Download Confirm Jeff Sessions as Attorney General of the United States

Confirm Jeff Sessions
as
Attorney General of the
United States
Table of Contents
Biography………………………………………………………………………….1
What Sessions Can Do To Fight Crime………………………………………..4
The Situation Now: Prosecutions Down, Violent Crime Up…………...4
What Sessions Can Do To Reduce Violent Crime…………………….5
Restore Respect for and Partner with State and Local Law
Enforcement Officers……………………………………………….5
Increase Prosecutions of Criminals who Use Guns to Commit
Crimes………………………………………………………………..5
Take Out Drug Trafficking Gangs…………………………………6
Prosecute Illegal Aliens Who Repeatedly Violate the Law…….6
Law Enforcement Supports for Sessions………………………………………7
Law Enforcement, Prosecutorial, and Victims Organizations………...7
Five Former U.S. Attorney Generals and an FBI Director…………….7
25 State Attorneys General………………………………………………8
Additional Prosecutors and Law Enforcement Leaders……………….8
Bipartisan Legislation…………………………………………………………….9
Victims of Child Abuse Act (VOCA) Reauthorization Act of 2013……9
Crack Cocaine-Fair Sentencing Act of 2010……………………………9
Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act of 2006………...9
HEROES Act (2006)……………………………………………………..10
Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003…………………………………..10
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Military and Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act of 2000………………….10
Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act of 2000……………………………..11
Paul Coverdell National Forensic Sciences Act of 2000…………….11
Civil Rights………………………………………………………………………12
Sessions Obtains Execution of KKK Murderer Henry Hays…………12
Sessions Obtains Life Sentence for KKK Accomplice Tiger
Knowles…………………………………………………………………...13
Sessions Obtains Conviction of KKK Great Titan Bennie Jack
Hayes……………………………………………………………………...13
Sessions Helps Morris Dees Bankrupt the KKK in Alabama………..13
Sessions Fights to Protect the Voting Rights of African
Americans…………………………………………………………………14
Greene County Voter Fraud Prosecutor Wins Award From Janet
Reno……………………………………………………………………….18
Sessions Co-Authors Crack Cocaine-Fair Sentencing Act………….19
Sessions Praises Civil Rights Progress Reported in Shelby County
v. Holder..…………………………………………………………………19
African American Support for Senator Sessions………………………….…22
Following the Law, Not Politics…………………………………………….….26
Articles………………………………………………………………………...…27
Larry Thompson, Jeff Sessions Deserves to be the Next U.S.
Attorney General, Wash. Post, Jan. 9, 2017…………………...28
ii
Hans von Spokovsky, How Black Democrats Stole Votes in
Alabama and Jeff Sessions Tried to Stop It,
Conservativereview.com, Jan. 5, 2017………………….....…..30
Julia Hahn, Dissecting Slander: The Untold Story of Jeff Sessions’
‘Borking,’ Breitbart.com, Dec. 28, 2016…………………………35
Victoria Toensing, Jeff Sessions, Trump’s Pick for Attorney
General, Is a Good and Decent Man, FoxNews.com,
Jan. 3, 2017………………………………………………………..46
Carrie Severino, ‘Unreliable and Misleading’ Charges Against
Sessions, NationalReview.com, Bench Memos,
Dec. 22, 2016……………………………………………………...48
J. Gorman Houston, Setting the Record Straight on Jeff Sessions
and School Funding, RealClear Politics, Dec. 20, 2016………51
iii
Biography
Jeff Sessions was born in Selma, Alabama on December 24, 1946, and
grew up in Hybart, the son of a country store owner. Growing up, Sessions
was instilled with the core values – honesty, hard work, belief in God, and
parental respect – that define him today. In 1964, he became an Eagle
Scout and has received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. After
attending school in nearby Camden, Sessions worked his way through
Huntingdon College in Montgomery, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts
degree in 1969. He received a Juris Doctorate degree from the University
of Alabama in 1973.
Sessions served in the United States Army Reserve from 1973 to 1986,
ultimately attaining the rank of Captain. He still considers that period to be
one of the most rewarding chapters of his life.
Sessions’ interest in the law led to a distinguished legal career, first as a
practicing attorney in Russellville, Alabama, and then in Mobile, a place he
now calls home. Following a two-year stint as Assistant United States
Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama (1975-1977), Sessions was
nominated by President Reagan in 1981 and confirmed by the Senate to
serve as the United States Attorney for Alabama’s Southern District, a
position he held for 12 years. Sessions was elected Alabama Attorney
General in 1995, serving as the state’s chief legal officer until 1997, when
he entered the United States Senate.
As a senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sessions is a
leading advocate of confirming federal judges who follow the law and do
not legislate from the bench. Sessions led Republicans on the Judiciary
Committee from May 2009 through the end of the 111th Congress in 2010,
a period that included the two most recent Supreme Court nomination
proceedings.
