June 12, 2001 Please Distribute Widely Dear Colleagues, The first hearing in the case of Banamex (Citigroup) vs. Mario Menéndez, Al Giordano and the Narco News Bulletin has been scheduled: Friday, July 20th, 2001 9:30 a.m. New York State Supreme Court, Manhattan District 71 Thomas Street, Courtroom 205 (see below for directions) Hon. Justice Paula Omansky, presiding This is a hearing on oral arguments on motions to dismiss. Attorney Martin Garbus will represent Mario Menéndez Attorney Tom Lesser will represent The Narco News Bulletin I will represent myself The lawyer-lobbyist firm of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer and Feld will represent Banamex. At this stage of the case, the debate will be centered around whether Banamex has acted properly in even bringing this lawsuit in New York City, when it has faced defeat three times already in Mexican courts. Particularly at stake here is the larger issue of free speech on the Internet. If the National Bank of Mexico can sue a web site published from Mexico, over stories investigated, reported and uploaded from Mexico (to a datacenter in Maryland), and sue that web site in New York, that would set a dangerous precedent that chills speech throughout the Internet. It would mean that any one of 1.4 billion web pages on the Internet could be dragged into the most expensive (and backlogged) court system in the world or any venue across the globe by wealthy interests who seek to censor investigative reporting and commentary on their or their owners' activities. See The Narco News Bulletin motion to dismiss for more details: http://www.narconews.com/narconewsmotion1.html And see my own Pro Se motion to dismiss for a clear understanding of why this lawsuit is frivolous and without merit, and never should have been brought: http://www.narconews.com/agmotion1.html In the coming days, the Banamex attorneys will file their rebuttals to these motions. We will then have a very short time to correct their rebuttal, which means that we need an immediate influx of funds for the defense. If you've donated already, thank you. If you could make another contribution, now is the crunch time. We expect Akin Gump to flood us with paperwork in the coming days in its continuing attempt to wear us out and distract us from reporting on the war on drugs in Latin America, of which that law firm profits as well. If you haven't donated already, please do so. We have gotten this far in the process because small donations from many people have added up. But our tank is empty right now at this crucial moment. Please make a check out to "Drug War on Trial" and send it to: Drug War on Trial c/o Attorney Tom Lesser Lesser, Newman, Souweine and Nasser 39 Main Street Northampton, MA 01060 You can also make a contribution by credit card through the PayPal service, via the internet. Go to: https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=narconews%40hotmail.com ...and follow the instructions to contribute to Drug War on Trial, with an address of [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your support got us this far. Now, we finally get a hearing before the the Judge. Please make plans to attend this important hearing (we'll be inviting you soon to a related event in New York City). And please help us get ready to make our case on this date. Again, that's Friday, July 20th, 9:30 a.m. at the New York State Supreme Court, 71 Thomas Street, room 205. (Directions enclosed.) from somewhere in a country called América, Al Giordano Publisher The Narco News Bulletin http://www.narconews.com/ [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe for free alerts: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/narconews Directions from the New York State Supreme Court, Manhattan District: Our court is located in four facilities. All are located on or near Foley Square in lower Manhattan. Foley Square is situated approximately two blocks from the entrance ramp to the Brooklyn Bridge. The main courthouse is located at 60 Centre Street. There is a satellite facility at 80 Centre Street (across Worth Street). Courtrooms of several Justices and other segments of the court are located here. A number of Justices have Chambers at 111 Centre Street. ****Finally, 71 Thomas Street, which is several blocks west of Foley Square, at the corner of West Broadway, houses courtrooms and Chambers for several Justices.**** Our facilities can be reached easily by public transportation: BY SUBWAY On the East side of Manhattan, take the Lexington Avenue line (Nos. 4, 5, 6) and get off at "BROOKLYN BRIDGE/CITY HALL". On the West side, take the IRT Broadway line (Nos. 1,2,3,9) and get off at "CHAMBERS STREET"; then walk four blocks east to Centre Street and turn left into Foley Square. BY BUS Take the M 101 or the M 102 down Lexington Avenue to City Hall, or take the M 15 down Second Avenue. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
