
Sarah
Davis,
a
former
deputy
jailer
at
Letcher
County
Jail,
told NewsNation’s Banfield
the
stories
she
heard
about
officials
using
their
positions
to
have
sex
with
inmates
were
“nasty
and
sickening.”
Davis
said
she
was
aware
of
Mullins
having
sex
with
inmate,
“That’s
kind
of
the
thing
that
everybody
in
the
county
knows,
but
it
was
confirmed
to
me
after
working
in
the
jail,
especially
after
being
invited
to
a
party
myself.”
It
was
Mullins
himself
tht
Davis
says
invited
her
to
a
sex
party,
though
she
declined
the
invitation.

My
ex
coworkers,
they
come
out
and
even
ask
me
now
not
to
mention
it,
they’ve,
even
them
participating
in
the
parties
themselves.
I
had
had
another
one
ask
me
to
go
to
another
one
of
Mullins’
get-togethers,
and
I
declined
it
again
because
it’s
one
of
those
things.
I
was
raised
better
than
that.
You
know
what
I
mean?
If
you
know,
you
know
in
the
county,
everybody
knows.
They
might
not
speak
on
it,
they
might
not
want
to
be
involved
in
it
because
of
the
fear
of
retaliation
because
there’s
so
many
people
that
has
come
out
and
spoke
out
about
what
Judge
Mullins
has
done,
even
if
we’re
afraid
to
speak
up
on
it,
we
need
to,
because,
is
this
what
we
want
for
our
next
generation?
Is
that
what
we
want
for
our
kids,
what
we’re
going
through,
what
our
past
people
have
gone
through?
Do
we
want
that
for
them?
And
no,
I
don’t
want
that
for
my
daughter.
I
don’t
want
that
for
my
son.
I
want
better
for
them.
I
want
an
actual
community
that’s
not
based
on
if
you
got
money
and
know
people,
and
if
you’re
willing
to
get
on
your
knees
or
on
your
back.
It’s
sickening.
And
I
want
better
for
them.

Tya
Adams
is
also
talking
about
her
experience
at
these
sex
parties.
As
detailed
by
NewsNation,
Adams
said
Mullins
“started
introducing
me
to
his
friends,
the
other
lawyers,
and
we
would
do
sex
parties
and
perform
shows
and
have
sex
with
them
for
money,
things
like
that.”
Asked
if
she
felt
she
could
say
no
to
these
encounters,
Adams
said,
“No,
no,
and
he,
they
would
make
sure
to
make
you
feel
as
small
and
degraded
and
belittled
as
possible
to
take
your
power
away,
you
know?”

Adams
continued,
“It
was
consensual.
But
it
was
the
thing
that
we
were
so
young,
and
then
they
used
it
against
us
and
to
destroy
our
lives
later.”
And
keeping
party
about
the
sex
parties
was
expected,
“That
was
just
a
given,”
she
said.
“And,
who
would
believe
it
anyway?
Because
the
whole
town
was
doing
it.
Nobody
cares.
They’re
all
swingers.
It’s
all
a
big
party
to
them.
It
was
just
so
normal.”

Davis
believes
the
death
of
Mullins
will
lead
to
many
revelations
about
the
abuses
of
power
in
the
town.
Asked
what
she
thought
when
he
heard
of
the
shooting,
“A
lot
of
corruption
was
going
to
come
out.
I
knew
that
this
was
going
to
be,
that
was
going
to
be
the
beginning
to
set
everything
aside
to
make
people
come
in
and
people’s
voices
finally
be
heard.
Because
even
I
believe
that
the
sheriff,
he
either
knew
something
or
something
was
going
on
that
he
knew
about
that
we
all
might
not
know
about,
but
he
was
something
to
protect
us.”

---

Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of

The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of

Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email

her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter

@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon

@[email protected].

The
new
D.C.
folk
hero
who
threw
a
sandwich
at
Trump’s
surge
publicity
stunt

turned
out
to
be
a
DOJ
attorney.
He’s
been
fired
because
this
administration

will
not
stand
for
disrespecting
law
enforcement…
unless
they’re
trying
to
kill
Capitol
police
officers
on
January
6.
Meanwhile,
the
legal
industry
enjoyed
a
muted
quarter.
Are
they
preparing
to

batten
down
the
hatches
for
a
recession?
Supreme
Court
begins
moving
the
pieces
into
place
to

tear
down

Obergefell.

Last
week,
Do
Kwon,
a
man
who
a
few
years
ago
was
one
of
the
most
famous
names
in
the
cryptocurrency
world,
pleaded
guilty
to
one
count
of
conspiring
to
commit
commodities
fraud,
securities
fraud,
and
wire
fraud
and
one
count
of
committing
wire
fraud
in
connection
with
fraudulent
schemes.
His
actions
caused
a
major
crypto
crash
in
2022
which
vaporized
$30
billion
in
wealth
and
for
some
created
tax
problems
in
addition
to
financial
loss.

Kwon
and
his
company
Terraform
Labs
created
two
cryptocurrencies:
Luna
and
UST.
Luna
was
a
typical
cryptocurrency
like
Bitcoin.
But
UST
was
a
stablecoin.
Stablecoins
are
generally
backed
by
legal
tender
currencies
like
the
U.S.
dollar
which
keeps
its
value
stable.

But
UST
did
not
have
a
cash
reserve
to
peg
its
value.
Instead,
its
peg
to
the
U.S.
dollar
was
based
on
an
algorithm
that
encourages
trader
arbitrage.
For
example,
if
the
value
of
one
UST
becomes
less
than
$1,
people
can
buy
UST,
convert
it
to
Luna,
and
then
sell
that
Luna
for
a
profit.
Conversely,
if
the
value
of
one
UST
is
greater
than
$1,
people
can
buy
$1
worth
of
Luna,
convert
it
to
UST,
then
sell
the
UST
for
a
profit.
In
theory,
this
adversarial
relationship
between
the
two
coins
were
supposed
to
keep
UST’s
value
in
check.

Kwon
also
established
the
Anchor
Protocol
to
incentive
use
of
UST.
Anchor
was
advertised
as
a
savings
platform
where
people
would
deposit
their
UST
and
receive
a
guaranteed
20%
interest.
At
that
time,
high-yield
savings
accounts
offered
at
most
1%.
The
unusually
high
return
rate
attracted
investors,
mostly
people
looking
for
alternative
investments.

In
May
2022,
a
very
large
UST
trade
caused
it
to
lose
its
peg
and
stability.
As
UST’s
value
fell,
more
Luna
coins
were
produced
in
an
attempt
to
stabilize
the
price.
But
instead,
the
massive
production
of
the
Luna
coin
devalued
that
as
well.
This
resulted
in
a
death
spiral
of
both
currencies
—
now
worth
pennies
on
the
dollar.

Kwon
and
Terraform
Labs
were
hit
with
civil
lawsuits
and
criminal
investigations
in
both
the
United
States
and
South
Korea
where
he
was
based.
During
the
UST
crash,
Kwon
was
in
Singapore
claiming
that
he
was
working
on
restoring
the
peg.
But
later
he
fled
the
country.
He
was
finally
arrested
in
Montenegro
where
he
was
caught
using
a
fake
Costa
Rica
passport
to
board
a
flight
to
Dubai.

A
good
portion
of
UST
holders
were
retail
investors.
There
are
many
stories
of
people
who
lost
their
life
savings
on
UST.
Some
of
these
people
cashed
out
investments,
sold
appreciated
assets,
and
withdrew
from
their
tax-deferred
retirement
accounts
triggering
taxable
income.

Unfortunately,
the
IRS
issued
two
pieces
of
guidance.
The
first
is
Notice
2014-21
which
stated
the
basic
tax
rules
for
cryptocurrency
transactions.
It
stated
that
unless
someone
is
in
the
trade
or
business
of
trading
cryptocurrencies,
a
taxpayer
is
only
entitled
to
claim
a
capital
gain
or
loss.

The
second
guidance
from
the
IRS
was
a

chief
counsel
memorandum
released
in
2023.
This
memorandum
stated
that
taxpayers
cannot
claim
a
worthlessness
or
abandonment
deduction
for
cryptocurrencies.
This
is
because
both
of
these
are
miscellaneous
itemized
deductions
and
these
deductions
have
been
disallowed
for
the
years
2018
to
2025
due
to
the
Tax
Cuts
and
Jobs
Act.

Some
taxpayers
had
sufficient
capital
gains
to
offset
their
losses.
But
others
sold
business
assets,
withdrew
from
tax-deferred
retirement
accounts
or
took
other
actions
that
triggered
ordinary
income.
In
these
cases,
capital
losses
can
only
offset
$3,000
of
ordinary
income,
with
the
remainder
to
be
carried
forward
indefinitely.
This
created
the
unusual
situation
where
the
taxpayer
has
to
pay
taxes
on
income
he
or
she
does
not
have.

There
were
some
tax-planning
options
to
minimize
the
sting.
Those
who
kept
their
Luna
or
UST
coins
could
follow
the
guidance
stated
on
the
IRS
2023
memorandum
to
claim
either
the
abandonment
loss
or
the
worthlessness
loss
on
January
1,
2026,
which
is
when
miscellaneous
itemized
deductions
would
be
allowed
once
again.
Unfortunately
the
Big
Beautiful
Bill
which
recently
passed
made
the
disallowance
of
the
miscellaneous
itemized
deduction
permanent.

Some
have
accused
Kwon
of
running
a
Ponzi
scheme.
Indeed
there
is

evidence
that
money
from
retail
investors
was
used
to
pay
earlier
investors.
Most
of
them
were
large,
institutional
investors
who
cashed
out
before
the
crash.
If
this
is
the
case,
then
taxpayers
can
use
the
Ponzi
scheme
safe
harbor
explained
in

Revenue
Procedure
2009-20,
a
ruling
issued
in
response
to
the
Madoff
Ponzi
scheme
that
year.
This
is
normally
considered
a
theft
loss
deduction.

There
are
two
problems
with
using
this
safe
harbor.
First,
the
taxpayers
using
this
procedure
can
claim
up
to
95%
of
the
losses
not
covered
by
insurance.
This
is
not
a
major
hurdle
for
most
people
as
they
will
simply
accept
the
5%
loss.
But
the
bigger
problem
is
that
the
IRS
has
announced
that
Kwon
engaged
in
a
Ponzi
scheme
and
may
challenge
this
deduction
in
an
audit.

The
other
option
is
to
claim
a
general
theft
loss
deduction
for
the
money
they
lost.
This
would
be
considered
a
theft
loss
in
connection
with
the
production
of
income.
This
is
because
the
taxpayer
had
a
profit
motive
when
they
put
their
USTs
into
the
Anchor
Protocol.
It
is
important
that
it
is
not
labeled
as
a
personal
theft
loss
which
can
only
be
claimed
if
they
live
in
a
federal
or
state
disaster
area.
A
taxpayer
claiming
a
theft
loss
must
prove
that
the
loss
resulted
from
a
taking
of
property
that
was
illegal
under
state
law
where
the
theft
occurred
and
was
done
with
specific
intent
to
steal.
Generally,
specific
intent
to
steal
was
hard
to
prove
in
investment
cases.

