RE: Interesting fact and interesting rumor

[Haytham Faraj <haytham@puckettfaraj.com>]

Dwight,
I will be disappointed for only one reason when this case ends, however it
ends, because I won't have as ready access to your brilliant writings and
entertainingly witty emails.

-----Original Message-----
From: Sullivan, Dwight H CIV USAF AFLOA/JAJA
[mailto:Dwight.Sullivan@pentagon.af.mil] 
Sent: Thursday, September 15, 2011 3:03 PM
To: Puckett Neal; DHSULLIVAN@aol.com
Cc: kirk.sripinyo@navy.mil; babu_kaza@hotmail.com; haytham@puckettfaraj.com;
meridith.marshall@usmc.mil; ksripinyo@yahoo.com
Subject: Interesting fact and interesting rumor

Interesting fact:  As you've probably seen, the President  has nominated a
new judge for CAAF -- Kevin A. Ohlson, whose current job is heading DOJ's
professional misconduct review unit.  Not a bad place for a judge
considering the Wuterich case to be coming from.  (Of course, he probably
won't be confirmed anytime soon, so he probably won't be a player on our
writ appeal.  But in the event of a conviction and sentence qualifying for
appellate review -- which hopefully will not occur -- he might be a very
good judge on direct appeal.)

Interesting rumor:  I had previously heard that CAAF would operated as a
4-judge court until a new judge is seated.  But I've now heard a contrary
rumor that Senior Judge Walter T. Cox III will sit with the court until a
new judge is confirmed.  If that's true, I'm very happy.  Judge Cox comes
from an earlier era at CAAF, when doing justice was considered more
important than, say, rigidly enforcing a made-up filing deadline.  (Of
course, Chief Judge Effron was on the right side in that case, but
all-in-all, Judge Cox is likely to be less concerned with doctrinal matters
and more concerned with basic fairness than Chief Judge Effron is -- not a
slight against Chief Judge Effron, who is fabulous.)  So our odds just got a
little better.  Hell, we might now have a 16% chance of some outcome other
than a one-sentence denial without prejudice.  :- )

Semper Fi,
DHS


Dwight H. Sullivan
Acting Chief
Air Force Appellate Defense Division
(AFLOA/JAJA)
1500 West Perimeter Road, Suite 1100
Joint Base Andrews, MD 20762
240-612-4773
DSN:  612-4773
Fax:  240-612-5818