shane buczek transcripts may7th,2009
TRANSCRIPT
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1 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
2
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA :
3 :
vs. : 08 CR 544 : 09 CR 121
SHANE BUCZEK : 09 CR 141
5
6
7
8
9 Continuation of arraignment and detention hearing in
10 the above-captioned matter held on Thursday, May 7, 2009,
11 commencing at 2:12 p.m., before the Hon. H. Kenneth Schroeder,
12 in the United States Courthouse, 68 Court Street, Buffalo.
13 New York, 14202.
14
15
16
APPEARANCES:
17
TIMOTHY LYNCH, ESQUIRE, Office of the U.S.
18 Attorney, 138 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo,
New York, appeared for the Government.
19
SHANE C. BUCZEK, appeared pro se.
20
21
22
23
RECORDED BY FTR GOLD ELECTRONIC RECORDING
24 TRANSCRIBED BY DEBRA L. POTOCKI, RMR, RDR, CRR
843/723-2208
25
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1 THE CLERK: United States versus Shane Buczek.
2 Docket No. 08-CR-54 and 09-CR-121. This is the detention
3 hearing. United States Attorney Timothy Lynch on behalf of
4 the Government, and Shane Buczek appearing pro se.
5 THE COURT: Good morning.
6 MR. LYNCH: Good morning, Judge.
7 THE COURT: Good afternoon, I guess. Good afternoon.
8 MR. LYNCH: Oh, yeah.
9 THE COURT: Before we proceed with the detention
10 hearing in 08-CR-54 and 09-CR-121, I've also been advised that
11 there is now a third indictment against Mr. Buczek in
12 09-CR-141. So what I want to do is arraign Mr. Buczek on that
13 indictment, and then we will address the issue of detention.
14 MR. LYNCH: Judge, I have handed Mr. Buczek a copy of
15 the new indictment.
16 THE COURT: Mr. Buczek, do you want to step up to the
17 podium, please?
18 THE DEFENDANT: Sure.
19 THE COURT: Mr. Buczek, you have now been indicted by
20 the federal grand jury sitting in the Western District of New
21 York in the May 2008 term, in the case entitled United States
22 of America versus Shane C. Buczek, Criminal No. 09-CR-141.
23 Have you received a copy of this indictment?
24 THE DEFENDANT: Yes, I just got it just now.
25 THE COURT: All right. Do you waive the reading of
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1 the indictment?
2 THE DEFENDANT: Oh, no, no.
3 THE COURT: You want me to read it to you?
4 THE DEFENDANT: Please.
5 THE COURT: The grand jury charges that on or about
6 September 5th, 2008, as an additional term of his release in
7 United States versus Shane Buczek, 08-CR-54S, the United
8 States District Court for the Western District of New York
9 entered an order setting additional terms of release, which,
10 in pertinent part, read as follows:
11 Ordered that the defendant shall not have any contact with
12 the Internal Revenue Service, parens, to include Revenue
13 Officer Gilbert Reyes, close parens, concerning any matter
14 other than his personal liability to file any return or to pay
15 any tax imposed by the United States.
16 And in the event the defendant has occasion to contact the
17 Internal Revenue Service concerning his personal liability to
18 file a return or pay a tax, he shall not contact the Internal
19 Revenue Service by phone, in person or through a third party,
20 without giving Pretrial Services written notice of said
21 contact at least one business day prior to the contact.
22 And he shall not send any document or correspondence to
23 the Internal Revenue Service without providing Pretrial
24 Services with a copy of that document at least two business
25 days before sending it.
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1 you plead to that charge, guilty or not guilty?
2 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, I object again, like I did
3 yesterday.
4 THE COURT: All right. I note your objection. I
5 will enter a plea of not guilty on your behalf to the
6 indictment.
7 Because you are now charged with a crime in this
8 indictment, you have the right to remain silent at all times.
9 You cannot be compelled to answer any questions put to you by
10 anybody. You cannot be compelled to make any statements.
11 Because anything you might say, can be used against you.
12 You also have a very valuable right, and that is the right
13 to be represented at all stages of this case by an attorney.
14 And under the Constitution of the United States, you have the
15 right to hire an attorney of your choice. But if you cannot
16 afford to hire an attorney because of your financial
17 circumstances, the Court will assign an attorney to represent
18 you, and the cost for that service will be paid for by the
19 taxpayers of this country.
20 So even though I just finished advising you, you do not
21 have to answer any questions put to you by anybody, the only
22 way that I can reasonably determine that your constitutional
23 rights with respect to counsel are being carried out, is by
24 asking you certain limited questions about counsel
25 representation. And in doing that, I do not want you to say
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1 anything about the charge in this indictment or say anything
2 about the case or make any other comments, other than that
3 which is in direct response to my questions to you about
4 attorney representation. Do you understand?
5 THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
6 THE COURT: Do you plan on hiring an attorney of your
7 choice?
8 THE DEFENDANT: I'm being pressured into that, I
9 think.
10 THE COURT: How are you being pressured?
11 THE DEFENDANT: Because every time I don't follow the
12 system, I get hit with all these indictments.
13 THE COURT: But my question to you is one involving
14 and relating to your constitutional right to hire an attorney
15 of your choice. And so it's not a question of pressure, it's
16 a question of my making sure that your constitutional right is
17 being enforced. So let me ask you once again. Do you plan on
18 hiring an attorney of your choice?
19 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, like I said before, I'd like
20 to proceed.
21 THE COURT: We're going to proceed, but I need to
22 know what your plans are as far as counsel representation. Do
23 you plan on hiring an attorney of your choice, which is your
24 constitutional right.
25 THE DEFENDANT: If the -- unless you order it --
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1 order me to do that, I would like to proceed by myself.
2 THE COURT: I'm not ordering you to hire an attorney.
3 If you're telling me you want to exercise your constitutional
4 right to represent yourself, then I will consider that. I
5 just merely am going to do it on a step-by-step process. If
6 you're telling me that you're going to hire an attorney of
7 your choice, then I don't have to ask any additional
8 questions, other than maybe who that attorney is. If you're
9 telling me that you cannot afford to hire an attorney of your
10 choice, because of your financial circumstances, then I will
11 have to ask the second question, and that is, are you asking
12 the Court to assign an attorney to represent you?
13 THE DEFENDANT: No, Judge.
14 THE COURT: You're not asking the Court --
15 THE DEFENDANT: I'm not asking that, no.
16 THE COURT: -- to assign you an attorney?
17 THE DEFENDANT: No. But --
18 THE COURT: Now, that leaves the two other scenarios.
19 You're going to hire an attorney of your choice or you're
20 going to represent yourself. Is that it?
