Pubdate: Thu, 25 Oct 2001
Source: Capital Times, The  (WI)
Copyright: 2001 The Capital Times
Contact:  http://www.thecapitaltimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/73
Author: Doug Moe

A TALE OF TWO SCANDALS

The Subpoenas Were Flying

A prosecutor was calling in people to testify in secret, and everyone who 
wasn't busy dialing a criminal lawyer had his or her nose in a dictionary 
looking up the definition of "statute of limitations."

There was a bit of a glaze over all their eyes, because, damn it all, they 
were only doing what they had always done. That's what made it so hard to 
comprehend. It had been business as usual for years and years with 
impunity. Now it was blowing up in their faces.

Yeah, that Jocko's case was really something, wasn't it?

You are forgiven for thinking those first few sentences were about the 
ongoing caucus scandal at the State Capitol.

It's interesting to note the similarities between the recent drug 
investigation at a sleazy bar and the current investigation of alleged 
illegalities in the hallowed halls of the Capitol.

Jocko's had been pretty widely known as a drug bar for more than two 
decades in Madison before authorities finally raided it in December 1999. 
Once that happened, the fur started to fly. For a while it was raining 
subpoenas in downtown Madison. A local criminal defense attorney called me 
after a frightened young woman had just left his office. "It's a 
scorched-earth grand jury," he said of the investigation being conducted by 
U.S. Attorney Peg Lautenschlager. "This woman got a subpoena, and she 
hasn't been in Jocko's for 12 years!"

In the end nine people were indicted for drug offenses at Jocko's.

The scandal at the State Capitol involves the "revelation" that state 
employees - men and women who have worked in the four legislative caucuses 
- - may have done political work while on the clock for their state jobs. 
Revelation? Everyone in the building knew it was going on. When the press 
got around to writing about it earlier this year, various investigations 
commenced, including one on three of the four caucuses by Dane County DA 
Brian Blanchard. He couldn't investigate the Senate Democratic caucus 
because it helped him file his nomination papers for DA - the very kind of 
violation Blanchard is investigating. He turned that one over to Mike 
McCann, the Milwaukee County DA.

The investigations have made a lot of people at the Capitol nervous. I ran 
into a former Madison area legislator Monday. "Every one of my friends over 
there has hired a lawyer," he said.

Sounds like Jocko's deja vu all over again.

How about the expense of the investigations? Jocko's had to cost taxpayers 
millions. The caucus scandal investigation is getting expensive, too. And 
not only are we paying for the investigation, the Legislature wants us to 
pay for the lawyers of the people being investigated.

What we don't know yet is if the endgames of the two scandals will also be 
similar. That will be worth watching.

As I mentioned, nine people were indicted in the Jocko's case. In the end 
they all pleaded guilty, and U.S. Judge John Shabaz dropped a two-ton 
hammer on them. The bar owner, Robert "Boot" Schuh, got 19 years in prison. 
Others got 10 years, 11 years, six years. These were not violent criminals. 
They were drug addicts committing slow suicide with cocaine while 
occasionally helping their friends commit slow suicide too. More than 
anything, they were pathetic.

People also get addicted to power and winning elections. Some would argue 
the addiction is a more powerful one than cocaine. A settlement recently 
disbanded the caucuses, but we won't know for a while if there will be any 
indictments in the Capitol scandal. There have been published reports that 
the allegations include caucus staffers shredding documents. Talk about 
sleazy and pathetic. Meanwhile, seemingly undaunted, on Tuesday the state 
Senate OK'd six more staffers each for the majority and minority leaders. 
The caucuses are dead, long live the caucuses!

As the Jocko's scandal wound down, local restaurateur Larry Schmock bought 
the building, gutted it and changed the name to the Blue Velvet Lounge. If 
only it was that easy with the building five blocks up State Street.
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart