Federal Government Wants Harsher Sentence for Former Councilman Oliver Thomas

After signing a plea agreement in which he promised to cooperate with authorities, former New Orleans' City Councilman Oliver Thomas told FBI agents and federal prosecutors during his second debriefing session that he "did not wish to be a 'rat,' " according to the sentencing memorandum filed by U.S. Attorney Jim Letten's office. Thomas then refused to discuss his possible knowledge of other crimes, according to the memo.

Ironically, Thomas' own crime came to the attention of authorities as a result of another convict's cooperation.

Restaurateur and political operative Stan "Pampy" Barre, who is awaiting sentencing for his role in skimming money from a City Hall energy contract, told authorities that Thomas had extorted roughly $15,000 in bribes from him in exchange for a pledge that he would help Barre retain a portion of a French Quarter parking contract.

Thomas also directed Barre to take on a partner, Joseph Jourdain, the brother of one of his aides.

Barre initially provided little useful information to prosecutors after he pleaded guilty to three felony charges in January. But that changed after one of his co-conspirators, former city Property Management Director Kerry DeCay, was sentenced to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to the same charges.

The harsh sentence -- which owed in part to DeCay's lack of cooperation -- seemed to serve as a wake-up call to Barre. Less than two months later, prosecutors had persuaded Thomas to plead guilty to bribery charges based on information provided by Barre.

Army Corps of Engineer tried to stop inquiry

What's Going On With The Army Corps of Engineers?

The leader of an independent team of researchers investigating the New Orleans levee failures has filed an ethics complaint with the American Society of Civil Engineers, claiming executives of that trade organization and the Army Corps of Engineers have systematically attempted to undermine his group's investigation.

University of California-Berkeley civil engineering Professor Raymond Seed led a group whose conclusions at times contrasted sharply with those of corps-sponsored investigations. In his 42-page letter, sent Oct. 30 to the former president of the ASCE, Seed charged that the corps-sponsored probe produced flawed results that absolved the corps of its full measure of blame -- and, more important, led to mistakes in the rebuilding of levees and walls in the area.

Is this surprising to anyone? What does the ASCE have to hide?

Senator Shepherd tries to discredit the feds investigation by shifting blame

During his desperate news conference yesterday, Senator Derrick Shepherd tried to discredit the federal investigation, into his alleged wrongdoings.

Shepherd's attempt to throw the spotlight off himself and onto Carter, Jefferson and Nagin did not change the government's message that the unfolding case that appears to have ensnared Shepherd is very much alive.

Jim Bernazzani, special agent in charge of the FBI's New Orleans office, dismissed the notion of a witch hunt and suggested that the government is far from through with Shepherd.

"The investigation centering around the events in federal court on Monday, which have been highly publicized, was based upon facts surfaced by the FBI," Bernazzani said.

"If Mr. Shepherd chooses to hold a press conference to assert his position, he is entirely within his prerogative," he said. "As this investigation continues, Mr. Shepherd will have ample opportunity to assert again if he so chooses."

Trio respond

Shepherd's attempt to turn attention to Nagin, Jefferson and Carter caught those politicians by surprise and drew stinging rebukes.

Nagin issued a statement late Wednesday saying he was "disappointed by the reckless allegations made today by Sen. Shepherd in an apparent effort to deflect attention from his own legal problems."

Nagin added: "I am not now, nor have I ever been, the subject of any investigation of wrongdoing. I have a proven track record of transparency and have been a champion of ethics and anti-corruption during my tenure as mayor of New Orleans."

Earlier, Nagin spokeswoman Ceeon Quiett said she was not sure whether Nagin had spoken with the FBI since Shepherd's news conference. But she noted that the mayor has "a very good relationship with them, an ongoing relationship with them."

Carter, D-New Orleans, who is in Boston attending a Harvard University seminar, released a five-paragraph statement denying any business dealings with Jefferson, Moyo or Shepherd. She confirmed, however, that investigators approached her for information about topics that she would not disclose.

"I have been asked by the federal government to be a fact witness," she said in the statement. "Federal law enforcement has stated that I am not a subject of any government investigation.

"This type of investigation is normally nonpublic. General commentary is rarely warranted. However, innuendo, whether intentional or inadvertent, has forced me to provide this clarification to my constituents and to the residents of Louisiana."

Jefferson, D-New Orleans, who is awaiting trial on 16 federal charges of bribery and corruption that were filed after his re-election, declined to comment about Shepherd's statement, said Chris Garrett, a spokesman.

Unanswered questions

It's unclear how much contact Shepherd has had with federal agents or prosecutors.

Roby said his client received a subpoena for documentation of the work, and Shepherd gave the government a contract, time sheets and research he did on Moyo's case. But Roby did not answer whether prosecutors have asked Shepherd to testify before a grand jury.

After reading his statement, Shepherd deflected all questions to his attorney, who did not respond directly to the core discrepancies between his client's version of events and the government's account.

Roby did not shed light on the unusual financial arrangement alleged by FBI Special Agent Peter Smith, who testified in the Moyo case that Shepherd deposited checks made out to Moyo's business, then returned about half the money to her. Moyo couldn't access the money herself because the business, AA Communications, had its bank accounts seized by the state Department of Insurance.

"At this time, I think it would be inappropriate for Mr. Shepherd to discuss those things which might be considered attorney-client privilege," Roby said.

Smith also testified that the contract Shepherd gave the government raised his suspicions, as it lacked Moyo's signature. Shepherd maintained in the statement that he negotiated a legal, binding contract with Moyo and gave proof to the agent.

When asked about Smith's testimony that the contract wasn't signed by both parties, Roby deflected the question again.

"I'm not going to do the government's work here," he said, repeating that Moyo retained Shepherd's services and paid for the work in an aboveboard manner.

Referral undisclosed

Another unanswered question to emerge from Moyo's detention hearing is how she came to hire Shepherd for the legal work, after first consulting with several other attorneys, including Rep. Jalila Jefferson-Bullock, D-New Orleans, and Danny Davallier of Phelps Dunbar. Jalila Jefferson-Bullock is William Jefferson's daughter.

Roby wouldn't divulge the answer.

"I'm sure the government's aware of who made the referral to Mr. Shepherd," he said, adding that it has nothing to do with whether Shepherd provided legitimate services.

Both Shepherd and Roby lashed out at the way the government made the investigation public, during a hearing in open court but without warning to either of the men.

"The public scrutiny has all but convicted this man," Roby said, "and his reputation has been soiled."