Serious Trouble

This week Ken and Josh discuss how the Feds got an arrest warrant for Don Lemon after all. Before prosecutors got the grand jury indictment, they tried through some really irregular channels to get Lemon arrested more quickly. When a magistrate judge rejected an arrest warrant application for Lemon last week, rather than applying again or proceeding to the grand jury, prosecutors asked Judge Patrick Schiltz to overrule the magistrate, then asked an appellate panel to force Schiltz to rule on their motion right away, fearing that if Lemon wasn’t arrested immediately, there would be an epidemic of illegal church invasions. Schiltz took exception to this, and the appeals panel backed him up, though one of the appellate judges remarked that he thought all the arrest warrants were sufficiently supported but the government just didn’t need the weird emergency relief it was seeking.Also this week: we look at federal judges (including Schiltz) who are incensed that ICE isn’t promptly complying with their habeas corpus orders, and how this mess is downstream of rules that prohibit nationwide injunctions and are clogging some courts with individual lawsuits seeking relief from immigration detentions. We have an update on Minnesota’s 10th Amendment case — Judge Kate Menendez appears skeptical that she is in a position to provide the sweeping relief the state wants, though she does want more briefing on the threat letter from Attorney General Pam Bondi to the state. And in another case, an order from Menendez restricting ICE tactics has been stayed.In non-ICE news, it appears likely that Jeffrey Toobin will have to testify at Tom Goldstein’s criminal trial, though he has a good argument for limiting his testimony to fairly boring topics. Candace Owens says Turning Point USA has sent her a letter threatening to enforce a non-disparagement agreement they say she has violated by spreading conspiracy theories about Charlie Kirk’s death. And a defendant in Northern California called up a local news station during her trial to protest that she only threw parties where she gave alcohol to minors because of COVID.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.serioustrouble.show/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week, Ken and Josh discuss the end of Lindsey Halligan's purported reign in the Eastern District of Virginia, and news reports that ICE is relying on a secret legal memorandum asserting that it can enter homes to search for aliens subject to final orders of removal, even if there’s no warrant from an Article III judge authorizing them to do so. That's for all subscribers. Paying subscribers also get: * A look at the order enjoining ICE from certain enforcement tactics in Minnesota, but it’s subject to an administrative stay, for now — and, since this is Fourth Amendment Fun week, we have another opportunity to discuss how you might have a Fourth Amendment right, but that doesn’t mean you’ll get to use it.* The case of Geraldo Lunas Campos, a Cuban national who died in ICE custody earlier this month. ICE says his death was a suicide, but his family disputes that, citing other detainees who claim he was choked by guards. (A county medical examiner’s report also deemed his death a homicide — a determination of manner of death, not a finding of legal culpability.) Alas, it’s up to DOJ to keep those witnesses available to testify, and if DOJ doesn’t want to, they’ll likely be deported.* The federal charges for anti-ICE activists who are accused of disrupting a Twin Cities church service this past weekend — they were charged under the so-called Klan Act, and the charges were obtained via criminal complaint to a magistrate judge, which means prosecutors will still need to get a grand jury to agree to indict — and prosecutors’ failure so far to charge journalist Don Lemon.* The Supreme Court’s ongoing effort to carve out the Federal Reserve from its plans to neuter independent boards and commissions (special unique historical tradition etc etc).* And a weird one: former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema has been sued for alienation of affection — still an available tort in North Carolina and five other states! — by the estranged wife of one of her former staffers, who says Sinema stole her man.