21 THE DEFENDANT: Well, as authorized representative,
22 and I think you understand where I'm going with that, of the
23 entity and the name, I again am going to ask -- again, I know
24 it's going to be denied, but I'll ask again for a certified
25 copy of the record, a certified copy of the log from the
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1 with that right in any way. However, I do feel compelled to
2 once again advise you, this being the third indictment
3 returned against you, that in my opinion, because you are not
4 trained in the law, and because you do not have a legal
5 background, I believe you are putting yourself at risk,
6 needlessly, in representing yourself. And as I have told you
7 in the prior two cases, 08-CR-54 and 09-CR-121, basically in
8 representing yourself it's equivalent, in my opinion, to your
9 walking through a mine field blindfolded.
10 These are serious charges against you. And if you are
11 convicted, you could face some substantial time in prison.
12 And, therefore, I am merely suggesting to you that you give
13 serious thought as to whether you really are serving your own
14 self interests in the best way possible by representing
15 yourself, even though you have a constitutional right to do
16 so; or whether you would be better off in having an attorney,
17 one who is experienced and trained and skilled in representing
18 defendants in criminal cases in this Court. Do you want to
19 think about it further?
20 THE DEFENDANT: Well, I do plan on getting assistance
21 of counsel to assist me with this, but --
22 THE COURT: Someone you're going to hire?
23 THE DEFENDANT: I'm going to get assistance of
24 counsel.
25 THE COURT: I know, I'm just merely asking you,
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1 someone --
2 THE DEFENDANT: I still plan on representing myself.
3 THE COURT: Well, then I don't understand when you
4 say you're going to get assistance of counsel.
5 THE DEFENDANT: Back-up counsel.
6 THE COURT: All right.
7 THE DEFENDANT: Okay?
8 THE COURT: But is that going to be someone you're
9 going to hire?
10 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, like I said before yesterday,
11 my parents are out of town and I need to communicate with
12 them. They're under the belief that after 30 days I was going
13 to be released after --
14 THE COURT: I know, but let's stay on the counsel
15 issue. If you're asking me for time, in order to be able to
16 meet with your parents to see if they are going to be in the
17 position to assist you in hiring counsel, I am ready, willing
18 and able to give you that time. And I will adjourn this
19 matter until such time as you can confer with your parents and
20 a decision made as to whether you are going to be able to hire
21 counsel of your choice. Because you are entitled to be
22 represented at all stages of this case by an attorney. And if
23 you need time to make arrangements to hire an attorney, I am
24 going to give you that time. Is that what you wish? Do you
25 wish an adjournment so that you can confer with your parents
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1 and you've indicated to me your parents are out of town for
2 about a week, and you plan on seeking assistance of counsel, I
3 am merely telling you that I will then give you time, I will
4 adjourn this matter, 09-CR-141, in order to allow you an
5 opportunity to discuss the matter with your parents, or anyone
6 else you wish to discuss it with, for purposes of determining
7 whether you're going to be able to hire an attorney of your
8 choice, that being your constitutional right.
9 And I point out to you once again that if it turns out
10 that neither your parents nor anyone else is in a position to
11 help you financially to engage the services of an attorney,
12 then the Court will consider assigning an attorney to
13 represent you, and the cost for that legal service will be
14 paid for by the taxpayers of this country. But if you ask to
15 have an attorney assigned, you will have to agree to fill out
16 a financial affidavit, swear to its contents as being complete
17 and true, and then allow me to place you under oath and
18 question you about your finances, because that is the only way
19 I can reasonably determine whether you would qualify
20 financially to have such an assignment of counsel made.
21 Do you understand?
22 THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
23 THE COURT: All right.
24 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, I never consented to this
25 agreement.
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1 THE COURT: Which agreement?
2 THE DEFENDANT: This -- concerning the I can't send
3 any information to the I.R.S. And furthermore, all these
4 dates --
5 THE COURT: Well, what I read to you in the
6 indictment doesn't say it was an agreement that you entered
7 into. The indictment charges that that was an order issued by
8 the District Court as part of the terms and conditions of your
9 release on bail.
10 THE DEFENDANT: And I was unaware of that order. I
11 believe that's why I had Jonathan Altman deny it.
12 THE COURT: I don't know; I was not involved in that
13 order. I'm assuming that order was issued by the Honorable
14 William M. Skretny.
15 THE DEFENDANT: No.
16 (Brief interruption in proceedings.)
17 MR. LYNCH: That was a bail condition.
18 THE COURT: Did I do it? Well, then if I did it, I
19 did it while you were here before me in either 08-CR-54 or
20 09-CR-121. Because I always state the terms and conditions of
21 bail to a defendant in open court and make it part of the
22 record. And I may have -- I'm sure I did. Also included in
23 the written conditions that would be supplied to you by the
24 probation office.
25 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, I believe this --
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1 THE COURT: And the probation officer is indicating
2 by nod of his head that I did do so.
3 PROBATION OFFICER: That's correct.
4 THE COURT: And that you were given a copy of those
5 conditions of bail.
6 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, I believe this is one of the
7 reasons of the removal of the attorney. I think this might
8 have happened, and I don't have all the facts --
9 THE COURT: You're referring to Mr. Jonathan Altman,
10 the man you had hired to represent you.
11 THE DEFENDANT: Yeah, that's correct, yes. And there
12 was a downfall spindle; he was making decisions on my behalf
13 without even consulting with me. And that's --
14 THE COURT: That may be. And that may be -- that
15 will be a defense that will be available to you, as well as
16 any other defenses, and your position --
17 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
18 THE COURT: -- in defending against these charges.
19 But we're not at that stage of this case. Today we're only
20 going to consider a few things. Representation of counsel,
21 either by your hiring counsel or asking to have assigned
22 counsel, or your representing yourself. And after we get that
23 resolved, the issue of bail, and whether the Government is
24 moving for detention on this new charge, 09-CR-141.
25 THE DEFENDANT: I don't even know how the Government
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1 could even detain me any longer than this. I mean, this has
2 been quite a long time, four months. And this is only my
3 opinion.
4 THE COURT: I understand.
5 THE DEFENDANT: Both of these indictments are void on
6 its face.
7 THE COURT: I understand.
8 THE DEFENDANT: I think it's called --
9 THE COURT: Those are rights you will have to make
10 motions to attack the validity of the indictment.