So
what
does
Kwon’s
guilty
plea
mean?
It
could
show
he
had
the
specific
intent
to
steal
making
it
easier
to
claim
the
theft
loss
deduction.
In
court,
Kwon

said,
“In
2021,
I
made
false
and
misleading
statements
about
why
UST
regained
its
peg.
What
I
did
was
wrong
and
I
want
to
apologize
for
my
conduct.”

Despite
this
development,
the
IRS
could
still
be
reluctant
to
allow
a
theft
loss
deduction.
However,
the
IRS
seems
to
recognize
that
online
cryptocurrency
scammers
exist
and
taxpayers
should
not
have
face
adverse
tax
consequences
in
addition
to
their
financial
pain.
Last
March,
the
IRS
released
another

chief
counsel
memorandum
which
allows
taxpayers
who
were
victims
of
phishing
scams
or
pig-butchering
scams
to
claim
a
theft
loss
deduction.
 

For
people
who
lost
money
on
Luna
or
UST,
they
were
initially
faced
with
limited
tax
relief
options.
But
in
light
of
Kwon’s
recent
guilty
plea
on
fraud
charges
and
the
recent
chief
counsel
cemorandum
by
the
IRS,
taxpayers
may
be
able
to
take
advantage
of
a
theft
loss
deduction.

---

Steven
Chung
is
a
tax
attorney
in
Los
Angeles,
California.
He
helps
people
with
basic
tax
planning
and
resolve
tax
disputes.
He
is
also
sympathetic
to
people
with
large
student
loans.
He
can
be
reached
via
email
at




[email protected].
Or
you
can
connect
with
him
on
Twitter
(@stevenchung)
and
connect
with
him
on LinkedIn.

You
know
that
part
where
you
get
off
a
plane
and
a
couple
of
officers
immediately
ask
you
which
drugs
you’re
trafficking?
No?
Eric
André
does,
and
has
since
felt
a
moral
calling
to
do
what
he
can
to

fight
the
“consensual
encounter”
in
an
Atlanta
airport
that
felt
a
lot
more
like
racial
profiling.
You
can
listen
to
his
own
account
of
the
encounter
below:

‘The
experience
was
humiliating
and
dehumanizing’
—
Comedians
Eric
André
and
Clayton
English
filed
a
lawsuit
Tuesday,
alleging
they
were
racially
profiled
and
illegally
stopped
by
Clayton
County
police
at
Hartsfield-Jackson
Atlanta
International
Airport

pic.twitter.com/f4vB9O3ZyK

—
NowThis
Impact
(@nowthisimpact)

October
15,
2022

Thankfully,
he’s
going
to
set
a
second
chance
at
reducing
the
likelihood
that
Atlanta
airport
patrons
aren’t
similarly
harassed.
NBC
News
has
coverage:

A
federal
appeals
court
decided
to
reverse
the
dismissal
of
a
lawsuit
comedians
Eric
André
and
Clayton
English

filed
in
2022
claiming
their
Fourth
Amendment
rights
were
violated.
…
The
district
court
dismissed
their
lawsuit
in
2023,
citing
the
plaintiffs’
“failure
to
plausibly
allege
any
constitutional
violations,”
and
all
defendants,
including
Clayton
County
and
the
police
department’s
chief,
were
protected
by
immunity.
But
the
11th
U.S.
Circuit
Court
of
Appeals
said
in
its
opinion
that
it
found
that
André
and
English
“plausibly
alleged
that
Clayton
County
subjected
them
to
unreasonable
searches
and
seizures”
and
reversed
the
dismissal
“after
careful
review.”

While
this
isn’t
a
complete
victory
—
the
court
found
that
the
individual
officers
were
protected
by
qualified
immunity
—
a
successful
suit
against
Clayton
County
could
still
get
rid
of
the
“consensual
encounters”
that
just
happened
to
pull
aside
Black
passengers
54%
of
the
time

despite
Black
passengers
only
making
up
8%
of
the
national
flying
public.
That
said,
kudos
to
whatever
police
PR
person
decided
to
call
profiling
flight
departees
“consensual
encounters”
instead
of
“flight
stop
and
frisk”
or
“harassing
anyone
who
looks
like
they
have
money.”

It
is
hard
to
see
the
usefulness
of
the
program
considering
that
flyers
have
to
go
through
TSA
before
they
board
the
flight
—
any
drugs
or
illegal
items
should
have
been
caught
in
the
screening
process.
Best
of
luck
to
Eric
André
and
Clayton
English.

Eric
André
Lawsuit
Over
Drug
Search
At
Atlanta
Airport
Revived
By
Appeals
Court
[NBC
News]

Earlier:

Eric
André
Takes
A
Break
From
Slapstick
To
Stop
Atlanta
PD
From
Being
A
Flight
Risk

---

Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s
.
 He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
is
learning
to
swim, is
interested
in
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected]
and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.

Ed
Martin
expected
to
be
the
U.S.
Attorney
in
D.C.
in
this
administration.
Unfortunately,
even
the
Republican-controlled
Senate
found
the
January
6
cheerleader

too
irredeemably
stupid
to
trust
with
safety
scissors,
let
alone
one
of
the
most
important
prosecutorial
offices
in
the
country.
While
Trump
made
up
new
rules
to

keep
nominees
like
Alina
Habba
in
office,
that
wasn’t
political
capital
the
president
was
willing
to
spend
on
Martin.
And
so
Eagle
Ed’s
tenure
as
interim
U.S.
Attorney
closed
and
all
he
had
to
show
for
it
was

an
ethical
misconduct
complaint
for
using
his
position
to
drop
charges
against
his
own
former
client,
a
series
of

insane
threats
against
Democratic
lawmakers,
and
a
written
record
that
he

may
not
understand
basic
English
grammar.