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showFed Chair Jerome Powell dropped a bombshell on Sunday: a video disclosing the Fed had been subpoenaed in a criminal investigation related to his congressional testimony about cost overruns in the Fed’s headquarters renovation. Powell said bluntly that the investigation is an effort to use the DOJ to assert control over the Fed and its interest-rate setting apparatus. Did this make Ken scream "shut up!!!!" at Powell's video? Meanwhile, Minnesota and some of its municipalities have sued the federal government, arguing that the ICE surge in the state is illegal and unconstitutional. Those discussions are for all listeners. Paying subscribers also get:* A look at intensifying turnover in US Attorneys’ offices, including the resignation of top prosecutors who had been leading the investigations into welfare fraud in Minnesota that was concentrated in the state’s Somali-American community.* DOJ’s argument for why Lindsey Halligan can keep calling herself a US Attorney after a judge ruled she isn’t one.* Senator Mark Kelly’s many arguments for why Pete Hegseth can’t reduce his rank and pension.* Some “shut up” news: prosecutors want to admit several incriminating statements from defendant Thomas Goldstein’s pre-trial New York Times profile.* And a look at a bizarre situation where Bruce Fein insists he somehow became Nicolas Maduro’s lawyer even though Maduro says he never hired him.Upgrade your subscription now at serioustrouble.show.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week’s episode starts with the arrest and indictment of Nicolas Maduro, and the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good at the hands of an ICE agent in Minneapolis. That’s for free subscribers. Paying subscribers also get a look at a shadow docket ruling from the Supreme Court that curtailed Trump’s ability to deploy the national guard, and the surprising statutory reading that got a majority of the court there. We look at a dismissal of criminal charges from another scrap with ICE in Los Angeles, we discuss Mark Kelly’s legal options for fighting the reduction of his pension (and why he might choose not to use them), we consider why Lindsey Halligan keeps insisting she’s the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, we look at the bizarre upcoming criminal trial of Scotusblog co-founder Thomas Goldstein, and we have an update on the saga of the still-held-in-contempt Charles C. Johnson.Upgrade your subscription at serioustrouble.show

Some of the Epstein files have been released, but there's a lot of blacked-out text and pictures. The Justice Department is supposed to redact certain information but of course there’s the ever-present question of whether all redaction “errors” are errors, or whether this administration has its thumb on the scale for the president.Also in this episode: the Pulitzer Board requests President Trump's medical, financial and tax records, an LA man who towed an ICE vehicle around the block during a raid was acquitted of stealing government property, Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan was convicted in federal court of obstructing an effort by federal immigration agents to detain someone she had called to her courtroom. And Caroline Ellison, former partner to Sam Bankman-Fried in multiple senses of the term, has been sprung from Club Fed in Danbury, Connecticut. Speaking of SBF: apparently he’s transformed himself into something of a jailhouse lawyer but he seems to be about as good at jailhouse lawyering as he was at crypto investing. Finally, we look at a maybe-not-so-fearsome terrorism indictment and we discuss the ongoing contempt saga that has caused Ken to feel a surprising emotion regarding Charles C. Johnson: pity. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.serioustrouble.show/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showA grand jury has refused to indict Letitia James — no, this isn’t a repeat of last week’s email; it just happened again since we last recorded. This time, it’s a different grand jury, and we discuss further impediments to the resurrection of the cases against her and James Comey. That, plus a discussion of the unlikely-to-matter pardon of former Colorado election official Tina Peters, is for free subscribers this week. Paid subscribers also get:* A look at a lawsuit from the National Trust for Historic Preservation which aims to stop the construction of Trump’s new White House ballroom.* Another trial court win for Gavin Newsom as he tries to end Trump’s activation of the California National Guard (though the outlook in the appeals courts is more dubious).* Costco’s lawsuit seeking return of its tariff payments under IEEPA, and why Costco would sue now, long after a few plaintiffs stood up to bring a test case but before the Supreme Court rules on it.* And the order that has, for now, freed Kilmar Abrego Garcia to return to Maryland.Upgrade your subscription at serioustrouble.show.