11 THE DEFENDANT: And I'm not here to argue.
12 THE COURT: No, I understand, Mr. Buczek.
13 THE DEFENDANT: But I think you know a little bit of
14 my psych report, and on page -- you said you read it. I read
15 it last night.
16 THE COURT: Right.
17 THE DEFENDANT: Page six and page seven.
18 THE COURT: You're referring to an evaluation report
19 that was prepared by the Federal Medical Center at Devens.
20 And the reason I'm only repeating this, Mr. Buczek, is each
21 case, 08-CR-54, 09-CR-121 and 09-CR-141, has a separate
22 record, has a separate transcript of proceedings or recording
23 of proceedings. And, therefore, in order for the record to be
24 complete, we cannot just presume that that record will show
25 what you and I discussed in open court in the other cases. So
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1 that's why I am repeating things, because each record will be
2 complete, in and of itself, in each individual case, and so
3 you are making reference to a mental evaluation that was
4 ordered in 08-CR-54. The report was received recently and you
5 were supplied with a copy of it and we discussed that
6 report --
7 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
8 THE COURT: -- when you appeared in front of me
9 yesterday, May 6, 2009, in response to the scheduling of a
10 status report in 08-CR-54, as well as the arraignment on the
11 indictment in 09-CR-121.
12 THE DEFENDANT: Right. And it touched on a little
13 bit of my background on pages six, seven and eight, in that
14 psych review. And I was surprised it actually told the truth.
15 I was impressed with the doctors. I didn't know they were
16 going to give them the truth of the side of the story on how
17 public policy works. And a lot of this public policy has been
18 carried over to these indictments.
19 And I believe, okay, it's an opinion of mine, I'm not
20 arguing, I believe that the United States Attorney's office is
21 coming after me now, and this is called malicious prosecution.
22 And I think that you know exactly what I'm talking about.
23 This is getting out of hand now. Indictment here, indictment
24 here, all because I know, I actually studied? Because I
25 understand public policy? And if it's wrong, or if it's not
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1 beginning. And that's why I got so infatuated with Ron Paul.
2 And only one candidate even cares about the people. All the
3 rest of them could care less about us.
4 THE COURT: I understand your position.
5 THE DEFENDANT: And I --
6 THE COURT: I understand your position.
7 THE DEFENDANT: And this is just an opinion. I won't
8 argue, because I really want to come to a full settlement and
9 closure of this account. And I would like to follow public
10 policy, but it looks like it's not being honored in the
11 courts. And I'm not here to get anybody upset, because I'd
12 like to take all these cases and be done with it.
13 THE COURT: Let me assure you immediately,
14 Mr. Buczek, you are not upsetting me at all. You are a very
15 articulate person, you are obviously trying to advocate what
16 you believe in. And that is your right.
17 What I am trying to do is to make sure that your rights
18 under the Constitution of the United States are being fully
19 effectuated. I'm not an adversary of yours, I am not an
20 adversary for anyone. I am here to make sure that your rights
21 under the Constitution of the United States are being carried
22 out. That's all I'm trying to do. And I'm not trying to
23 force you into making any decisions. I am merely trying to
24 make sure you understand the consequences of your decisions,
25 in this context of your representing yourself.
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1 THE DEFENDANT: Um-hum.
2 THE COURT: And I repeat once again, you do have the
3 right under the Constitution of the United States to represent
4 yourself, and I am not trying to prevent you from exercising
5 that right. But I am also trying to at least get the message
6 across to you, in my experience as a practicing attorney of 40
7 years, and as a sitting judge of nine years, I have seen and
8 experienced situations where people who have attempted to
9 represent themselves did more harm to themselves in their
10 case. And that it is, in my opinion, once again to use that
11 metaphor, like trying to walk through a mine field blindfolded
12 for an individual who is not trained in the law to represent
13 himself in a criminal case.
14 And all I'm trying to do is get across to you the
15 seriousness of the situation and the risks that are involved,
16 before you finalize your decision as to attorney
17 representation, so that you at least have the benefit of
18 someone else's view as to the consequences of making a
19 decision that might turn out to be the wrong one. And it's in
20 that context that I'm saying to you, I will give you time so
21 that that you can meet with your parents upon their return
22 from their trip, to discuss the possibility of your being able
23 to hire counsel of your choice, someone who is experienced and
24 trained in the law. Or, if it's decided after such a
25 conference that because of the financial circumstances you
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1 will not be able to hire an attorney, I will then allow you
2 the opportunity to ask the Court to assign an attorney to
3 represent you. And if I find that you qualify financially,
4 I'm telling you I will assign a competent experienced attorney
5 to represent you in all three of these cases.
6 That's all I'm trying to get from you today is what it is
7 you wish to do. Do you wish to have an adjournment so you
8 could have the time to await the return of your parents and
9 discuss this issue of attorney hiring? Or are you telling me
10 that you're not going hire an attorney and that you're not
11 going to ask the Court to assign an attorney, you're going to
12 represent yourself.
13 If you're going to represent yourself and you have made up
14 your mind in that regard, I am not going prevent you from
15 going forward with that decision. If that's the case, then
16 we're going to be addressing the Government's motions in
17 08-CR-54, 09-CR-121 and 09-CR-141, their motions, the
18 Government's motions in those three cases to have you
19 detained.
20 THE DEFENDANT: No, they can't, Judge. I mean,
21 lawfully they can't.
22 THE COURT: And that's all I'm here to consider, what
23 can be done lawfully.
24 THE DEFENDANT: Lawfully, they can't. It's
25 impossible. I mean, this is -- if anything, I should be
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1 indicted --
2 THE COURT: Now listen. Lawfully, the Government,
3 when it returns an indictment --
4 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
5 THE COURT: -- can then, at the time of arraignment,
6 make a motion under the Bail Reform Act of 1984 as amended,
7 seeking to have you detained pending the resolution of the
8 case.
9 You have a right to have a hearing on that motion, and
10 that hearing is called a detention hearing. And you have the
11 right to contest the Government's position as to why you
12 should be detained. And you have the right to proffer what
13 you think should be put forth in your behalf, as to why you
14 should be released on bail. That's what we will do in a
15 detention hearing. But as I have indicated to you in the
16 other two cases, and I'm now indicating to you in this case,
17 09-CR-141, because a detention hearing involves legal issues
18 and legal procedures, in my opinion you would be at a
19 disadvantage to have that hearing in representing yourself.
20 And that you would be better served, in my opinion, to be
21 represented by an attorney to confront the Government's motion
22 and to be able to respond to the legal issues and the legal
23 procedures that will occur in such a hearing.