With
this
sterling
resume,
Trump
pivoted
and
found
a
new
job
for
Martin
that,
conveniently,
didn’t
involve
Senate
confirmation!
As
head
of
the
DOJ’s
unintentionally
accurately
named
“Weaponization
Working
Group,”
Martin
has
ignored
the
implied
“anti-”
prefix
and
launched
himself
into
efforts
to
punish
Trump’s
personal
grudges.
In
taking
on
the
job,
he
even
said
the
quiet
part
out
loud,
admitting
that
he
planned
to
use
the
DOJ
to
harass
the
president’s
enemies


even
if
there’s
no
legal
basis
for
it.
“If
they
can
be
charged,
we’ll
charge
them,”
Martin
explained,
correctly
describing
his
job
and
the
ethical
rules
governing
the
institution.
“But
if
they
can’t
be
charged,
we
will
name
them…
in
a
culture
that
respects
shame,
they
should
be
people
that
are
ashamed.”

Which
is
how
blackmail
works.

Martin
has
predictably
flopped
on
the
first
part,
but
relishes
the
second.
One
of
his
targets,
New
York
AG
Letitia
James
—
whose
sin
was
proving
that
the
Trump
Organization
engaged
in
hundreds
of
millions
of
dollars
worth
of
business
fraud
—
recently
found
Martin

dressed
like
Inspector
Gadget
outside
her
Brooklyn
home.
Martin
has
opened
a
grand
jury
inquiry
into
James,
suggesting
she
committed
mortgage
fraud.
That’s
generally
not
a
positive
sign
for
a
serious
investigation.

Nor
is
this…

Abbe
Lowell,
representing
James,
had
written
Martin
to
chastise
the
bumbling
prosecutor
for
playing
amateur
gumshoe
outside
the
James
home.
Remember
that
this
administration
went
bananas
when
the
media
pointed
out
that
Kristi
Noem
lived
in
a
publicly
owned
residence
designated
for
a
government
official
(though
not
Noem…
she’s
just
seized
the
Coast
Guard
chief’s
assigned
house)?
Apparently,
taking
pictures
sufficient
to
identify
a
private
building
is
fine
if
the
official
is
a
Democrat.
Martin
used
the
appearance
as
part
of
an
exclusive
story
with
the
New
York
Post
given
that,
as
foreshadowed
by
his
remarks,
he
knows
he
can’t
charge
anyone,
so
he’s
desperate
to
make
this
a
media
circus.

In
a
hit-dog-will-holler
moment,
Martin
wrote
back
accusing
Lowell
of
“using
the
media
to
argue
[his]
points,”
and
demanding
the
lawyer
“redouble”
efforts
to
keep
letters
from
leaking.

The
letter
was
then
leaked…
probably
by
Martin’s
office.

There
is,
of
course,
no
reason
why
a
potential
defendant
would
have
to
keep
a
letter

that
they
wrote
to
the
DOJ
confidential.
In
ordinary
times,
the
DOJ
might
try
to
keep
the
grand
jury
investigation
confidential,
but
Martin
has
plastered
its
existence
everywhere
because,
again,
he
understands
that
this
is
bogus
and
all
a
shaming
exercise.
But
the
target
can
do
whatever
they
please.

But
this
is
the
true

coup
de
dumbass:

At
this
time,
Letitia
James
would
best
serve
the
“good
of
the
state
and
nation”
by
resigning
from
office
to
address
the
issues
in
the
referral.
Her
resignation
from
office
would
give
the
people
of
New
York
and
America
more
peace
than
proceeding.
I
would
take
this
as
an
act
of
good
faith.

“Aw,
be
a
pal
and
resign,
eh?”
It’s
the
apotheosis
of
the
“blackmail
over
law”
mentality.
If
a
prosecutor
believed
someone
committed
mortgage
fraud,
the
case
isn’t
resolved
by
the
offender
resigning
a
wholly
unrelated
job.
This
is
just
a
hustle.
That
he’s
now
begging
James
to
resign
—
without
an
indictment
in
hand,
mind
you
—
screams
of
comic
desperation.
It
also
underscores
the
strength
of
the
Jack
Smith
cases
against
Trump.
Lengthy,
non-public
investigations
to
respect
the
defendant’s
rights,
real
warrants,
an
indictment…
it’s
just
a
lot
easier
to
get
a
prosecution
going
when
the
target,
you
know,

actually
committed
crimes.
Martin’s
not
enjoying
the
same
succeess.

As
they
say,
“when
people
tell
you
who
they
are,
trust
them.”
Martin
declared
from
the
outset
of
his
new
role
that
he
intended
to
use
the
Justice
Department
to
harass
people
who
didn’t
commit
crimes.
He’s
done
it.
And
he’s
going
to
continue
to
do
it,
even
after
Lowell
tells
him
to
pound
sand
and
the
grand
jury
refuses
to
indict
James.
Martin
will
continue
taking
abusing
the
DOJ
for
petty
vengeance
kicks
unless
something
is
done
to
change
his
calculus.