This week: more news in the Letitia James and James Comey cases. DOJ tried to re-indict James, but they got a no-bill, and in the Comey case, the government is a bit held up by a motion from Comey's sometime-lawyer and friend. Meanwhile, Lindsey Halligan is still running around, acting like she’s the U.S. Attorney (even though the fact that she isn’t is why these cases got dismissed), but Alina Habba has thrown in the towel, moving to main Justice to advise Pam Bondi and declaring “you can take the girl out of New Jersey, but you cannot take the New Jersey out of the girl.”Also this week: charges against Brian Cole Jr., who’s accused of the attempted pipe bombings at the RNC and DNC nearly five years ago; shadow docket action that saved Republicans’ Texas remap; super troll Charles C. Johnson’s latest misadventures that have landed him in jail for contempt of court; and why an embarrassing policy report about Rep. Nancy Mace's airport meltdown became public.Find links and a transcript of this episode and sign up for our newsletter at serioustrouble.show. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.serioustrouble.show/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThe criminal cases against James Comey and Letitia James were both dismissed, without prejudice, on the grounds that former insurance attorney Lindsey Halligan was never properly appointed as an interim US Attorney. Trump’s Justice Department has options, and we talk through them. That conversation is for free listeners. For paid subscribers this week, we also address:* A rare favorable ruling for the Trump administration from Judge James Boasberg.* Eric Swalwell’s lawsuit against Bill Pulte* Peter Skandalakis’s tortured-but-ultimately-convincing, argument that the Georgia RICO case is terminal and should be taken off life support.* Megan Thee Stallion’s “big” ($59,000) win in her defamation lawsuit against a live-streamer* Probation for Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, and* A sharply-worded minute order from Judge Amy Berman Jackson trying to ensure that she won’t be the only long-suffering person around these parts.Upgrade your subscription today at serioustrouble.show.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showNow that Congress has voted overwhelmingly to require the release of the Epstein files, we discuss what’s likely to be in those files, what the administration might do to undermine the intent of the law requiring release, and whether we really ought to learn so much about this case. That conversation is for free subscribers. Paying subscribers get much more this week — a look at the rapidly increasing number of problems with the James Comey indictment, an update on the National Guard cases, and an interesting question from the Supreme Court about the meaning of a law restricting the president’s ability to deploy it over a governor’s objection. We look at a really, really intemperate dissent in the Texas redistricting case, an update on Tina Peters, and we look at two defamation cases, one where Trump has again lost to CNN, and one brought by rapper Megan Thee Stallion against a Twitch streamer who, in the eyes of the state of Florida, does not count as a media outlet.Upgrade your subscription now at serioustrouble.show

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showSandwich Guy is free! Sean Dunn was acquitted of simple assault by a jury of his peers. Meanwhile, Lindsey Halligan continues to face difficulties in her case against James Comey, and the Justice Department generally is having trouble finding a sufficient number of qualified attorneys. That’s all in this week’s free show.There’s much more this week for paying subscribers, including:* A look at why Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson chose to delay a ruling that would have forced the Trump administration to pay SNAP benefits.* U.S. Senators voted themselves a legal right to sue if the government obtains their phone records, and the House grudgingly went along. The provision might get repealed after an outcry. But if it doesn't, does that violate the 27th Amendment? And even if it does, is there any recourse?* The adventures of Bill Pulte.* Federal pardons for participants in fake elector conspiracies (who really mostly need to worry about state charges anyway).* Another victory for Ann Selzer.Visit serioustrouble.show to upgrade your subscription to get the whole episode.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showOn this week's show for everyone: two court decisions direct the Trump administration to continue sending SNAP (food stamp) funds to states and the administration has chosen not to appeal these orders — likely not relishing the politics of withholding SNAP funds — but the legal situation may get more complicated if the shutdown does not end soon. Plus: more motions from James Comey.For paying subscribers: legal wrangling over federal immigration enforcement in Chicago; some AUSAs who were placed on leave for daring to call January 6 a “mob” “riot” in a sentencing memo; a Tennessee man who spent a month in jail on the extremely thin claim that a political meme he posted was a terroristic threat; and the strange scandal of now-former FDA official George Tidmarsh and Aurinia.Upgrade your subscription at serioustrouble.show.