24 THE DEFENDANT: And, Judge, with my research and
25 knowledge that I believe is true, is I spent a long time in a
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1 law library, as you might be aware, I'm sure, that the
2 communications been going on between Devens and here, I would
3 imagine, and that's why yesterday I brought up the letter of
4 rogatory and beneficiary claim that I had put together.
5 THE COURT: That was in 08-CR-121 -- or 09-CR-121 and
6 08-CR-54.
7 THE DEFENDANT: S.
8 THE COURT: And as I indicated to you yesterday,
9 May 6, 2009, I don't understand what you mean when you are
10 talking about a trust and a beneficiary and --
11 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
12 THE COURT: -- and you recall I said to you, the only
13 thing we're concerned with as far as a legal document or an
14 instrument, is not a document creating a trust or a res,
15 R-E-S, that being the principal of the trust, when you
16 referred to yourself as a beneficiary, and I said I found it
17 contradictory, because we're dealing with an indictment, and
18 I'm having a hard time logically understanding how a defendant
19 could claim he was a beneficiary of an indictment, since the
20 indictment charged you with a crime, and I wouldn't consider
21 that to be a benefit to be realized.
22 THE DEFENDANT: Correct. But that's why I brought
23 the points at pages six, seven, and I believe goes into page
24 eight of the psychological report, establishing public policy
25 in HGR 192; you read that, right?
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1 representation, and to then address the issue of whether you
2 want time to confer with your parents so as to make a decision
3 as to hiring an attorney, or asking for the assignment of an
4 attorney, or representing yourself, or going forward with the
5 detention motions filed by the Government or made by the
6 Government in each case, 08- -- 09-CR-141 and 09-CR-121.
7 Because in 08-CR-54, the bail was revoked in that case, and so
8 it's not a question of a motion for detention hearing, it's a
9 question of the reconsideration of my order of revocation of
10 bail in 08-CR-54.
11 But all three cases relate to whether you're going to be
12 released on bail subject to terms and conditions, or whether
13 the Government's motions to detain are to be granted.
14 THE DEFENDANT: I haven't received any motions,
15 Judge.
16 THE COURT: Well, they were made orally at the time
17 of the arraignment on the indictment 09-CR-121, and I'm
18 anticipating the Government is making that motion in this
19 case, 09-CR-141. The only reason we haven't gotten there yet
20 is because I'm still trying to find out what it is you're
21 going to do as far as attorney representation, and whether you
22 want more time in order to meet with your parents.
23 THE DEFENDANT: I really wish I could say something
24 here, but --
25 THE COURT: I'm not stopping you from saying
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1 anything.
2 THE DEFENDANT: I need --
3 THE COURT: I just don't want you to say anything
4 that could be used against you. And so I'm not trying to
5 inhibit you or prevent you in any way from speaking. But I
6 also want to make sure your constitutional right against
7 self-incrimination is not violated. So I want you to
8 understand anything you might say, even though you are
9 representing yourself, anything you might say in this court
10 can be used against you by the Government in any one of these
11 three cases, or any other case they might decide to present.
12 So weigh your words carefully.
13 THE DEFENDANT: Okay. The notice of appointment of
14 trustee, I put into the case, I know you're claiming this is
15 not a Bankruptcy Court.
16 THE COURT: No, and as I told, I don't understand
17 what you mean by notice of appointment of a trustee in a
18 criminal case. We're not dealing with a trust.
19 THE DEFENDANT: Right. But that relates back to
20 1933.
21 THE COURT: Which we're not here to litigate.
22 THE DEFENDANT: I'm not litigating, I'm just trying
23 to --
24 THE COURT: It has nothing to do with this
25 indictment.
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1 THE DEFENDANT: I'm just trying to establish if I do
2 have, you know, standing to speak as beneficiary.
3 THE COURT: You have standing to speak as a defendant
4 charged in a criminal indictment.
5 THE DEFENDANT: So the answer is no, I don't have
6 standing to speak as beneficiary.
7 THE COURT: I don't know what that means. You have
8 standing to speak as a defendant in this case. You have
9 standing to speak as a defendant in 09-CR-121. You have
10 standing to speak as a defendant in 08-CR-54. You do not have
11 to concern yourself about whether you have standing as a
12 beneficiary, because I don't understand, quite frankly, what
13 that even means. But you do have the right to speak. And it
14 doesn't need labels.
15 THE DEFENDANT: So I would imagine at this point that
16 the -- I wrote a letter to -- a third letter on the
17 first -- the very original indictment back in March, stating
18 the doctrine of the fruit of the poisonous tree.
19 THE COURT: That was the letter to Judge Skretny?
20 THE DEFENDANT: No. That was a letter directed to
21 the FBI concerning the --
22 THE COURT: Oh.
23 THE DEFENDANT: -- the January 16th raid at my
24 parents' house. Not my house, my parents' house.
25 THE COURT: January 16th, 2009, which is the subject
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1 to either pick up or drop off at different facilities. And,
2 therefore, it becomes a longer trip.
3 THE DEFENDANT: But I'm trying -- Judge, I'm trying
4 to find the link, the contract, the link to hold me in jail.
5 I mean, I'm trying to find out where's the contract at, why am
6 I still in jail? Why?
7 THE COURT: There's no contract. There's no
8 contract. I revoked your bail in 08-CR-54 --
9 THE DEFENDANT: Because of --
10 THE COURT: -- to allow for the psychological
11 evaluation. And two, because there had been a presentation
12 made by the Government, and a motion to have your bail
13 revoked, based on the alleged --
14 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
15 THE COURT: -- criminal activity of January 16th,
16 2009, namely that which is set forth in the indictment in
17 09-CR-121, that while you were on bail under 08-CR-54, you
18 committed additional crimes, allegedly --
19 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
20 THE COURT: -- by going out and purchasing vast -- a
21 number of items of substantial value, a flat screen TV, a
22 washer, a dryer and other items from Best Buy, using,
23 allegedly, a fraudulent or nonexistent account. And that as a
24 result of that alleged fraudulent activity occurring while you
25 were on bail, the Government also requested that your bail in
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1 08-CR-54 be revoked.
2 THE DEFENDANT: I'm sure you saw the negotiable
3 instrument to discharge the account or pay the account or
4 whatever you want to call it, public policy, you saw the
5 negotiable instrument?
6 THE COURT: I saw what the Government claimed was the
7 documentation that you utilized in making the purchases at
8 Best Buy.
9 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
10 THE COURT: Because they were attached as part of the
11 criminal complaint, I think, that was first filed before the
12 indictment was obtained.
