Moore Investigations, International
Steve Moore
FBI Special Agent (Retired)
ADVOCATE, COMMENTATOR, AUTHOR, CONSULTANT, SPEAKER, INVESTIGATOR, WRITER
FBI Special Agent (Retired)
ADVOCATE, COMMENTATOR, AUTHOR, CONSULTANT, SPEAKER, INVESTIGATOR, WRITER
ONCE AGAIN, THE ITALIAN JUDICIARY
WETS ITSELF IN PUBLIC
Years ago, when I was in the FBI, a friend talked about people who have no concept of how their sometimes selfish or corrupt actions make them look. He said, "It's like peeing your pants in public--it may make you feel better, but it embarrasses your friends. And no matter how secret you think your action was, the evidence of the act is obvious to all."
Once again, the Italian judiciary has done something that makes them feel better, but which in reality has brought shame and ridicule on them. It has certainly embarrassed their friends, and its certainly obvious to everyone. This time, they used medieval logic to avoid ratifying the appellate court's exoneration of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito.
That it took this long to get to the point where the case would be over should humiliate the judges. But that they failed to do the honest thing disgraces them. I feel sympathy for the good people of Italy, and the honest judges like Pratillo Hellman, who must buck the trend of corruption and cronyism.
In my newest blog post, "(Another) Unpredicted Italian Earthquake," on this site, I examine the decision and the implications of the ruling. Just to ensure that all readers understand the situation as it stands, however, I am attaching answers to the questions I am most frequently asked about the current state of the Knox case.
Could Amanda be successfully extradited to Italy?
Possibility, but only with the same probability that the L’Aquila earthquake could have been accurately predicted. It has roughly the same chance. Why?
No U.S. citizen may be extradited without the opportunity to defend themselves against unwarranted prosecution and persecution—because of situations just like this. Mignini would have to come into a U.S. federal court and essentially stage a mini-trial-following U.S. law of admissibility and rules of evidence. The falsification of evidence, the slapping of a prisoner during an overnight interrogation and the lies of the prosecution would all be revealed in a U.S. court.
U.S. federal courts have significantly higher standards for evidence than even U.S. state courts. And when the prospect exists of sending an American to another country from which they might never return, the evidence (or alleged evidence in this case) is held to a much higher standard. And in truth, any knowledgeable, unbiased person who has legitimately examined this case soon realizes that evidence against Knox and Sollecito was, to put it nicely, corrupted.
Even if the federal court were for some reason to rule in favor of the extradition, Knox could file a writ of Habeas Corpus which could be appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, the process of which would take 5 – 8 years.
The Italians won’t be requesting extradition unless and until a guilty verdict is reached in a new appellate trial and after a Cassation affirmation of that sentence, which in Italy’s archaic system would take 4-6 years, for a total of 14 more years. But is it even possible that Italy would convict Amanda and Raffaele again, this time in the appeal of the appeal of the appeal?
Doubtful. Every shred of alleged ‘evidence’ against them been proven to be garbage. And any trial will take place in Florence, no friend of Mignini.
Can Amanda travel to Europe if the United States refuses to extradite her?
Probably.
An Interpol “Red Alert,” the closest thing to an arrest warrant Interpol has, might be filed by Italy. However, Interpol does not have arrest powers. If Amanda traveled to Germany and customs found an Interpol alert and took her into custody, she could still not be extradited without yet another hearing, this time in Germany. Again, rules of evidence would argue against any chance of that being successful. Knowing Italy like Germany does, the chances of them arresting on an Italian warrant is slim. Eventually, the Italian judiciary would realize that they have no chance, absent Amanda appearing in Rome, to force an innocent woman to complete the Kangaroo court’s sentence.
Conclusion:
So, in a nutshell, Amanda will never again spend time in an Italian prison—even if the corrupt legal system prevails. But that doesn’t mean her ordeal is over. She still must spend a decade or more paying for legal fees to defend herself against the European embarrassment that is the Italian ‘judicial’ system.
Once again, the Italian judiciary has done something that makes them feel better, but which in reality has brought shame and ridicule on them. It has certainly embarrassed their friends, and its certainly obvious to everyone. This time, they used medieval logic to avoid ratifying the appellate court's exoneration of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito.
That it took this long to get to the point where the case would be over should humiliate the judges. But that they failed to do the honest thing disgraces them. I feel sympathy for the good people of Italy, and the honest judges like Pratillo Hellman, who must buck the trend of corruption and cronyism.
In my newest blog post, "(Another) Unpredicted Italian Earthquake," on this site, I examine the decision and the implications of the ruling. Just to ensure that all readers understand the situation as it stands, however, I am attaching answers to the questions I am most frequently asked about the current state of the Knox case.
Could Amanda be successfully extradited to Italy?
Possibility, but only with the same probability that the L’Aquila earthquake could have been accurately predicted. It has roughly the same chance. Why?
- Double-Jeopardy. Regardless of what Italy might say about any retrial being a “do-over” of the appellate trial, or an extension of the appellate trial; any trial for any offense after a person has been declared not guilty is double jeopardy in the United States. Call it what you want in Italy; if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck…..it’s a duck. No extradition with Italy is possible under that scenario regardless of treaty.
- Rules of evidence and admissibility. Knox was subjected to interrogation tactics and evidence bumbling which would render moot any evidence Italy might imagine it possesses.
- Mignini would have to bring his ridiculous evidence into a United States Federal Court, and explain his behavior in the previous two trials. (And this is likely half a decade away).