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week, both James Comey and Letitia James continue to seek dismissal of the criminal charges brought against them, and one argument they’ve both made will be considered by a judge from another state. We talk about why that's happening, we also discuss a lesson from the Barry Bonds steroids case that could be relevant for Comey, and we look at a complaint James has made about Halligan’s communications about grand jury proceedings to a reporter. That, plus a look at Ninth Circuit action in the national guard cases and a look at a sloppy defamation lawsuit from Paul Ingrassia, constitutes this week’s free show.Beyond the paywall, we talk about an effort from the D.C. bar to impose new burdens on law firms that might, theoretically, enter into settlement deals with the government, an dwhen a state could prosecute an ICE officer for breaking state law (not never, is the short answer), and our discussion of how some judges are now getting in trouble for their misuse of AI in drafting opinions.Upgrade your subscription at serioustrouble.show.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week in the free episode: the indictment of John Bolton and how it's pretty different from the Comey indictment, plus Trump's apparent demand that the Justice Department pay him $230 million for the indignity of being prosecuted.Paying subscribers also get to hear a dive into two wild NBA-related indictments that came down this week in the Eastern District of New York. One indictment alleges that conspirators, including an NBA coach and members of four of New York’s Italian mafia families, ran rigged poker games to fleece unsuspecting players out of millions of dollars. The other alleges a conspiracy to fraudulently bet on NBA games — or more specifically, on propositions about NBA games — through the use of inside information. Both of these cases have crazy factual details, and the NBA betting one also involves some interesting, novel legal issues.Also: an update on lawsuits over National Guard deployments (and some theories about why an unfavorable ruling for Gavin Newsom did not get a rehearing en banc), a look at the case demanding that Speaker Mike Johnson hurry up and seat the Democrat who won a special election in Arizona several weeks ago, and an update on Hunter Biden-related litigation.Visit serioustrouble.show to upgrade your subscription.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showLetitia James has been indicted, as President Trump’s retribution campaign continues. (So has John Bolton, but that happened after we recorded.) While the Bolton indictment has a forbidding, professional feel, the James indictment does not, and is likely to be vulnerable to some of the same attacks James Comey is raising against his own indictment. But then, is the point even to get a conviction? Plus: another US Attorney has been forced out for insufficient eagerness to investigate the president’s enemies, and the Wall Street Journal reports that Ghislaine Maxwell’s arrival to the Club Fed in Texas has made life less pleasant for the other inmates there.For paying subscribers, we look at Drake’s humiliating loss in his defamation lawsuit against his own record label, in which a federal judge had to explain to him how a rap battle works; a discussion of a split decision by a panel in the Sixth Circuit, saying schools may prohibit clothing with implied vulgarities (such as two students’ sweatshirts that declared “Let’s Go Brandon"); ICE enforcing a little-known law that green card holders must actually carry their green cards (apparently just with fines, so far); and the State Department bragging that it’s revoking visas held by non-citizens who said mean things about Charlie Kirk.There's also a preview of Josh's new podcast Central Air, a weekly politics chat from the center.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showJames Comey has been arraigned and has a trial date of January 5. Both his lawyer and the judge appear set on moving rapidly to trial, and the government is rushing to be ready. We discuss the motions it sounds like Comey's legal team will file, which likely will be helped by the message from the president demanding Comey’s prosecution that does really appear to have been intended as a private message for Attorney General Pam Bondi.Plus: we discuss Sean Combs' sentence and how to lobby for a lenient sentence when your client is very fortunate and prominent, without sounding like you’re saying the rich and famous deserve to get off easy.Paying subscribers get that and much more (upgrade your subscription at serioustrouble.show):* A look at an unexpected criminal complaint about the highly destructive Palisades Fire, in which federal prosecutors allege that an Uber driver set a smaller fire that begat the major fire.* Temporary restraining orders in the case over Trump’s effort to deploy national guard troops to Portland, and what appeals courts are likely to do with them.* What to make of Supreme Court’s choice to finally take on the Lisa Cook case, and the procedural split it is likely to emphasize among the court’s conservative justices as they ponder what to do with the special, unique, quasi-private institution in a long historical tradition that is the Federal Reserve.* A lengthy and forceful appeals court ruling upholding birthright citizenship.* Another vindictive prosecution claim that has legs, this time from Kilmar Abrego Garcia.* And a Kardashian-Jenner-Ray-J RICO-defamation case. Wow!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showWe know more this week about indictment of James Comey. Maybe the grand jury vote was weak, but an indictment is an indictment, right? Maybe not. We discuss how Comey’s attorneys are likely to seek dismissal of the indictments. Meanwhile, we have some more detail on how the FBI came to be conducting a public corruption investigation into Tom Homan when he wasn’t even a public official. That — plus a discussion of Jeanine Pirro’s unusual use of a local grand jury to obtain a federal indictment in Washington D.C. — is this week’s free show. For paid subscribers, we also discuss:* The Trump administration’s novel use of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act to sue pro-Palestinian activists who ended up in a brawl outside a New Jersey synagogue;* Judge William Young’s righteously angry ruling holding that the Trump administration has violated immigrants’ First Amendment rights by revoking their visas over their protest activity;* Google’s high-dollar settlement of a case about YouTube that Donald Trump already lost, which will be used to finance the grand new ballroom at the White House;* Smartmatic’s partial summary judgment win against Mike Lindell over his stolen election claims; and* Harvard’s countersuit against former Harvard Business School professor Francesca Gino, whom they de-tenured over research fraud, most famously including a fraudulent paper about dishonesty.Sign up for our full-length episodes at serioustrouble.show