13 THE DEFENDANT: I also sent a negotiable instrument
14 directly to your chambers.
15 THE COURT: Wait a minute, wait a minute, I don't
16 want you to say any more --
17 THE DEFENDANT: All right.
18 THE COURT: -- about what you did. Because, once
19 again, anything you start saying about what you did, could be
20 treated as admissions that could be used against you. And,
21 therefore, it's in your best interest not to be making those
22 kinds of statements.
23 THE DEFENDANT: Right. What I was trying to get to,
24 back to the indictments real quick, is you have to have
25 criminal intent.
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1 THE COURT: Right. And those are issues you can
2 raise by way of motion or in defenses.
3 THE DEFENDANT: So how in the world can the U.S.
4 Attorney's office even have a motion to revoke my bail, if I
5 have no criminal intent?
6 THE COURT: Because the grand jury, by returning
7 indictment, has established probable cause for these charges
8 to be made against you. And once probable cause of the
9 commission of a crime has been provided against the defendant,
10 that kicks into play the next step. And that is, whether that
11 defendant, although presumed innocent under the Constitution
12 of the United States and the Bail Reform Act of 1984 as
13 amended, nevertheless, the Government can then move to have
14 the defendant detained. And the defendant has a right to
15 resist that motion to be detained, and to seek bail. And then
16 a detention hearing is held. And that's what I am attempting
17 to get to, sooner or later, in 09-CR-141 and 09-CR-121.
18 THE DEFENDANT: Okay, Judge. I just can't seem to,
19 you know, find out if public policy is going to be met. I
20 just don't really know --
21 THE COURT: Public policy is something for you to
22 raise in defense of these indictments --
23 THE DEFENDANT: All right.
24 THE COURT: -- as part of your defense as to why you
25 should not even be charged with these crimes.
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1 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
2 THE COURT: But that comes at the later stage of
3 making motions, attacking the validity of the indictment,
4 attacking the validity of the charges, and raising your
5 defenses to these charges. All we're trying to get resolved
6 today is attorney representation.
7 THE DEFENDANT: Right. It was my understanding --
8 THE COURT: And whether you need more time to get
9 that resolved.
10 THE DEFENDANT: It was my understanding that we were
11 going to address bail, because I mean, I thought I was --
12 THE COURT: We were. We were, in 09-CR-121 and
13 08-CR-54. Unbeknownst to me, as well as you, I didn't know I
14 was going to be getting a third indictment today in 09-CR-141.
15 THE DEFENDANT: I kind of had a, you know, sneaking
16 suspicion it might have happened.
17 THE COURT: You have more knowledge than I did.
18 THE DEFENDANT: Where's Mr. Bruce, by the way?
19 THE COURT: He's upstairs in another case.
20 THE DEFENDANT: Because he sent me numerous letters
21 that he intends to indict me on this. I have all those
22 letters, by the way, Judge. And he -- his intentions were --
23 he followed through on his intentions. But I looked
24 everything up, it says if he does, it's malicious, but he'll
25 do what he --
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1 THE COURT: Which is another motion you can make.
2 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
3 THE COURT: And which is a defense you can claim.
4 THE DEFENDANT: But --
5 THE COURT: Those are all available to you.
6 THE DEFENDANT: But why isn't he here?
7 THE COURT: Because he's engaged in another matter
8 before another judge, and so Mr. Lynch is standing in for him.
9 Which Mr. Lynch is now thinking about addressing with Mr.
10 Bruce.
11 MR. LYNCH: Exactly.
12 THE DEFENDANT: I did send -- and I'm not here to
13 upset Mr. Bruce, either. Okay?
14 THE COURT: You're not upsetting anybody, Mr. Buczek.
15 THE DEFENDANT: I did --
16 THE COURT: Wait. I want to make sure you
17 understand. You are not upsetting anybody. You have a right
18 to speak, you have a right to be heard. That is your right
19 under the laws and the Constitution of the United States. And
20 no one is upset with you exercising those rights. Please, I
21 want you to be assured of that.
22 THE DEFENDANT: And I believe I sent them a letter,
23 not to get them upset, and I believe I sent you a copy, too,
24 concerning, you know, the certified copy of the record, I told
25 them I would plead conditional plea of guilty if he can please
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1 THE DEFENDANT: Right. And again, getting back to
2 the additional indictment here, is that I never consented or
3 agreed to this -- to this order. And I believe that
4 Jonathan -- I don't have the order in front of me. Jonathan
5 Altman might have went ahead and communicated with Mr. Bruce
6 and say I'll make sure my client doesn't do that. And he
7 called me up --
8 THE COURT: The terms of the order were in the -- the
9 terms and conditions of bail, which the probation office
10 supplied to you. But we've discussed that --
11 THE DEFENDANT: That was after the fact though.
12 THE COURT: We've discussed that fully.
13 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
14 THE COURT: Do you want an adjournment so that you
15 will have time to wait for the return of your parents to
16 discuss whether you are going to be able to hire an attorney
17 of your choice? Yes or no.
18 THE DEFENDANT: Well, before I answer that question,
19 I believe that the attorney's office has to put a motion
20 together? I have to wait for that motion to come in?
21 THE COURT: They can make the motion orally.
22 THE DEFENDANT: Oh, verbally?
23 THE COURT: Orally.
24 THE DEFENDANT: Orally.
25 THE COURT: Right here.
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1 THE DEFENDANT: All right.
2 THE COURT: All right. I can do that, if you want me
3 to do that.
4 Mr. Lynch, what's the Government's position on bail?
5 MR. LYNCH: Judge, on this new indictment, 09-CR-141,
6 the Government's moving for detention on the basis that the
7 offense was committed while the defendant was on pretrial
8 release pending trial for a federal offense under
9 3142(e)(2)(B).
10 THE COURT: All right. The Government has just made
11 a formal motion, Mr. Buczek, which it has a right to do under
12 the Bail Reform Act, claiming that you should not be released
13 on bail in this case because, as the Government alleges, you
14 have committed a crime or crimes while you were previously
15 released on bail in the other cases, 08-CR-54 and 09-CR-121.
16 That's just a motion.
17 You have a right now to contest that motion by way of a
18 hearing called a detention hearing, and you have the right to
19 seek and ask for bail. But because a detention hearing
20 involves legal issues and legal procedures, and because you do
21 not have an attorney here to represent you, and because you
22 are entitled under the Constitution of the United States to be
23 represented at all stages by an attorney, I merely ask you if
24 you want time within which to explore the possibility of your
25 being able to hire an attorney of your choice, which is also
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1 your constitutional right. And the time being -- time within
2 which to confer with your parents, whom you have advised me
3 are presently out of the district, away on a trip, and that
4 they are not expected to return until approximately a week.
