Great topic, Dees is doing great work here.

BLUES-BROTHERS GENRE FAILS

Ron Edwards might have had a chance, by staging a "political"
defense. That would have required "Chicago-Seven" tactics, putting
the accusers on trial. Instead, Edwards, convicted of conspiring to
have an Hispanic beaten up at a Kentucky county-fair, opted for a
traditional "criminal-defense" of "I didn't do it" and "I wasn't
there." He failed, as have all such previous ploys. Edwards had
employed a "Blues Brothers" genre, complete with facial-hair,
obesity, sun-glasses and profanity, even though its pioneer, George
Burdi, had shut down, after Burdi-disciples, the Pennsylvania
Freeman-Brothers, went on a killing-spree. Edwards exuded the same
bravado as Tom Metzger, who, also, had served as his own lawyer and
declared that "I wasn't there," when sued for violence-instigation.
As for organization, former Edwards-associate Joshua Cowles testified
that it "is about one man and one man only. That's Ron Edwards."

In order to succeed, Edwards would have had to convince a jury that
Hispanics were the problem and that acquitting him of assault-charges
would "send a signal" that border-jumpers needed to be "taught a
lesson," not to invade the country. The "victim" would have had to be
shown as the American people and the assaulters as the "vigilantes,"
meting out "extra-legal" justice. Instead, Edwards assumed that the
jury disagreed with his views and said so. He, also, called no
witnesses, but sported a profane-tattoo on his scalp and a trail of
obscenity, vulgarity and violence-instigation. It was as though the
owner of a pit-bull, let to run wild, had claimed, "I didn't bite the
kid." Edwards' associates testified against Edwards, stating that he
had provoked them to violence. An all-white jury delivered a $2.5
million verdict to Morris Dees, who had succeeded in pervious
litigation against all except The Nationalist Movement.

Co-defendant Jarred Hensley, wearing facial-hair and sporting
tattoos, claimed that even though he had pleaded guilty to assault
previously, he was not guilty, a David-Duke type of retrenchment,
which, also, failed. Hensley described himself as a "hater," a term
promoted by Dees in building up various reckless individuals, who
Dees would claim to be "leaders" and, then, sue. Dees had claimed
that Edwards was the "Number Two" "biggest" leader in the country,
but, in court-documents, conceded that Edwards was only a
"one-man-show." Nationalists teach classes on how to avoid
"conspiracies," by using the law and avoiding "buzz words," but
Edwards had proceeded otherwise. Shaun Walker, also, failed to take
such "preventive-maintenance" and was jailed for seven years for
assault-conspiracy. Edwards received a civil-judgment, requiring him
to turn over his land and assets and have wages garnished.

Co-defendant Andrew Watkins, who had been rumored as intending
to mount a strong defense, entered into a confidential-agreement
with Dees, prior to the trial, securing his dismissal. Dees, usually,
proposes that a defendant agree to pay a sum and not engage in
rightist-activism in the future. Dees made such a proposal to
Nationalists, who he sued in Georgia, demanding that they destroy
their mailing-list and never appear in public again. They rejected
the demand and prevailed against Dees. Dees had offered an agreement
to Edwards, to give up his property, where he had conducted rightist
gatherings, and withdraw from public for ten years. Edwards declined,
as did David Holland, who lost to Dees in Georgia. Asked for comment,
Watkins, who, also, had served as his own lawyer, did not respond.
Edwards vowed to appeal, but, claimed that he lacked funds for an
appeal-bond, which usually amounts to twice the judgment.

Edwards had insisted that his website posted a disclaimer that he did
not allow "violence." However, the same disclaimer had been posted by
Robert Shelton, the first to have been successfully sued by Dees,
when someone viewing a photo of a lynching conducted a lynching. In
court, Shelton had been unable to show any actual conduct preventing
violence. In fact, a video was shown in which Watkins had shouted "no
mercy" to Hispanics, at an Edwards-sponsored gathering. Matt Hale
had, also, claimed to oppose violence, until he was shown next to a
poster calling for "death" to his foes. Shelton was assessed a $7
million fine and Hale went to jail for forty years. In closing, Edwards
told the jury that "you may not agree with my beliefs, but that is your
right." Kale Kelly, who had lived with Edwards, testified that he had
served three years in prison for involvement in an Edwards-instigated
murder-plot.

The same day as the verdict, "We Saw That," an anonymous blog,
published a leaked, confidential-memo, in which Nationalists
purportedly outlined how to conduct a "political-defense," although
they were not involved in the Edwards-trial. Nationalists protested
the publication, which apparently emanated from a disgruntled, former
associated-lawyer. Watkins, a musician, however, had posted the
single-word comment "brilliant," on a Nationalist-website, which
called for "combining legal-savvy with business-acumen." Nationalists
encourage lawful-conduct, while condemning would-be assassins, who
they identify as drug-addicts, Satan-worshipers or "wanna-bees."
As for falling into future Dees-traps, Lilli Frees said that "we have
better and brighter things to do and don't have to resort to
harassing people for fun." Frees concluded that "it's not worth our
time to get mad at those who abuse us. They're weak and just trash."

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