Here’s
a
fun
project
for
Democratic
hopefuls:
promise
to
waive
qualified
immunity
for
cases
against
Trump
DOJ
officials.
Pledge
that,
if
elected,
those
targeted
by
Martin’s
nonsense
can
bring
claims
against
him
for
violating
their
rights.
These
weaponization
projects
depend
on
sniveling
rats
like
Martin
hiding
behind
qualified
immunity
to
shield
their
official
abuses
from
accountability.

Presidents,
theoretically,
can’t
do
this.
Qualified
immunity
is

a
scrivener’s
error,
but
to
the
extent
it
carries
legal
weight,
it’s
a
statutory
defense
recognized
by
the
courts.
But,
hey,
I
hear
it’s
all
the
rage
to
assert
that
“Article
II”
means
the
president
wields
complete
discretionary
authority
over
the
management
of
the
executive
branch!
To
the
extent
qualified
immunity
is
justified
at
all,
it’s
based
on
the
idea
that
the
law
enforcement
mission
needs
the
benefit
of
the
doubt
to
make
mistakes
from
time
to
time
—
that
sounds
like
a
benefit
the
DOJ
as
an
institution
should
have
the
power
to
exercise…
or
not.
The
future
Democratic
administration
doesn’t
get
involved
in
going
after
Trump
officials,
they
just
stay
out
of
the
way
as
individual
victims
of
the
administration
pursue
civil
cases.

Perhaps
a
futile
threat
that
the
courts
would
ultimately
reject.
But
Martin’s
whole
project
is
based
on
the
idea
that
the
threat
of
a
lengthy,
expensive,
if
ultimately
fruitless
case
is
a
risk
in
itself.
Maybe
it
could
shame
Martin
into
dampening
his
zeal
for
these
frivolous
legal
threats.

Though
it
would
depend
on
Martin
being
smart
enough
to
understand
the
risks,
and
there’s
not
much
evidence
backing
that
up
so
far.

Earlier:

Ed
Martin
Pledges
To
Use
DOJ
To
Harass
People
He
Can’t
Actually
Prosecute

Trump
Dumps
Ed
Martin
In
Favor
Of
‘Shit
Sandwich
Senate
Will
Eat’

Interim
DC
US
Attorney
Earns
First
Professional
Misconduct
Complaint
On
The
New
Job

Trump
US
Attorney
Doesn’t
Understand
Constitution,
Basic
Grammar

---

Joe
Patrice is
a
senior
editor
at
Above
the
Law
and
co-host
of

Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
Feel
free
to email
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments.
Follow
him
on Twitter or

Bluesky
if
you’re
interested
in
law,
politics,
and
a
healthy
dose
of
college
sports
news.
Joe
also
serves
as
a

Managing
Director
at
RPN
Executive
Search.

There’s
long
been
speculation
that
the
billable
hour’s
demise
is
just
around
the
corner. 

But
with
generative
AI
and
rapid
technological
advances
gaining
traction
in
the
legal
industry,
is
the
billable
hour
*really*
doomed
this
time?  

In
a
recent
webinar
sponsored
by
8am™,
the
panelists
—
professionals
in
subscription
legal
services
—
agreed
that
it
is. 

“For
me,
it’s
been
dying
since
the
moment
I
discovered
it,
which
was
around
eight
years
ago,
when
I
had
to
start
tracking
my
time
for
the
first
time,”
says
Matthew
Kerbis
of
Subscription
Attorney
LLC. 

Here,
we
share
five
reasons
why
the
billable
hour
will
go
away,
according
to
the
panelists.

(You
can
register
for
the
full
webinar
on-demand
at
this
link.)

It’s
Not
Profitable

Kerbis
and
his
co-panelist,
Kimberly
Bennett
of
Fidu,
agree
that
the
billable
hour
isn’t
the
most
profitable
model.
This
is
particularly
true
for
solos
and
lawyers
at
small
firms. 

“What
you’re
doing
is
you’re
capping
how
much
revenue
you
could
earn
in
a
day,”
Kerbis
says.
“And
of
that,
how
much
will
clients
actually
pay?”

The
panelists
point
to
years
of
legal
trends
reports
issued
by
practice
management
companies.
These
reports
repeatedly
reveal
that
lawyers
at
small
firms
only
collect
on
a
few
billable
hours
a
day. 

“To
generate
more
revenue,
you
have
to
hire
more
billers,”
Kerbis
says,
“and
lawyers
are
expensive.” 

It
Causes
Friction
With
Clients

As
Bennett
sees
it,
the
trends
reports
also
reveal
that
human
error
is
a
part
of
the
billing
process. 

As
a
result,
she
says,
clients
will
often
push
back
on
hours
billed,
and
lawyers
will
often
offer
discounts.
It’s
a
process
that
creates
friction
in
the
relationship. 

“Ultimately,
the
billable
hour
is
something
that
holds
you
back
from
creativity,
curiosity,
and
just
showing
up
differently
for
your
clients,”
she
says. 

Lawyers
Don’t
Even
Like
It

If
lawyers
liked
billing
by
the
hour,
they
would
be
better
at
it,
according
to
Kerbis.
The
legal
industry
trends
reports
that
show
only
a
few
billable
hours
a
day
bear
out
this
reality. 

He
also
cites
a
“cognitive
disconnect”
in
the
industry:
Lawyers
prize
efficiency
and
want
better
work-life
balance,
yet
the
longer
things
take,
the
more
they
get
paid. 

“I
think
that
cognitive
disconnect
actually
plays
a
role
in
why
lawyers
have
never
really
enjoyed
billing
by
the
hour,”
he
says. 