5 I am telling you that I am willing to give you that time.
6 I am willing to give you sufficient time to await the return
7 of your parents, and thereafter give you time to confer with
8 your parents or anyone else you wish to confer with for
9 purposes of exploring and determining whether you would be
10 able to hire an attorney of your choice, that being your
11 constitutional right.
12 And if you are not able to do that because of your
13 financial circumstances, I will then give you the opportunity
14 to apply for the assignment of counsel. The cost of that
15 service will be paid for by the taxpayers. And if you decide
16 that you do not want to go that route, to then advise me as to
17 whether you wish to represent yourself. That also being your
18 constitutional right.
19 The issue now that I'm asking you to tell me, is whether
20 you want to adjourn this matter and have time within which to
21 give serious contemplative thought to these three
22 possibilities; hiring an attorney of your choice, asking the
23 Court to assign counsel, or your invoking your constitutional
24 right to represent yourself.
25 Do you want such time?
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1 THE DEFENDANT: Well, Judge, I don't really, you
2 know, understand the law as good as --
3 THE COURT: That's why I think you should get serious
4 about having an attorney.
5 THE DEFENDANT: Right. Right. But, you know, and I
6 hate to bring this up again, but getting back to public
7 policy, that's why I did the appointment of trustee, and I
8 filed a Form 56 for Mr. Bruce. And you're already aware of
9 that, aren't you, Form 56?
10 THE COURT: No, I'm not, but I wouldn't be aware of
11 anything that you sent to Mr. Bruce, because I'm not involved
12 in those communications between you and the Government.
13 THE DEFENDANT: But, you know, I'm at the point now
14 where, you know, I don't know everything, but I do study a
15 lot, and I do know that we need to have a contract to keep me
16 incarcerated. That's all I know. Because everything is based
17 on contracts.
18 THE COURT: Then I would suggest to you when you do
19 get back to the facility where you're being housed, that you
20 go to the library and look up Title 18 of the United States
21 Code Section 3161.
22 THE DEFENDANT: May I have a pen, please? All right.
23 THE COURT: Section 3161 deals with the Speedy Trial
24 Act. And in addition to that --
25 THE DEFENDANT: Title 18?
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1 THE COURT: Title 18 of the United States Code.
2 THE DEFENDANT: Okay. Judge, I believe I --
3 THE COURT: In addition to that, I suggest you also
4 look up the Bail Reform Act of 1984 as amended. Do you have
5 the citation there, Mr. Lynch?
6 MR. LYNCH: Judge, 3142. 18 U.S.C. 3142.
7 THE COURT: Section 3142, yes. And that Act sets out
8 different provisions relating to bail and detention, and the
9 grounds for the Government moving to have an individual
10 detained, and the rights of the defendant when faced with that
11 motion.
12 MR. LYNCH: And, Judge, just so the record's clear, I
13 misspoke when I cited the provision of the statute the
14 Government was relying upon. The Government's relying upon
15 3142(f)(2)(A) and (B), just so it's clear for Mr. Buczek, so
16 when he needs time to review.
17 THE DEFENDANT: That's 3142(f)?
18 THE COURT: 3142(f), which is entitled detention
19 hearing. And it says, basically, quote, "The judicial
20 officer -- which would be me -- shall hold a hearing to
21 determine whether any condition or combination of conditions
22 set forth in subsection (c) of this section will reasonably
23 assure the appearance of such person as required, and the
24 safety of any other person and the community."
25 And then subsection one says, "Upon motion of the attorney
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1 Government is claiming that you committed a crime,
2 allegedly --
3 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
4 THE COURT: -- while you were on bail. And that's in
5 violation of the terms and conditions of your bail, which
6 justifies the Government asking that you now be detained.
7 Now, all I'm looking for from you right now is an answer,
8 yes or no, do you want time to be able to meet with your
9 parents, or anybody else you wish to meet with, for purposes
10 of determining whether you're going to hire an attorney of
11 your choice?
12 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, that's not necessary.
13 THE COURT: So your answer is no?
14 THE DEFENDANT: That's correct, Judge.
15 THE COURT: All right.
16 THE DEFENDANT: Yeah, I just -- and again, you know,
17 for you to have a -- only way, from my understanding, is that
18 for you to be detained, you have to produce an injured party.
19 THE COURT: Well, we'll hold a detention hearing.
20 No, we'll hold a detention hearing. The Government is going
21 to have to proffer evidence that will support its motion. We
22 haven't had that hearing yet.
23 THE DEFENDANT: I know that. But there's one more
24 thing with HSBC. HSBC cannot be the injured party. It's
25 impossible. They're a corporation, they have --
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1 THE COURT: That's all the things you will be able to
2 argue in the detention hearing.
3 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
4 THE COURT: And we're not holding a detention hearing
5 at this very moment.
6 THE DEFENDANT: Okay.
7 THE COURT: So you're telling me you do not want an
8 adjournment --
9 THE DEFENDANT: Well --
10 THE COURT: -- in order to determine whether you're
11 going to hire counsel of your choice.
12 THE DEFENDANT: I could put my own motion together,
13 but I don't --
14 THE COURT: You don't have to put a motion together.
15 I'm merely asking if you want more time. You told me you do
16 not want more time.
17 THE DEFENDANT: I don't think it's necessary, Judge.
18 THE COURT: So your answer is you do not want more
19 time, correct?
20 THE DEFENDANT: I don't think it's necessary.
21 THE COURT: I'm not interested in whether it's
22 necessary or not, I want to know whether you want more time or
23 you do not want more time.
24 THE DEFENDANT: I would like to proceed.
25 THE COURT: Okay. Then you're telling me you do not
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1 want more time.
2 THE DEFENDANT: I don't need more time.
3 THE COURT: All right. Now the question is, are you
4 asking the Court to assign an attorney to represent you
5 because you cannot afford to hire an attorney because of your
6 financial circumstances?
7 THE DEFENDANT: No, Judge.
8 THE COURT: Are you asking to be allowed to represent
9 yourself?
10 THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
11 THE COURT: All right.
12 THE DEFENDANT: And again, just for the Court knows,
13 that I do plan on representing myself with back-up counsel.
