Theodore Olson to Represent Paul Minor in Supreme Court
The next stop for Paul Minor’s case will be petitions for certiorari in the United States Supreme Court. I just got a press release that Minor has hired Ted Olson (at Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher) to represent him. Olson was Solicitor General under Bush from 2001-2004, and, according to the release, has argued 56 cases before the court. He most famously handled Bush v. Gore. After the Fifth Circuit decision, Minor’s remaining convictions were under the Honest Services statute. The press release quotes Olson:
Mr. Olson stated, “The open-ended and unclear language of the ‘Honest Services’ statute is inconsistent with the fundamental principle that the public must be able to understand what a criminal law means. Mr. Minor will ask the Supreme Court to make clear that the vague language of the ‘Honest Services’ statute cannot be used to criminalize lawful campaign contributions.”
The press release also states that Minor’s case raises First Amendment issues over campaign contributions, an argument I’ve never really found convincing.
NMC
4/27/10
Magnolia Tribune