It
Hasn’t
Always
Been
This
Way

One
reason
behind
the
billable
hour’s
endurance
is
what
Forbes
has
called
“the
most
dangerous
phrase
in
business”:
“We’ve
always
done
it
this
way.” 

But
Bennett
notes
that
the
billable
hour
is
a
relatively
new
phenomenon
in
the
life
of
the
legal
industry,
becoming
the
prominent
model
in
the
’60s
and
’70s.

“It’s
dying,”
she
says.
“AI
is
here
to
fast
track
you
toward
it
for
so
many
reasons,
but
it’s
already
been
on
that
path.”

Generative
AI
Is
Growing

Speaking
of
AI
—
Kerbis
also
sees
its
emergence
as
a
potentially
fatal
blow
to
the
billable
hour
model. 

“When
AI
hit
the
scene,
it
really
became
the
No.
1
best
reason
why
you
can’t
be
billing
time
anymore,”
Kerbis
says,
“because
it’s
simply
not
profitable
anymore
with
the
efficiencies
that
AI
brings.” 

Enter
Legal
Billing
Software

As
digital
services
and
diverse
payment
methods
become
more
common,
lawyers
are
adapting
their
billing
practices
to
better
serve
clients. 

Offering
customized
alternative
fee
arrangements
can
help
improve
client
satisfaction
while
also
improving
your
law
firm’s
profitability.
Leveraging
the
right
software
can
help
your
law
firm
more
easily
manage
these
tailored
fee
agreements
without
spending
more
time
on
non-billable
work.

8am
LawPay

legal
billing
software
is
purpose-built
to
offer
greater
flexibility
in
how
lawyers
structure
their
fee
arrangements,
freeing
you
up
to
think
about
how
best
to
run
your
legal
practice.


Schedule
a
live
LawPay
demo
today
to
learn
more.

Let’s
face
it:
tens
of
thousands
of
students
enroll
in
law
school
every
year,
each
with
a
dream
in
their
hearts
of
saving
the
world.
Maybe
they
want
to
seek
out
justice
for
children,
animals,
or
the
environment.
Maybe
they
want
to
serve
their
communities
and
make
them
safer
for
the
public
at
large
in
the
face
of
police
brutality.
Maybe
they
want
to
advocate
for
those
who
have
been
unfairly
discriminated
against,
be
it
in
their
housing
choices,
on
the
job,
or
based
on
their
race
or
gender.
Whatever
their
public-interest
cause
may
be,
while
many
law
students
say
they
want
to
save
the
world,
only
a
select
few
are
willing
to
accept
the
sometimes
lower
salaries
that
go
hand-in-hand
with
their
altruistic
career
goals.

Some
law
schools
are
better
than
others
when
it
comes
to
getting
their
graduates
a
leg
up
on
the
competition
for
one
of
these
coveted
jobs.
The
National
Jurist’s preLaw
Magazine recently
released
its
ranking
of
the
best
law
schools
for
public
service,
highlighting
the
schools
that
are
really
doing
their
homework
when
it
comes
to
readying
their
students
for
their
future
careers
as
lawyers
in
public
interest
and
government
roles.

Here’s
the
methodology
that
was
used:

We
grade
each
school
on
three
factors:
1)
employment
in
the
field
(50%
for
public
interest
and
government);
2)
curricula
related
to
field
(40%
for
public
interest
and
government);
and
3)
debt
and
loan
repayment
options
(10%).
For
public
defenders/prosecutors,
employment
counts
for
35%
and
curricula
for
55%.

Curricula
scores
are
based
on
the
following
in
each
field:
concentration/certificate
(35%),
clinic
(24%),
externship
opportunities
(12%),
centers
(12%),
student
groups
(9%)
and
student
journals
(8%).
Other
information,
including
the
number
of
faculty
and
courses
offered
in
the
particular
field,
is
reviewed
with
possible
bonus
points
of
up
to
5%.

Debt
and
loan
repayment
scores
are
based
on
expected
monthly
loan
payments
for
the
average
graduate
who
works
in
public
interest
or
government
and
long-term
debt.
Expected
monthly
payment
figures
are
based
on
an
income-based
repayment
plan,
taking
the
average
salary
for
each
field
and
subtracting
the
school’s
expected
loan
repayment
support.

Without
further
ado,
according
to preLaw
Magazine,
these
are
the
top
10
best
law
schools
for
public
interest
work,
government
work,
and
criminal
defense/prosecution
work.
Check
them
out,
below.

PUBLIC
INTEREST

1. CUNY
2. Northeastern
3. U.
   District
   of
   Columbia
4. UC
   Davis
5. Yale
6. Roger
   Williams
7. Seattle
8. UC
   Berkeley
9. UCLA
10. Northern
    Illinois

GOVERNMENT

1. Albany
2. George
   Mason
3. U.
   District
   of
   Columbia
4. McGeorge
5. New
   York
   Law
   School
6. Florida
   State
7. Indiana-McKinney
8. Arkansas-Little
   Rock
9. Washburn
10. Regent

CRIMINAL

1. U.
   District
   of
   Columbia
2. Brooklyn
3. Case
   Western
   Reserve
4. Oklahoma
   City
5. Albany
6. Northern
   Illinois
7. New
   Mexico
8. Wisconsin
9. New
   York
   Law
   School
10. UC
    Berkeley

Click here to
see
the
rest
of
the
ranking.

Congratulations
to
each
of
the
law
schools
that
made
the
cut.

Best
law
schools
for
public
service
[preLaw
Magazine
/
National
Jurist]

---

Staci
Zaretsky is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
love
to
hear
from
you,
so
please
feel
free
to

email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
comments,
or
critiques.
You
can
follow
her
on Bluesky, X/Twitter,
and Threads, or
connect
with
her
on LinkedIn.