14 Now, I don't know exactly who that's going to be yet, because
15 I need to speak to -- there's to a couple smart people in
16 here. And one of them is Jim Ostrowski, if you might know Jim
17 Ostrowski.
18 THE COURT: I'm aware of him.
19 THE DEFENDANT: Okay. He's one of the very few
20 people that understand what's really going on out there. And
21 I have --
22 THE COURT: But now that forces me to ask the next
23 question.
24 THE DEFENDANT: Right.
25 THE COURT: Do you want to have this so-called back
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1 up counsel, Mr. Ostrowski or anybody else --
2 THE DEFENDANT: I --
3 THE COURT: -- to represent you or to be with you in
4 this detention hearing?
5 THE DEFENDANT: Well, I mean, I don't know how I can
6 be held. I mean, I'm still trying to figure out -- that's why
7 I want to proceed with the bail. I mean --
8 THE COURT: That's what I'm asking you though. I'm
9 ready to proceed with the detention hearing, but if you're
10 telling me you would like to have Mr. Ostrowski as your
11 co-counsel, assistant counsel, back-up counsel, however you
12 want to characterize it, I'm willing to adjourn the matter
13 until you can make arrangements to have that done.
14 THE DEFENDANT: Judge, I'm ready --
15 THE COURT: Do you want an adjournment so that you
16 can make arrangements to have your assistant counsel with you?
17 THE DEFENDANT: How long will the adjournment be for?
18 THE COURT: How long will it take you to get that
19 arrangement made and get an attorney over here?
20 THE DEFENDANT: What's today? Today's Thursday?
21 THE COURT: Today is Thursday, May 7, 2009. I'm
22 willing to give you as much time as you reasonably need to
23 make those arrangements.
24 THE DEFENDANT: Okay. When is the soonest we can
25 come back?
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1 THE COURT: Well, I told you yesterday, May 6, 2009,
2 I would schedule it today. If you told me -- as you indicated
3 to me you would be ready to go today. And that I'd even have
4 attorney -- an attorney here from the Public Defender's office
5 that I would assign once I established you qualified to have
6 such an assignment made. And Mr. Comerford has been sitting
7 here throughout the morning and now into the afternoon,
8 waiting to find out whether he's, in fact, going to be
9 assigned, or his office, or the Federal Public Defender's
10 office is going to be assigned. I have been trying to do
11 everything I could reasonably accomplish in expediting this
12 matter for you.
13 THE DEFENDANT: Okay, Judge.
14 THE COURT: Now --
15 THE DEFENDANT: I was unaware of that.
16 THE COURT: Now the question is, you've made
17 reference to having assistant counsel or co-counsel or a
18 back-up council, and you've indicated the name of an attorney,
19 Mr. James Ostrowski, or perhaps some other attorney. And all
20 I'm saying to you is that I am willing to give you an
21 adjournment so that you can bring that about, that is,
22 effectuate that arrangement to have that assistant counsel or
23 co-counsel or back-up counsel here with you when we have the
24 detention hearing --
25 THE DEFENDANT: Okay.
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1 THE DEFENDANT: Thank you.
2 THE COURT: All right.
3 THE DEFENDANT: I appreciate that, Judge.
4 And I know I might be a thorn --
5 THE COURT: You're not a thorn.
6 THE DEFENDANT: -- sometimes, but --
7 THE COURT: Please, you are not a thorn.
8 THE DEFENDANT: I just have a strong belief system.
9 THE COURT: You have every right to have belief and
10 you have every right to express that belief, and you are not
11 in any way a thorn.
12 THE DEFENDANT: Would I be able to consult with
13 the -- your opinion of counsel? On -- concerning the bail?
14 THE COURT: You mean whether you should get a
15 attorney, or whether you should represent yourself?
16 THE DEFENDANT: Yeah. Well, yes.
17 THE COURT: I'll give you the opportunity.
18 Mr. Comerford, I'm going to ask you as an officer of the Court
19 to at least render that kind of assistance to Mr. Buczek.
20 That is, answer any questions he might have. You've been
21 sitting here, you've heard what I've explained to Mr. Buczek
22 now for some substantial period of time. To make sure that we
23 are all trying our best to make sure Mr. Buczek's
24 constitutional rights are being effectuated.
25 So is it better if Mr. Buczek is taken back downstairs and
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1 you meet with him privately, Mr. Comerford? And I know it's
2 only for the limited purpose of just addressing what I have
3 raised with Mr. Buczek. I'm not expecting you and I'm not
4 asking you to give legal advice in the context of now
5 undertaking the representation of Mr. Buczek on the merits.
6 All right?
7 So why don't we have Mr. Buczek returned to the marshal's
8 facilities downstairs, which will enable you to meet with
9 Mr. Comerford in private.
10 But I want to you understand, Mr. Buczek, I'm directing
11 Mr. Comerford as a member of the bar, as an officer of the
12 Court and as a member of the Federal Public Defender's office,
13 to undertake this pro bono type of assignment for the limited
14 purpose of being able to answer any questions you might have
15 as to what you need to do to effectuate your constitutional
16 right in regard to having counsel of your choice or asking for
17 assigned counsel or for having back-up counsel or co-counsel
18 or assistant counsel in this matter.
19 Do you understand?
20 THE DEFENDANT: Yes, Judge, and I want to make the
21 record reflect that I'm here -- I'm here as an authorized
22 representative for the entity.
23 THE COURT: You are here authorized to speak for
24 yourself.
25 THE DEFENDANT: Right. And also that I do plan to
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1 come to a very quick conclusions, so we can stop coming here.
2 THE COURT: I understand.
3 THE DEFENDANT: Okay?
4 THE COURT: All right.
5 THE DEFENDANT: All right.
6 THE COURT: So we'll recess then.
7 THE DEFENDANT: All right.
8 (Brief interruption in proceedings.)
9 MR. LYNCH: Judge, may I take a break?
10 THE COURT: Yeah, sure.
11 (A recess was held at this time.)
12 THE CLERK: Back on the record, United States versus
13 Shane Buczek.
14 THE COURT: Now, Mr. Buczek, you've had an
15 opportunity to have a very lengthy discussion with
16 Mr. Comerford of the Federal Public Defender's office?
17 THE DEFENDANT: Yes, Judge.
18 THE COURT: And after having conferred with him, as I
19 asked Mr. Comerford to do, to discuss with you what you and I
20 had been discussing as far as attorney representation and what
21 your plans were in that regard, have you been able to come to
22 some sort of a decision at this time?
23 THE DEFENDANT: Yes, Judge. I went ahead and decided
24 to ask the Court for an adjournment till possibly next week,
25 either Wednesday or Thursday, whatever is open on your
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1 schedule.
