Bishop Hill Judge blocks Cuccinelli
Aug 31, 2010 Climate: Mann A judge has blocked Virginia attorney-general Ken Cuccinelli's attempt to subpoena Michael Mann's emails. Cuccinelli is probing Mann's grant applications on the grounds that they may have been fraudulent. However, Judge Paul M. Peatross has now ruled that Cuccinelli has not made the case for his investigation - in other words that there appears to have been insufficient evidence to justify the investigation.
Cuccinelli, however, seems to think that the judge has given him enough to launch a new application.
Cuccinelli said in a statement Monday that the glass is half full, noting the judge found that the university could be subjected to civil investigative demands. The ruling “has given us a framework for issuing a new civil investigative demand to get the information necessary to continue our investigation into whether or not fraud has been committed against the commonwealth,” the AG said.
Source: The Hill.
Reader Comments (7)
Attorney-generals are as much about politics as justice. He has his motives, whatever they are. However I doubt he started this without knowing what he was doing. He certainly did not start it just to publicly lose, and he is not just some unknown taking a punt on judicial stardom.
There is some meat here somewhere, maybe he just made an opening play without showing his full hand? However what the judge said is perfectly correct: fishing expeditions are not allowed. This was just a fishing expedition.
A like "ever so 'umble" Mann's use of the term "powerful vested interests"... though it is ok when those interests are your side eh Michael?
Hmmm.... according to what I've read, the judge merely required that Cuccinelli refile the “civil investigative demand” with (1) a scope limited only to Commonwealth of Virginia funds, and (2) a specific charge or suspicion attached to the demand.
Even though I don't personally agree with it, the judge's ruling basically said that the “civil investigative demand” was currently too broad, and must be narrowed. In no way did the judge assert that "there appears to have been insufficient evidence to justify the investigation." Also, the “civil investigative demand” is very much like a subpoena, it's not an "investigation,"
Finally, Steve Macintyre's original CA comments about this were also wrong.
An important underpinning of the devolution of climate science into AGW is the unaccountable nature of publicly funded science in the US and elsewhere. Every time an outsider stakeholder wants to review closely what big science does they are met with arguments that basically assert scientists are a special priesthood and above reproach and can only be reviewed by their peers.
I also read this as a win for Cuccinelli.
I also read it as the judge basically told him to tighten it up and resubmit.
You can watch for updated analysis at this web site:
http://vaquitamlaw.com/
No analysis yet on the current judicial rejection.
Not quite sure what the problem is here? If public money has been provided to Mann to carry out his brand of science then why does one have to go through the courts to get access to information related to that publicly funded science????
Mailman
I think the real story here is the Judge was retired and brought in to sit in for the actual Judge who is on vacation. He began the proceedings by first telling the lawyers that he didn't know anything about the Mann/Virginia issue untill the morning of the hearing. (With this fact alone he should have removed himself). AND he mentioned his wife has a degree in Enviromental science from the very same college and oddly responded "not in global warming". The judge's wife also worked with two of Manns colleagues at the University. Pleanty of conflict here but then again as Andrew mentioned this hearing is only a minor speed bump. The real meat is going to be from the later civil action where they WILL HAVE to turn over EVERYTHING.