Serious Trouble

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week: James Comey has been charged with federal crimes again, sort of. This is one of several cases in which the Trump DOJ is even sloppier than it has been, in an apparent rush to get charges out before the midterm elections, for some reason. Also this week: we cover weird shenanigans in a false statements case against two former FBI investigators that have angered a magistrate judge, and a no-bill for proposed charges against former Trump staffer Cassidy Hutchinson, and we discuss another Comey — James’s daughter Maurene — who won her wrongful termination case against the Trump DOJ.That’s for all listeners. Paying subscribers also get our civil docket, which this week includes:* Hasan Piker’s actually-pretty-plausible defamation lawsuit against Scott Jennings* A partial victory for Candace Owens in Delaware, where the Macrons are suing her for defamation.* Long-suffering federal judge Judge Ana Reyes’ admission that maybe she is the Lorax* A tactical trap for Max Miller, who may come to regret throwing his staff under the bus in his legal fight with his ex-wife.* And a comeuppance for Matt Taibbi, who is likely to have to pay substantial legal fees to Eoin Higgins

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week, we got our hands on the actual lawsuit Eric Deters has filed against Kimberly Guilfoyle and her attorneys, which is amateurish in certain ways, but Ken says the core defamation claims sound plausible enough to have legs. This week, we discuss that case, plus the investigation of Ilhan Omar and developments in the East Potomac Park case, where Judge Ana Reyes remains very displeased with the government’s conduct, and we also look at the indictment of Virginia State Senator Louise Lucas for running a marijuana dispensary.That’s for free subscribers. Paying subscribers also hear:* An interesting RICO trend: civil RICO suits against personal injury law firms for allegedly cooking up fraudulent cases. Civil RICO is very hard to plead, but in some places, courts are going for it.* Three stories about court officers who aren’t all there: A New Mexico prosecutor who may be disbarred for, among other things, accusing a defendant of witchcraft; a federal judge in Texas who appears to be having a mental health episode; and an alcoholic judge Ken helped nudge off the bench when he was a young law clerk.* And our take on “You Can See Everything” — the (fantastic) documentary on Elizabeth Holmes raises some interesting questions about what it’s like to be a prominent federal prisoner.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showRemember Katie Zacharia? She was White House press secretary for a few days last week and was fired while we were recording this episode. One of her big offenses was claiming to be a lawyer, despite never passing the bar. But what is a lawyer anyway? Is a lawyer different from an attorney?Also this week: the raid on Rep. Ilhan Omar’s home, the White House’s effort to use antitrust as a new tool against the press, and updates about East Potomac Park and the Cornell Seven.Premium subscribers will hear about:* JPMorgan plaintiff Chirayu Rana has irreconcilable differences with another set of lawyers.* A teenager who was arrested for riding an unlicensed e-bike (and then released without charge) sues CBS News for implying he vandalized the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.* A Haverford College religion professor is charged with cyberstalking a Jewish colleague by harassing him with anti-Semitic sock puppet accounts.* D.J. Byrnes is guilty (and fined $200) in the Shrek’s penis case.* Kimberly Guilfoyle faces a bizarre defamation lawsuit.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showPresident Trump said he’d stop using taxpayer money to air what certainly look like campaign ads, but then he kept doing it, so now, the Democratic National Committee is suing. Also this week: a Minnesota teenager arranged to buy an assault rifle to carry out an ISIS-inspired attack on the Mall of America — of course, it turned out the seller of the rifle was an undercover FBI agent, and the teen was arrested. Also in Minnesota, the government is mad at Patrick Schlitz and other federal judges for their public remarks criticizing the government’s disregard for their orders.That’s for all listeners this week. Paying subscribers also hear about some particularly weird cases:* A manslaughter case in Arizona where the victim was allowed to give an impact statement despite being dead — his sister wrote a script for an AI-generated avatar to read in court.* An IRS whistleblower who says the IRS maliciously leaked the fact that he paid his taxes late once, and an FBI whistleblower who says the government opened an unconstitutional investigation into anti-ICE protestors because the president saw a TikTok he didn’t like.* The UK’s explanation of why it wants the Tate brothers extradited.* A fight over Dolly Parton’s estate, and* The “Shrek’s penis” trial.To hear the whole episode, upgrade your subscription at www.serioustrouble.show.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showA former Cornell University student has filed a Jane Doe lawsuit accusing seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity of sexual misconduct, including rape, in an incident that occurred in October 2024. We discuss this case, and the actions and conclusions of the local district attorney, who Governor Kathy Hochul has replaced with a special prosecutor (Letitia James, the attorney general).We also discuss the continued unraveling of President Trump’s pet “grand conspiracy” investigation in south Florida, Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s lawsuit over the review of her phone records, and a lawyer who came at Andrew Weissmann and missed.That’s for all listeners. For paying subscribers this week, we also cover:* The very unfair judge who is thwarting President Trump’s heroic efforts to prosecute that Olympic canoeist who wantonly destroyed the lining of his favorite reflecting pool. (Sad!)* Sheri Mecklenburg’s self-serving, but also partially convincing, resignation letter, saying she’s been made into the fall-woman for failures by US Attorney Andrew Boutros in Chicago in the botched “Broadview Six” prosecution related to anti-ICE protests.* A DC Circuit loss for Anthropic.* A new defamation lawsuit against Candace Owens.* A bribery mistrial for DC Councilman Trayon White, and* An update in the Kyrsten Sinema alienation-of-affection case.Upgrade your subscription at www.serioustrouble.show.