10/04/2007
Judge: Idaho Senator Larry Craig Cannot Withdraw Guilty Plea
A Hennepin County, Minnesota judge has rejected Larry Craig's request to withdraw his guilty plea for disorderly conduct stemming from his arrest in a Minneapolis airport men's room in June:
"In a 27-page order, Judge Charles Porter found Craig had entered the guilty plea "accurately, voluntarily and intelligently" and it was too late to withdraw his admission. Craig, who says he is not gay, argued that he entered the plea without legal advice, fearing that the allegations would be made public. Once his plea became public, the Idaho Republican announced he would resign at the end of September -- but then said he would await Porter's ruling before deciding whether to leave the Senate. The judge heard arguments September 26 concerning Craig's June 11 arrest for allegedly making sexual overtures to an undercover male police officer in an airport men's restroom."
Now the question remains, will Craig step down? Craig could hypothetically appeal the decision, according to the Idaho Statesman's Dan Popkey, and put in motion a court process that will allow him to stay in office until the end of his term:
"...the likely scenario is Craig will head to the Minnesota Court of Appeals. He can expect oral argument within two or three months after filing his challenge to an unsatisfactory ruling. An appellate decision would come within another 90 days, extending Craig's battle to spring. Next step: the Minnesota Supreme Court, with arguments to come two or three months after a second appeal. The average time between argument and a decision is 4› months. That gets Craig to term's end in January 2009. At that point, assuming his guilty plea stands, Craig can say he fought the good fight. Meantime, he will have remained in office, continued to collect his salary, and boost his pension that's based on years of service."
We'll likely know soon.
UPDATE: Craig issues statement...
Sphere: Related ContentPosted 2:05 PM EST by Andy in Idaho, Larry Craig, Minneapolis, News, Republican Party | Permalink
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You NEVER tire of posting his mugshot. Love it.
Posted by: Michael | Oct 4, 2007 2:08:24 PM
Ha, Ha !
Posted by: Robert In WeHo | Oct 4, 2007 2:16:49 PM
Lindsey Graham (R-SC) must be very sad. He was (reportedly) the only Senator to 'openly embrace' Sen. Craig on his return to the Senate floor. My personal advice to Mr. Graham-stay out of public bathrooms (from now on).
Posted by: Andrew | Oct 4, 2007 2:19:44 PM
Larry Craig is a hypocrit and a scumbag. And while I don't believe he should be able to withdraw his guilty plea, my opinion is that he should have never been charged with a crime in the first place.
Posted by: peterparker | Oct 4, 2007 2:22:08 PM
this guy is like a bad cold you can't seem to skake.
Posted by: nic | Oct 4, 2007 2:23:07 PM
That's exactly how 99.999% of these motions go.
Posted by: anon (gmail.com) | Oct 4, 2007 2:46:31 PM
I believe Craig when he says he is not gay. And, I am grateful that he is not gay. A gay man is comfortable with himself and has come to terms with his sexuality.
Craig, on the other hand, is a self-loathing, delusional, deeply closeted male who has anonymous sexual encounters with other males. He is the embodiment of how destructive the closet remains. He votes against our interests as a way of punishing himself.
Graham, BTW, is cut from the same cloth. Both were notorious in DC for their public bathroom solicitations. Unfortunately, their sexual partners were also not out and proud gay men but of the same self-hating ilk.
What a pity that Craig will eventually resign and keep his highly lucrative pension and health plan paid for by we citizens who have no voice in the matter.
Posted by: rudy | Oct 4, 2007 2:47:22 PM
Looks like we might enjoy the company of ol' Larry in Union Station for a little bit longer!
Tap, Tap, Tap, Larry!
Posted by: dc-20008 | Oct 4, 2007 2:50:24 PM
This is good news.
Go home now, Larry.
And keep your hands to yourself.
Posted by: Cramps | Oct 4, 2007 2:56:39 PM
Larry clearly needs a visit to the Man Cave.
Posted by: Becks07 | Oct 4, 2007 3:04:32 PM
Well, if he doesn't resign the Republicans will have to have him assasinated. How are they going to use the evil homos as a political issue, when they have Lavatory Larry still in the party.
You tea room homos will never listen to us public park homos--come to the great outdoors! Enjoy nature! But please throw your condoms in the public trash can. In the daytime, little children may come through and think they're baloons.
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | Oct 4, 2007 3:14:42 PM
"Tap, tap, tap, your troubles away!"
Posted by: TOMMY | Oct 4, 2007 3:33:22 PM
@ DERRICK -- But...but..the trannies!!!!
Posted by: becks07 | Oct 4, 2007 3:41:23 PM
So if Craig takes this to trial, will the jury go on a field trip to the airport mens room stalls?
Posted by: Johnny Lane | Oct 4, 2007 3:44:46 PM
i wonder how many jurors have already been to those stalls....
Posted by: dc-20008 | Oct 4, 2007 3:47:20 PM
Why are they still saying "allegedly"? Innocent until guilty ends with a guilty plea.
I still don't think he should have ever been charged with a crime. But since he's fucked by his own stupidity, let the bastard burn!
Posted by: Gregg | Oct 4, 2007 4:27:39 PM
"...the trannies."
Yeah, Becks, but could you imagine the senator's reaction had he been tap tap tappin' his Florsheim and a trannies pump came sliding over next to it. The Republicans would have never had to deal with this mess.
'Course with all the discrimination against transgendered people, the tranny couldn't have gotten to the stall before the goddamned FASCIST police came in to get her, and all hell broke loose! Can't even take a piss.
Tranny haters!
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | Oct 4, 2007 5:02:48 PM
No sex occurred. No genitals were touched. No bodily fluids were exchanged. A toe tapped another toe, either intentionally or unintentionally. The REAL issue here is entrapment and everyone seems to be ignoring this as they gloat over Sen. Craig's misfortune. Yes, he is probably a self-loathing, closet-case. Yes, he probably deserves to get his comeuppance after years of blatantly voting against any legal recognition that gays and lesbians, born in this country, are citizens with the same rights and liberties as anyone else. But, it's the entrapment issue that should make all of us take pause. If all is necessary is to tap someone's foot with your foot to get yourself busted for "solicitation", either we have digressed as to what "lewd" behavior is or none of us are paying attention and the police state has arrived. Craig was entrapped. That is NOT a good thing--for any of us.
Posted by: mike | Oct 5, 2007 5:37:36 AM
No sex occurred. No genitals were touched. No bodily fluids were exchanged. A toe tapped another toe, either intentionally or unintentionally. The REAL issue here is entrapment and everyone seems to be ignoring this as they gloat over Sen. Craig's misfortune. Yes, he is probably a self-loathing, closet-case. Yes, he probably deserves to get his comeuppance after years of blatantly voting against any legal recognition that gays and lesbians, born in this country, are citizens with the same rights and liberties as anyone else. But, it's the entrapment issue that should make all of us take pause. If all is necessary is to tap someone's foot with your foot to get yourself busted for "solicitation", either we have digressed as to what "lewd" behavior is or none of us are paying attention and the police state has arrived. Craig was entrapped. That is NOT a good thing--for any of us.
Posted by: mike | Oct 5, 2007 5:37:44 AM