No U.S. citizen may be extradited without the opportunity to defend themselves against unwarranted prosecution and persecution—because of situations just like this. Mignini would have to come into a U.S. federal court and essentially stage a mini-trial-following U.S. law of admissibility and rules of evidence. The falsification of evidence, the slapping of a prisoner during an overnight interrogation and the lies of the prosecution would all be revealed in a U.S. court.
U.S. federal courts have significantly higher standards for evidence than even U.S. state courts. And when the prospect exists of sending an American to another country from which they might never return, the evidence (or alleged evidence in this case) is held to a much higher standard. And in truth, any knowledgeable, unbiased person who has legitimately examined this case soon realizes that evidence against Knox and Sollecito was, to put it nicely, corrupted.
Even if the federal court were for some reason to rule in favor of the extradition, Knox could file a writ of Habeas Corpus which could be appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, the process of which would take 5 – 8 years.
The Italians won’t be requesting extradition unless and until a guilty verdict is reached in a new appellate trial and after a Cassation affirmation of that sentence, which in Italy’s archaic system would take 4-6 years, for a total of 14 more years. But is it even possible that Italy would convict Amanda and Raffaele again, this time in the appeal of the appeal of the appeal?
Doubtful. Every shred of alleged ‘evidence’ against them been proven to be garbage. And any trial will take place in Florence, no friend of Mignini.
Can Amanda travel to Europe if the United States refuses to extradite her?
Probably.
An Interpol “Red Alert,” the closest thing to an arrest warrant Interpol has, might be filed by Italy. However, Interpol does not have arrest powers. If Amanda traveled to Germany and customs found an Interpol alert and took her into custody, she could still not be extradited without yet another hearing, this time in Germany. Again, rules of evidence would argue against any chance of that being successful. Knowing Italy like Germany does, the chances of them arresting on an Italian warrant is slim. Eventually, the Italian judiciary would realize that they have no chance, absent Amanda appearing in Rome, to force an innocent woman to complete the Kangaroo court’s sentence.
Conclusion:
So, in a nutshell, Amanda will never again spend time in an Italian prison—even if the corrupt legal system prevails. But that doesn’t mean her ordeal is over. She still must spend a decade or more paying for legal fees to defend herself against the European embarrassment that is the Italian ‘judicial’ system.
NEW INITIATIVE: SCHOOL SAFETY
Former FBI Special Agent and Supervisory Special Agent Steve Moore has announced that he has teamed with TreeCastle, LLC, of Southern California to introduce a nationwide program designed to dramatically increase the safety of children in U.S. schools. Few people are more qualified or prepared as Mr. Moore.
Moore has seen the tragedy of school shootings from every angle. As an FBI agent, Moore was the first FBI responder to the shooting at the Jewish Community Center in Granada Hills, California on August 10, 1999, arriving when it was feared that the suspect was still in the building. Five young five-year-old boys, and two staffers had been wounded in the machine-gun attack on a class of day-care children. Later that day, a U.S. Postal Service Carrier was also murdered by the shooter; Buford Furrow, a known member of the Aryan Nations who had recently been released from a mental hospital. Moore personally experienced the emotional toll of searching for a suspect when the blood of the children were still on the school floor. He dealt with parents as they learned whether their children had been wounded or were safe. The fact that Moore's three children were at the time 8, 6 and 4, created a deep empathy for parents who had to wait to learn the fate of their children. Within 24 hours, the suspect was in FBI custody and Moore interviewed him for nearly eight hours, obtaining a complete confession. This interview jump-started Moore's interest in learning the mind and motivations of school shooters. Working with FBI profilers, Moore specialized in the identification and assessment of persons who might choose violence to deal with their perceived "victimization." Moore worked with the FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit to provide data and insight for their "Lone Wolf" attacker study. In 2001, an investigation by Moore identified a deranged refinery plant supervisor's plan to destroy one of California's largest oil refineries, and create a "huge body count." When SWAT teams arrested the suspect, he had already staged his attack weapons and created an escape kit. At the time, the FBI rated the case as the largest prevention of economic damage due to violence, in FBI history. As an FBI SWAT operator and trained sniper, Moore participated in more than one hundred high-risk assaults on dangerous suspects. On the team, he also learned, practiced and for several years taught "rapid-action tactics," a tactical response method designed to immediately interdict a shooter in a school or workplace. Following the FBI, Moore spent more than two years at major west coast university developing and training one of the most robust and effective active-shooter response teams in the nation. The team was trained to respond in force anywhere on the campus within three minutes, and aggressively interdict a shooter and save lies. As principal of "Moore Investigations, International," Steve has spent several years providing workplace violence prevention training, and personal and executive protection. |
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Jacob Ostreicher Freed on Bail
Jacob Ostreicher, now suffering from Parkinson's disease contracted in prison, is released on bail to house arrest in Bolivia
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Steve Moore:
Author/Writer
"Special Agent Man," (Chicago Review Press) will be released on August 1st, and is available for pre-order on Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com. (See my tab; "The Book!") I am involved in several TV projects at the moment, and have written two (aired) one-hour crime drama episodes, and served as a technical adviser on two separate network TV dramas. I am a member of the Writer's Guild of America and the Writer's Guild of Canada.
Technical Advisor
Five years of experience as an FBI SWAT operator and sniper and 25 as an agent have shown me every side of the bureau, from supervisory agent to first-office agent, from serving in the smallest office in the FBI to the second largest. I have served in almost a dozen countries and territories as well as small towns throughout the United States. My status as a TV writer helps me to understand the needs and concerns of the writing staff, and my experience on set allows me to understand the constraints and creative desires of the crew.
“Comfort is the one thing you cannot get by looking for it. If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end: If you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth." -- C.S. Lewis