During his time in the Senate, Sessions has put substantial energy toward
promoting law and order and empowering law enforcement officers and
prosecutors to fight dangerous crime in a fair manner. Sessions sponsored
legislation to shut down rogue internet pharmacies that distribute controlled
substances without proof of identity, age, or prescription, and has
supported cyber-crime centers to fight the proliferation of online child
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pornography. Together with the late Senator Ted Kennedy, Sessions
authored the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003, which helped reduce
and prevent sexual assault in prisons. In 2010, he joined with Senator Dick
Durbin to draft and to unanimously pass the Fair Sentencing Act, which
increased fairness in federal drug sentencing while also providing tougher
penalties for hardened drug traffickers.
A member of the Judiciary Committee and recently chairman of the
Immigration and National Interest Subcommittee, Senator Sessions has
been a leading advocate for an immigration system that operates in a
lawful manner and that serves the national interest.
Senator Sessions joined in leading efforts to make funding more equal in
the Ryan White CARE Act. The new legislation will bring much-needed
funding to Alabama, making health care more available for low-income
African American women, the fastest growing cohort with
HIV/AIDS. Continuing his interest in fighting crime, Sessions was the
author of the Paul Coverdell National Forensic Sciences Improvement Law
of 2000, which authorized badly needed funds for state and local crime labs
to reduce the backlog of ballistics, blood, and DNA tests. He also authored
the Emergency and Disaster Assistance Fraud Penalty Enhancement Act,
which passed unanimously in both chambers of Congress in 2008 and
helped deter fraud and theft in connection with major disaster relief efforts.
While serving in the United States Senate, Sessions has received
numerous awards including: the American Conservative Union Award for
Conservative Excellence; the Reserve Officers Association Minuteman of
the Year Award; the National Taxpayers Union Friend of the Taxpayer
Award; the Watchdogs of the Treasury Golden Bulldog Award; the National
Federation of Independent Business Guardian of Small Business Award;
the Coalition of Republican Environment Advocates Teddy Roosevelt
Environmental Award; and the Alabama Farmers Federation Service to
Agriculture Award.
Sessions has served as a lay leader and as a Sunday school teacher at his
family’s church, Ashland Place United Methodist Church, in Mobile. He
served as the Chairman of his church’s Administrative Board and has been
selected as a delegate for many years to the annual Alabama Methodist
Conference. Sessions and his wife, Mary Blackshear Sessions, originally of
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Gadsden, Alabama, have three children, Mary Abigail Reinhardt, Ruth
Sessions Walk, and Sam. They have seven granddaughters, Jane Ritchie,
Alexa, Gracie, Sophia, Hannah, Joanna, and Phoebe, as well as three
grandsons, Jim Beau, Lewis, and Nicholas.
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What Sessions Can Do To Fight Crime
The Nationwide Situation Now:
Prosecutions Down, Violent Crime Up
34.8% Decrease in Weapons-Related Convictions Since 2005
Source: Syracuse University TRAC, available at http://trac.syr.edu/tracreports/crim/409/.
Recent Increases in Violent Crime
Violent Crime Nationwide (2014-2015)
Murder and Non-negligent Manslaughter (2014-2015)
Shooting Deaths of Police Officers (2015-2016)
3.9%1
10.8%1
68%2
________________________________
1- FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 1A (2015).
2- Andrew V. Pestano, Number of police shot and killed in U.S. up 68 percent from
2015, UPI.com, Dec. 2, 2016.
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Chicago
Mick Dumke & Frank Main, THE WATCHDOGS: Arrests down 28 percent in Chicago
this year, Chicago Sun Times, Dec. 24, 2016.
What Sessions Can Do To Reduce Violent Crime
1. Restore Respect for and Partner with State and Local Law
Enforcement Officers: “We must re-establish and strengthen the
partnership between federal and local officers to enhance a common
and unified effort to reverse the current rising crime trends. I did this
as United States Attorney. I worked directly and continuously with
state and local law enforcement officials. If confirmed, it will be one of
my primary objectives.” (Sen. Jeff Sessions,Test. Before Judiciary
Committee, Jan. 10, 2017, p. 35.)
2. Increase Prosecutions of Criminals who use Guns to Commit
Crimes: “If I am confirmed, we will systematically prosecute criminals
who use guns in committing crimes. . . . Project Exile, which
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originated I think in Richmond, Virginia, which targeted felons and
other people who cannot legally own or possess firearms, was
enormously effective.” (Id. at 34, 101.)
3. Take Out Drug Trafficking Gangs: “We will partner with state and
local law enforcement to take down these major drug-trafficking
cartels and dismantle criminal gangs.” (Id. at 34.)
4. Prosecute Illegal Aliens Who Repeatedly Violate the Law: “We
will prosecute those who repeatedly violate our borders. It will be my
priority to confront these crises vigorously, effectively, and
immediately.” (Id.)
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Law Enforcement Supports Sessions
Law Enforcement, Prosecutorial, and Victims Organizations
Fraternal Order of Police— "We are very, very pleased with the decision
of President-elect Trump to tap Senator Sessions to be our nation's
next 'top cop,"' Canterbury says. "As a long time prosecutor, he is
and always will be a member of the law enforcement family and we
look forward to his leadership at the U.S. Department of Justice."