During
both
World
Wars,
patriotic

Americans
were
encouraged
to
plant
War
Gardens
in
order
to
help
households
save
money,
become
healthier,
and
maintain
their
morale
in
wartime.
Branded
as
“Victory
Gardens”
in
WWII,
these
often-urban
produce
plots
are
apocryphally
remembered
today
as
having
served
the
purpose
of
preserving
commercially
grown
crops
for
military
use
even
though
that
justification
is
found
nowhere
in
the
U.S.
government’s
five-paragraph
statement
of
purpose
for
the
Victory
Garden
program.

Heck,
let’s
just
have
a
look
at
the
whole
list
from
the
official
government
Garden
for
Victory
guide:

The
Victory
Garden
Program
will:

1. Increase
   the
   production
   and
   consumption
   of
   fresh
   vegetables
   and
   fruits
   by
   more
   and
   better
   home,
   school,
   and
   community
   gardens,
   to
   the
   end
   that
   we
   become
   a
   stronger
   and
   healthier
   Nation.
2. Encourage
   the
   proper
   storage
   and
   preservation
   of
   the
   surplus
   from
   such
   gardens
   for
   distribution
   and
   use
   by
   families
   producing
   it,
   local
   school
   lunches,
   welfare
   agencies,
   and
   for
   local
   emergency
   food
   needs.
3. Enable
   families
   and
   institutions
   to
   save
   on
   the
   cost
   of
   vegetables
   and
   apply
   this
   saving
   to
   other
   necessary
   foods
   which
   must
   be
   purchased.
4. Provide
   through
   the
   medium
   of
   community
   gardens,
   an
   opportunity
   for
   gardening
   by
   urban
   dwellers
   and
   others
   who
   lack
   suitable
   home
   garden
   facilities.
5. Maintain
   and
   improve
   the
   morale
   and
   spiritual
   well-being
   of
   the
   individual,
   family,
   and
   Nation.
   The
   beautification
   of
   the
   home
   and
   community
   by
   gardening
   provides
   healthful
   physical
   exercise,
   recreation,
   definite
   release
   from
   war
   stress
   and
   strain.

Well,
geez,
a
lot
of
that
slides
right
into
the
talking
points
of
the
MAHA
agenda
(don’t
expect
any
actual
support
for
this
from
the
most-geared
up
Kennedy
ever,
though).
Even
sounds
kind
of

socialist
if
you
think
about
the
sharing
of
the
surpluses
and
the
spaces.
Also,
none
of
it,
other
than
“war
stress,”
really
even
has
much
to
do
with
armed
conflict,
at
least
not
exclusively.
A
lot
of
the
pressure
everyone
is
experiencing
right
now,
what
with
our
country
establishing
its
own
due-process-free
gulags
and
with
all
the
sane
federal
workers
getting
fired
and
everything,
sure
feels
pretty
historically
stressful.
Should
you
need
a
non-war
analogue
or
just
some
historical
cringe,
Gerald
Ford
also
encouraged
Americans
to
grow
vegetables
at
home
as
part
of
his
Whip
Inflation
Now,
or
“WIN”
(gag),
program.

So,

with
inflation
re-spiking,
huge
arbitrary
tariffs
slapped
on
nearly
every
day
based
on
one
man’s
whims,
and
ICE
ejecting
so
many
of
the
people
who
harvest
the
produce
at
commercial
farms,
I’d
say
there
are
just
as
many
good
reasons
right
now
to
have
a
tariff
garden
as
there
were
for
World
War
gardens
back
in
the
day.

It
just
so
happens
that
I
planted
a
little
tariff
garden
of
my
own
earlier
this
summer.
Right
now,
I’m
practically
up
to
my
ears
in
zucchinis,
onions,
tomatoes,
cucumbers,
and
more.
There’s
even
a
basil
plant
for
a
little
extra
flavor.

July
19
was
the
last
time
I
was
at
the
grocery
store.
I
have
had
what
I
need
to
eat
and
then
some
without
resorting
to
rampant
capitalism
(still
have
deer
meat
from
last
season
in
my
freezer
too,
and
found
a
big
haul
of
golden
chanterelles
in
the
woods).
Just
yesterday
I
gave
a
bankers’
box
top
worth
of
tomatoes,
zucchinis,
and
onions
to
a
couple
visiting
friends.
It
is
a
time
of
plenty,
at
the
total
cost
of
a
handful
of
seeds
and
a
bit
of
sweat.

Now,
before
I
get
pilloried
on
the
internet
like
that
poor
woman

who
dared
to
say
she
enjoyed
having
coffee
every
morning
with
her
husband,
a
few
words
for
the
Privilege
Police.
Yes,
you
need
a
few
things
—
namely
dirt
and
water
—
to
grow
a
garden.
My
whole
vegetable
plot
is
only
about
eight
feet
by
four
feet,
though,
and
you
don’t
even
need
that
much
space
to
get
meaningful
results.
I
gave
one
of
my
little
zucchini
plants
to
my
on-again,
off-again
girlfriend
(you
are
supposed
to
thin
them
out
a
little
[the
zucchini
plants,
not
the
girlfriends]
if
too
many
sprout)
and
she
has
been
getting
almost
as
many
zucchinis
as
me
from
the
potted
plant
at
her
apartment.
There
are
lots
of
community
gardens
out
there
that
offer
space
for
anyone
in
the
neighborhood
too.
If
there
is
simply
no
way
for
you
to
access
several
handfuls
of
soil
and
a
few
ounces
of
water
per
day,
I
am
very
sorry,
your
existence
sounds
difficult,
but
perhaps
my
column
simply
isn’t
for
you
and
anyway
you
are
probably
too
busy
trying
to
trade
your
fingernails
for
a
splash
of
gruel
or
whatever
to
read
it.