2 THE COURT: And is the purpose of that to discuss
3 with your parents or with anybody else you wish to discuss the
4 matter, the issue of being able to hire an attorney of your
5 choice?
6 THE DEFENDANT: That's correct. I'm going to keep in
7 contact with Brian, that I talked to earlier.
8 THE COURT: That's Mr. Comerford of the Federal
9 Public Defender's office.
10 THE DEFENDANT: Yes.
11 THE COURT: All right, I will grant your request for
12 an adjournment for purposes of your being able to explore
13 further the opportunity for you to hire an attorney of your
14 choice, that being your constitutional right. And since you
15 have indicated to me that you would like to also discuss that
16 issue with your parents, who are presently unavailable by
17 reason of the fact they're away on a trip and are not expected
18 to return until next Wednesday, May the 13th, is that correct?
19 THE DEFENDANT: That's correct, Judge.
20 THE COURT: I'm going to schedule this matter for
21 Friday, May the 15th at 2:00 p.m., only because you apparently
22 will not be able to meet your parents until at least the
23 earliest date would be either the 13th or perhaps the 14th.
24 And then if a decision is made as to hiring an attorney,
25 obviously you're going to need some time to hire the attorney.
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1 THE DEFENDANT: That's fine, Judge. I just would
2 like to know for the record, I'm being held by the U.S.
3 Attorney's office in the Western District of New York?
4 THE COURT: No, you're being held right now by order
5 of the Court in response to my revocation of your bail in
6 08-CR-54.
7 THE DEFENDANT: Okay.
8 THE COURT: We have not yet decided the bail issue in
9 the companion or the other cases, 09-CR-121 and 09-CR-141.
10 THE DEFENDANT: That's correct.
11 THE COURT: Those being indictments that were
12 returned May 6, 2009 and May 7th, 2009, respectively.
13 THE DEFENDANT: Okay. And I just, again, I think we
14 already did this, but I just want to double check that it's on
15 the record that I have objected to the not guilty plea.
16 THE COURT: Yes, I noted your objections in both
17 cases, and entered a plea of not guilty on your behalf in both
18 cases.
19 THE DEFENDANT: Okay.
20 THE COURT: Over your objection.
21 Now, since the purpose of the adjournment to May 15, 2009
22 is being done in response to the request of the defendant for
23 more time in order to resolve the issue or decision making
24 process of whether he's going to be able to retain counsel of
25 his choice, it is the finding of this Court, sua sponte, that
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1 crime, but I followed public policy.
2 THE COURT: Right. And that's what we're going to
3 then litigate in the detention hearing.
4 THE DEFENDANT: Okay.
5 THE COURT: All right. Now, Mr. Lynch, will you
6 provide an order of exclusion in 09-CR-141, as well as an
7 order of exclusion in 09-CR-121. The adjournment of the
8 detention hearings in both those cases being for the same
9 reason that I have iterated, namely the exercise of
10 Mr. Buczek's right to hire counsel of his choice and to
11 undertake steps to effectuate that constitutional right. And
12 the fact that the adjournment is at his request for those
13 purposes, or for that purpose. And the delay will also apply
14 in 08-CR-54, because we need to revisit the revocation of his
15 bail in that case, in the same context as we will be
16 addressing the Government's motions for detention in the other
17 two cases.
18 MR. LYNCH: I will, Judge.
19 THE DEFENDANT: Your Honor?
20 THE COURT: Yes.
21 THE DEFENDANT: Did I -- I don't mean to be
22 disrespectful or anything.
23 THE COURT: You're not.
24 THE DEFENDANT: But, you know, I just need to get
25 this clear on the record, that 28 U.S.C. Section 638(c), and I
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1 know you got my letter, the official impression of seal, you
2 know, because I'm really confused. Because like I've learned
3 over the years that you always have to have a raised seal for
4 these orders. And I don't know, maybe I'm interpreting it
5 wrong and, you know, but I was always told that, you know, the
6 raised seal has to be done, you know, to show authority behind
7 these orders. And all my orders since day one, since March
8 14th of 2008, none of my search warrants, none of my arrest
9 warrants, not one of them have any type of seal like 28 U.S.C.
10 Section 638(c) claims to say. And I made a copy and mailed it
11 to you about two months ago.
12 I just -- maybe I'm misinterpreting it or -- not very
13 clear on the, you know -- there might be an order, but does it
14 have any authority behind it.
15 THE COURT: All right. Just so the record is clear,
16 Section 638(c) of Title 28 of the United States Code provides,
17 quote, "The director shall furnish to each United States
18 Magistrate Judge appointed under this chapter an official
19 impression seal in a form prescribed by the Conference. Each
20 such officer shall affix his seal to every jurat or
21 certificate of his official acts without fee."
22 What that means is that, for example, if there is
23 something that needs to be done in this court to be used in a
24 court in a foreign jurisdiction, the foreign jurisdiction
25 normally requires that to make sure it is truly an official
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1 act of the United States Court, that it have a seal affixed to
2 it. For example, if Canada were doing something that involved
3 a transaction or proceeding in this Court, and they wanted an
4 official order or document from this Court authenticating
5 whatever it is that was done, under diplomatic agreements,
6 treaties, regulations and practice, normally a seal would be
7 applied.
8 THE DEFENDANT: Okay.
9 THE COURT: But when dealing with the Court's own
10 jurisdictional matters, there is no requirement that seals be
11 placed on any of the Court's own official documents, because
12 the Court can recognize its own documents and orders. And the
13 days of way back when in common law, King Henry VIII, when we
14 put wax seals and ribbons and everything else --
15 THE DEFENDANT: Yeah.
16 THE COURT: -- that's all been done away with.
17 THE DEFENDANT: Okay. I just wanted to bring that up
18 to you, Judge. I still believe that there should be a seal,
19 but that's another -- you know, that's not argument, just an
20 opinion.
21 THE COURT: No, no, I understand. All right.
22 MR. LYNCH: Thank you, Judge.
23 THE COURT: Thank you, gentlemen.
24
25 (Court adjourned at 3:23 p.m.)
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2 REPORTER'S CERTIFICATION
3
4 I, Debra L. Potocki, RMR, RDR, CRR, Official Court
5 Reporter for the United States District Court for the District
6 of South Carolina, hereby certify that the foregoing is a true
7 and correct transcript of the electronically recorded above
8 proceedings, to the best of my ability.
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11
S/Debra L. Potocki
12 _______________________________
13 Debra L. Potocki, RMR, RDR, CRR
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