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showJames Comey has been indicted, charged with making a false statement and obstruction of justice. Now, the government will try to prove he lied to Congress when he said he never “authorized someone else at the FBI to be an anonymous source in news reports” about the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s emails, even though he had, in fact, authorized “Person 3” to do this. But — who will prosecutors say Comey did authorize?That’s our conversation for free listeners. Paying subscribers also get our conversation about:* The Trump administration’s motion for the Supreme Court to issue a stay letting them kick Lisa Cook off the Federal Reserve Board for now, and the ways the court may try to avoid having to weigh in on the exact special, unique historical nature that makes the Federal Reserve special, unique, and not subject to the decision it’s surely about to issue overturning Humphrey’s Executor;* The guilty verdict against Ryan Routh and a judge’s admonishment of prosecutors in the case against Luigi Mangione;* What legal exposure Tom Homan could have faced if he really accepted $50,000 cash in a Cava bag; and* Updates on Trump’s try-hard defamation litigation against the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showDisney has “indefinitely” ceased airing Jimmy Kimmel Live under pressure from FCC chairman Brandon Carr and from Nexstar and Sinclair, two major owners of ABC affiliate stations, which themselves faced significant pressure from Carr. It is illegal for federal officials to “jawbone” private actors into punishing other private actors for their speech, but for relief to be possible, there has to be a pretty clear connection between the jawboning and the speech restriction. Listen for our analysis, and who could even sue here.Paying subscribers, there’s much more this week including:* Our look at the first criminal charges against Tyler Robinson, who faces the death penalty in Utah.* A look at Donald Trump’s new defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, and Nina Jankowicz’s loss on appeal in her suit against Fox News (about which she is incensed).* Why Lisa Cook remains on the Federal Reserve Board, for now (it has to do with the Fed being a special, unique entity in a long historical tradition).* The reason for the dismissal of terrorism charges against Luigi Mangione, and a look at why, in New York, a trial court is “Supreme” but premeditated murder is merely “second degree.”* And why Judge Tanya Chutkan found there was nothing she could do for migrants whose removals to Ghana sure appeared designed to get them back to their home countries, despite having court orders prohibiting their removal to those countries.Visit serioustrouble.show to upgrade your subscription.

This week’s show takes a look at federal charges in the widely discussed Charlotte train murder case. Murder, of course, is not generally a federal crime, but because the murder happened on a train, the Feds have charged it as a violation of 18 USC § 1992, which prohibits “an act, including the use of a dangerous weapon, with the intent to cause death or serious bodily injury to any person” in various transportation-related places, including on train tracks.Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will soon weigh in on the IEEPA tariffs case — the court has set a fast briefing schedule and will hear arguments in June. Also in this episode: The Babylon Bee lawsuit that got California’s anti-deepfake law thrown out as unconstitutional; FBI agents suing over their political terminations (and why they stand a better chance in the courts than the various fired commissioners); the collapse of Michigan’s fake elector prosecution; another court decision upholding a judgment E. Jean Carroll won from President Trump; and the unhinged pro-se filings from would-be Trump assassin Ryan Wesley Routh (filed, of course, to Judge Aileen Cannon).Visit serioustrouble.show to find a transcript of this episode. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.serioustrouble.show/subscribe

This week: Jeanine Pirro has returned to her roots as a prosecutor, but prosecutors in her office have failed to secure felony indictments in at least three cases they brought to grand juries, including the case of “Sandwich Guy” Sean Dunn, who will face only misdemeanor charges for launching a submarine sandwich at a CBP officer.Trump lost another appeal related to many of his tariffs (IEEPA!); Trump’s weird lawsuit against federal judges in Maryland was thrown out; Alan Dershowitz lost his appeal of his defamation lawsuit against CNN; Kash Patel’s girlfriend Alexis Williams has filed a Macron-like lawsuit against a conspiracy theorist who says she can’t actually be attracted to him; the Trump administration continues to try to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia; and we take a look at the administration’s new tool for pursuing political enemies: allegations of mortgage fraud.Visit serioustrouble.show to find episode transcripts and sign up for updates. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.serioustrouble.show/subscribe