Will Heaton Has Been "Yapping" (aide to Ney)

The Blog of Legal Times (BLT) gives me the kind of thing I really like -- original documents. Today, BLT shows us a motion to set a sentencing date for former Ney aide Will Heaton. BLT says Heaton "has been yapping to investigators about any misdeeds of his one-time colleagues" and that Heaton's cooperation is "substantially complete".

~snip~

Long before entry of his plea agreement, Mr. Heaton agreed to and began cooperating with the government in any and all matters required.


I've never claimed to know how precisely how the criminal justice system works, but for some reason, I thought that plea bargains came before the cooperation. This motion clearly indicates that Mr. Heaton was cooperation prior to his February plea bargain. I don't think I'm going out on a limb when I say that it is most likely that Mr. Heaton provided information on his former boss, Bob Ney, who pleaded guilty in September 2006.

If this is indeed the way things work, is it possible that Ed Buckham is already working with prosecutors to build a case against Tom DeLay? Did Buckham give details about his phony employment of Julie Doolittle that led to the raid of her business records? Of course this is all speculation and I don't have any evidence to back this up, but it certainly is one plausible explanation as to why these corruption cases have been moving forward as of late.

http://gregintx22.blogspot.com/2007/05/will-heaton-has-been-yapping.html

Closing Cooperation

Since pleading guilty in February in connection with the Jack Abramoff scandal, Will Heaton, the former chief of staff to now-convicted Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio), has been yapping to investigators about any misdeeds of his one-time colleagues.

Heaton, who pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, attended the notorious Scotland trip in 2003 (a junket that included more golf and fine scotch than political exchange) and helped Ney smuggle unreported casino wins back into the United States.

He is one of many former Abramoff allies now cooperating with the federal probe. But in a recently filed document in D.C. federal court, lawyers on both sides indicate that Heaton's cooperation, like that of his predecessor in Ney's office Neil Volz, is coming to a close.

http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2007/05/closing_coopera.html

i want this whole abramoff, ohio thing to come OUT.

there are so many more people who are going down, baby!

time, too. He's been singing harmony so well he may get out of jail sooner than he thought:

WASHINGTON - Disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff may be getting out of jail earlier than he expected, NBC News learned on Monday. A federal judge Monday granted the government's request for a new hearing to determine an appropriate reduction in Abramoff's sentence, a reward based on his continued cooperation with investigators in several federal probes....Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Schwartz, in court papers filed last month, wrote that the move to reduce Abramoff's sentence is "based upon the defendant having provided substantial assistance to the government in the investigation and/or prosecution of others."

The government said Abramoff has continued to cooperate with federal law enforcement authorities in its criminal investigations both in Florida and in Washington. "However, that cooperation is not yet complete and will not be complete within one year of the defendant's initial sentencing," according to the filing.

The prosecutor did not specify to the judge by how much the government wants Abramoff's sentence reduced, but wrote that once they file a motion for a hearing, "the government will advise the Court of the nature, extent, and value of the defendant's cooperation.".....So far, the federal investigation has amassed nine guilty pleas and one conviction after trial as part of the Justice Department's influence-peddling probe of Abramoff's conduct as a Washington lobbyist.

In addition to Abramoff and Ney, Steven Griles the former No. 2 official in the Interior Department admitted lying about his relationship with convicted lobbyist and opening a door to his intervention at the agency for Abramoff's Indian tribal clients. The list of convictions includes; Ney's former chief of staff, Will Heaton; and one-time Abramoff associates Michael Scanlon, Tony Rudy, Neil Volz, and Adam Kidan. David Safavian, the former top procurement officer at the Office of Management and Budget, was convicted on four charges of making false statements and obstructing justice stemming from his dealings with Abramoff.

Abramoff's next court appearance in the Washington influence peddling case is scheduled for June 5th.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18029493/