Gavel Gavel

Part 3. Thomas and Lydia welcome back criminal defense attorney Liz Skeen to break down the Tompkins County DA's decision not to prosecute the Cornell Chi Phi case, line by line. Why did the DA's own press release say his office "confirmed" with campus police that there was no crime, instead of investigating it themselves? What does a six page, hand-corrected witness statement actually prove, and why did nobody ever sit down with Jane Doe to ask a single follow-up question? Liz walks through New York's three degrees of rape, the strange voluntary-versus-involuntary intoxication rule, and whether a motion to remove Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor has any real teeth. Content note for sexual assault throughout. Patrons at patreon.com/gavelpod get episodes early and ad-free!

Disturbing Snapchat messages involving a 57-person fraternity group chat become the centerpiece of a lawsuit. The discussion examines alleged drugging and sexual assault, delayed reporting, fraternity culture, Cornell’s Title IX response, and claims against the university and affiliated organizations. It also explores the complaint’s many legal theories and the online backlash that followed.

Thomas and Lydia examine a 101-page lawsuit alleging sexual assault at Cornell’s Chi Phi fraternity. They trace the university’s long history of Greek-life safety concerns, reconstruct the night described in the complaint, and explore how New York’s consent and intoxication laws shaped the decision not to bring criminal charges. They also preview the Snapchat evidence to come.

Part 2! Thomas, Lydia, and Matt return to the Broadview grand jury transcript, with Lydia in the role of a lifetime as prosecutor Sheri Mecklenburg. What happens when a juror says the case is a crock of shit, and what does the DOJ's own grand jury manual say should happen next? Then Mecklenburg's new motion to intervene arrives with a surprising detail about who at the top was paying attention. Why did the defense open their response with a "scrivener's error"? And what does her resignation letter say that her court filing doesn't? Plus: a hearing is coming. Is she a credible whistleblower, a prosecutor covering her own tracks, or both? Cases discussed: United States v. Broadview protest defendants (N.D. Ill.), grand jury misconduct motions AUSA Sheri Mecklenburg's Motion for Leave to Intervene Defendants' response supporting intervention Patrons at patreon.com/gavelpod get episodes early and ad-free!

Back to the Broadview Six! Thomas, Lydia, and Matt return to the case that gave us one of our favorite transcript moments of all time, because its most memorable character is suddenly all over the news. Sheri Mecklenburg has left the Department of Justice, and she has a lot to say about why. Her letter is titled "re my forced retirement." Her motion asks the judge to let her into a case she no longer works on. And she is quoting from a DOJ manual you are not allowed to read. Is she a whistleblower, a scapegoat, or something in between? And should anyone be welcoming her to the resistance? We read the filings, then rewind the tape to see whether her story holds up. Cases discussed: United States v. Rabbitt et al. (the Broadview Six, N.D. Ill.) Defendants' Motion to Appoint Special Counsel for Criminal Contempt Mecklenburg Motion for Leave to Intervene Patrons at patreon.com/gavelpod get episodes early and ad-free!

Part 2 of Operation Puppet Master! Thomas, Lydia, and Matt dig into the actual discovery documents from the Minneapolis ICE-protest indictment, and what they find is something else. Undercover HSI agents spent months infiltrating boxing classes, church meetings, Zoom panels, and legal observer trainings looking for the Antifa puppet masters, and their own memos keep reaching the same conclusion. Then come the financial subpoenas against major national unions. What did three years of wire-transfer records turn up? Plus: a grand jury agent swears under oath that every single person they investigated had a criminal predicate. The documents they just read beg to differ. All documents that Matt bought from PACER are available to patrons! Cases discussed: United States v. Sant et al. (Operation Puppet Master, D. Minn.) Defense Rule 16 / Brady-Giglio Discovery Motion National Security Presidential Memorandum 7

Part 1! Thomas, Lydia, and Matt dig into United States v. Sant et al., a federal indictment of Minneapolis anti-ICE protesters produced by something the government actually named Operation Puppet Master. The conspiracy map names a boxing club, a biking club, and several major unions. The overt acts include renting a U-Haul, exchanging approximately 20 Signal calls, and being nice to someone named Sam. Matt was in Minneapolis in January and has some thoughts on what these people are actually doing. Part 2 drops the undercover HSI memos. Patrons can hear it right now and also access all of the documents that Matt paid for and downloaded for our benefit. Cases discussed: United States v. Sant et al. (D. Minn.), DAMN indictment United States v. Rabbitt et al. (Broadview protest case) United States v. Arnold et al. (the Prairieland protesters) If you enjoy our work, please consider leaving a 5-star review! You can always email questions, comments, and leads to [email protected]. Please pretty please consider becoming a patron at patreon.com/wherethereswoke!

Thomas and Lydia are joined by MJ Morley to dig into the Andrew and Tristan Tate extradition proceedings now playing out in a Miami federal courtroom. Britain has charged them with 59 offenses across seven complainants. Romania has its own investigation (we think?) And the Tates, freshly arrested on U.S. soil, want out on bail while they wait. The only problem: their own social media posts are the government's best evidence. So their lawyers filed briefs arguing that the passports, the supercars, the yacht, the trillionaire boasts, and even "Top G" himself were... a performance. MJ walks through the filing. Cases discussed: United States v. Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate (extradition/bail proceedings, S.D. Fla.) UK charges: CPS decides to prosecute Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate Romania investigation (DIICOT) Patrons at patreon.com/gavelpod get episodes early and ad-free!

Liz Skeen, a New York defense attorney experienced in high-profile criminal cases, analyzes Luigi Mangione’s federal guilty plea and its impact on New York’s case. They explore double-jeopardy protections, the surviving federal and state charges, the abandoned emotional-disturbance defense, sentencing before Judge Margaret Garnett, and the mitigation strategy that could shape Mangione’s future.

They finish a blow-by-blow reading of Judge Kathleen Williams' scorched-earth takedown of a massive settlement tied to Trump's tax-return lawsuit. Discussion covers alleged collusion, sweeping immunity claims, and the court's sanctions framework. They react to a surprise same-day appeal filing and unpack who signed and what might come next.