Depending
on
where
you
are
in
the
country,
you
might
be
too
late
in
the
season
for
many
of
the
staple
crops.
There
is
still
plenty
of
time
before
winter
for

some
of
the
fast-growing
vegetables,
however.
And
remember,
a
lot
of
things
do
just
fine
indoors
in
pots.

Unfortunately,
you
as
an
individual
do
not
have
much
control
over
inflation
and
tariffs.
On
the
other
hand,
you
do
very
much
have
control
over
whether
you
grow
at
least
some
of
your
fresh
produce
on
your
own.
If
nothing
else,
perhaps
you
will
“improve
the
morale
and
spiritual
well-being
of
the
individual,
family,
and
Nation.”

---

Jonathan
Wolf
is
a
civil
litigator
and
author
of Your
Debt-Free
JD (affiliate
link).
He
has
taught
legal
writing,
written
for
a
wide
variety
of
publications,
and
made
it
both
his
business
and
his
pleasure
to
be
financially
and
scientifically
literate.
Any
views
he
expresses
are
probably
pure
gold,
but
are
nonetheless
solely
his
own
and
should
not
be
attributed
to
any
organization
with
which
he
is
affiliated.
He
wouldn’t
want
to
share
the
credit
anyway.
He
can
be
reached
at [email protected].

Financial
performance
among
U.S.
hospitals
improved
toward
the
end
of
this
year’s
second
quarter
—
but
there
are
still
concerning
gaps
between
the
highest-
and
lowest-performing
organizations,
according
to
new

research
released
by

Kaufman
Hall. 

The
consulting
firm
analyzed
data
from
1,300
hospitals
across
the
country
and
found
that
hospitals’
financial
margins
improved
to
3.7%
in
June,
up
from
1.9%
in
May.

The
report
noted
that
hospitals’
revenue
on
a
volume-adjusted
basis
grew
—
meaning
that
hospitals
are
actually
earning
more
per
patient,
rather
than
providers
just
seeing
more
people.
Hospitals
also
saw
increases
in
outpatient
revenue,
which
suggests
hospitals
are
figuring
out
how
to
best
utilize
their
outpatient
facilities.

“Higher
performing
hospitals
are
nimbler
on
both
the
revenue
and
expense
sides,”
Erik
Swanson,
managing
director
at
Kaufman
Hall,
said
in
a
statement.
“They
may
be
expanding
their
outpatient
footprint,
diversifying
services
or
managing
expenses
like
purchased
services
by
centralizing
some
functions.
They
are
also
more
likely
to
have
value-based
care
or
bundled
care
arrangements
in
place.”

In
an
interview
last
summer,
Swanson
pointed
out
that
hospitals
with
strong
finances
also
tend
to
place
a
strong
emphasis
on
patient
throughput,
which
leads
to
timely
and
appropriate
patient
discharges.

He

recommended
smaller
hospitals
take
actions
that
will
pay
off
no
matter
what
their
future
holds.
This
means
doing
things
like
tightening
up
day-to-day
operations
and
making
sure
they’re
accurately
capturing
all
the
revenue
they
are
owed. 

These
steps
can
help
stabilize
a
hospital’s
finances
in
the
near
term
while
also
making
the
organization
more
attractive
for
future
partnerships
or
affiliations.

Kaufman
Hall’s
report
also
showed
that
hospitals’
bad
debt
went
up
in
June
compared
to
the
month
prior.
It
pointed
out
that
bad
debt
increased
at
a
greater
rate
than
in
previous
months,
which
could
signal
a
change
in
the
number
of
patients
who
are
covered
by
public
programs
like
Medicaid.

Additionally,
the
research
found
that
hospitals’
non-labor
expenses
and
purchased
services
continue
to
rise.

Despite
modest
improvements,
growing
costs
and
bad
debt
remain
serious
concerns
for
hospitals.
Without
a
sustained
focus
on
efficiency
and
revenue
capture,
weaker
organizations
could
become
even
more
unstable.

Photo:
PM
Images,
Getty
Images

*
Clients
diversifying
outside
counsel
options
after
Biglaw
Surrendergate.
[American
Lawyer]

*
Ed
Martin
has
taken
the
fact
that
even
Senate
Republicans
thought
he
was
too
stupid
to
be
a
U.S.
Attorney
and
turned
it
into
a
career
harassing
Trump’s
political
grudges
through
the
Justice
Department.
[NY
Times]

*
Administration
proposes
taking
public
service
loan
forgiveness
away
from
grads
who
work
with
groups
that
support
Trans
rights.
[ABA
Journal]

*
New
fallout
from
Supreme
Court’s
haphazard
rejection
of

Chevron:
workers
have
fewer
legal
options
to
hold
employers
accountable
for
enabling
client
harassment.
[Bloomberg
Law
News]

*
Kilmar
Abrego
moves
to
drop
charges
based
on
the
DOJ
only
prosecuting
him
to
cover
up
the
fact
that
they
wrongfully
sent
him
to
a
torture
camp.
[Reuters]

*
FCC
considering
regulatory
changes
to
deliver
windfall
to
the
commissioners’
inevitable
future
employers.
[Law360]

*
Lawyer
charged
with
murder.
[WSMV]