Generosity for Griles?
Nearly every convict wants to avoid jail time, but few have gone so far as J. Steven Griles, the former deputy secretary of the Interior Department, who pleaded guilty in March to lying to the Senate abut his ties to the notorious lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
Griles, 59, faces a guideline range of 10 to 16 months, but the Justice Department is asking for the lower end of the guidelines with a sentence split between jail and home confinement.
That isn't low enough for Griles, who in recently filed court documents, asked D.C. District Judge Ellen Huvelle for probation, three months home confinement, 500 hours of community service and a fine.
To show his commitment, he proposes two community services projects, one with Wonderful Outdoor World, a group focused on teaching underprivileged children about natural resources and another with Operation Coaches and Warriors, an organization that assists soliders wounded in Iraq.
Griles also submitted 91 letters of support from such notable names as Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter, former Secretaries of Interior Donald Hodel and Gale Norton as well as many lobbyists like David Parker of the American Gas Association. To download them click here. (Beware: the file is large!)
But if Scooter Libby’s experience is any guide, their plaudits may do little to convince Huvelle to go easy.
Griles wants to devote half of his community service sentence to Operation Coaches and Warriors, a "new" program which is an "outgrowth" of Operation Hardwood.
Marketing guru, Rick Kell created Operation Hardwood, a program in which college basketball coaches visit Kuwait for one week at a time and meet with military players. Operation Hardwood appears to be sponsored by the USO and the Armed Forces Entertainment Division.
In the Griles defense memo, the attorneys never actually state that Operation Coaches and Warrior is sponsored or funded by anyone. If the program is just a twinkle in Kell's eye, chances are it was created to give Steve Griles an excuse for community service.
Operation Coaches and Warriors sounds like a dumb idea in any case. Just what wounded Iraqi vets need - college memorabilia.
If I were the judge, I'd want to see the dated Operation Coaches and Warriors business plan and budget.
Posted by: Mrs Panstreppon | June 19, 2007 at 12:22 PM
Turns out that "community service" is with one of the industry organizations Griles "worked with" while in office. Check it out here: http://pogoblog.typepad.com/pogo/2007/06/greenwire_break.html
Posted by: Beth Daley | June 17, 2007 at 11:11 PM
Where are Letters 1 through 15?
Posted by: Anonymous | June 12, 2007 at 02:25 PM