National Sheriffs Association— “Senator Sessions would be an
outstanding nominee for U.S. Attorney General. Sen. Sessions has
enormous integrity, fidelity to the rule of law, substantial experience
and a commitment to fairness and equal justice under the law. Those
are qualities America needs as its chief law enforcement officer to the
Federal Government.”
Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association
Major Cities Chiefs Association
Major County Sheriffs Association
National Narcotics Officers Associations Coalition
International Union of Police Organizations AFL-CIO
National Association of Police Organizations
Republican Attorneys General Association
National Association of Assistant U.S. Attorneys
National District Attorneys Association
Victims of Crime and Leniency, Montgomery, AL
Victims and Friends United, Phoenix, AZ
Five Former U.S. Attorneys General and an FBI Director
Michael Mukasey, Attorney General, 2007-2009
Alberto Gonzales, Attorney General, 2005-2007
John Ashcroft, Attorney General, 2001-2005
William Barr, Attorney General, 1991-1993; Deputy Attorney General,
1990-1991
Edwin Meese, III, Attorney General, 1985-1988
Louis Freeh, FBI Director, 1993-2001
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25 State Attorneys General
Luther Strange, Alabama
Pam Bondi, Florida
Jeff Landry, Louisiana
Mark Brnovich, Arizona
Alan Wilson, South Carolina
Leslie Rutledge, Arkansas
Ken Paxton, Texas
Brad Schimel, Wisconsin
Mike DeWine, Ohio
Scott Pruitt, Oklahoma
Bill Schuette, Michigan
Adam Paul Laxalt, Nevada
Curtis Hill, Indiana(A.G.-elect)
Tim Fox, Montana
Chris Carr, Georgia
Herbert Slatery, Tennessee
Derek Schmidt, Kansas
Patrick Morrisey, West Virginia
Sean Reyes, Utah
Marty Jakley, South Dakota
Doug Peterson, Nebraska
Wayne Stenehjem, North Dakota
Greg Zoeller, Indiana
Wasden, Idaho
Josh Hawley, Missouri (A.G.-elect)
Additional Prosecutors and Law Enforcement Leaders
Mark Filip, Deputy Attorney General, 2008-2009
Craig Morford, Deputy Attorney General, 2007-2008 (Acting)
Paul McNulty, Deputy Attorney General, 2006-2007
George Terwilliger III, Deputy Attorney General, 1991-1993
Larry Thompson, Deputy Attorney General, 2001-2003
Bill Bennett, Director of ONDCP, 1989-1990
John C. Lawn, Administrator, DEA, 1985-1990
Robert Martinez, Director of ONDCP, 1991-January 1993
Robert C. Bonner, Administrator, DEA, 1990-1993
John P. Walters, Director, ONDCP, 2001-2009
Karen Tandy, Administrator, DEA, 2003-2007
Peter B. Bensinger, Administrator, DEA, 1976-1981
Michele Leonhart, Administrator, DEA, 2010-2015
Bill Baxley, Democrat, former Alabama Attorney General who prosecuted
the first Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Bomber
Andrew Miller, Democrat, former Virginia Attorney General
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Bipartisan Legislation
Victims of Child Abuse Act (VOCA) Reauthorization Act of 2013—
Senator Sessions joined Senator Coons in introducing S. 1799, the VOCA
Reauthorization Act of 2013, on December 11, 2013. This legislation,
which was enacted on August 8, 2014, reauthorized VOCA programs to
develop and implement multidisciplinary child abuse investigation and
prosecution programs.
Crack Cocaine-Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. No. 111-220)—In
the 111th Congress, Senator Sessions and Senator Durbin worked to pass
S. 1789, the Fair Sentencing Act. This legislation reduced penalties for
crack possession, which many felt unfairly targeted African-Americans, and
brought these penalties more in line with the penalties for powder cocaine
possession. The Senate unanimously passed the legislation. The House
passed the legislation by voice vote. President Obama signed it into law on
August 3, 2010.
Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act of 2006 (Pub. L.
No. 109-415)—While serving on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions (HELP) Committee, Senator Sessions worked with his HELP
Committee colleagues during reauthorization of the Ryan White CARE Act
to correct inequities in its funding formula. Under the previous method of
allocation, just a few states with large metropolitan populations received the
overwhelming share of HIV/AIDS federal grant money. Working across the
aisle and with his House counterparts, Senator Sessions’ improvements
were included in the final bill, which passed overwhelmingly in the House
and unanimously in the Senate and was signed into law on December 19,
2006.
In the years following the passage of the reauthorization of the Ryan White
HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act of 2006 (and its subsequent
reauthorization in 2009), Senator Sessions continued to fight for equity in
funding for rural HIV/AIDS patients. In June 2012, he and Senator Hagan
jointly convened a roundtable hosted by AIDS United addressing strategies
for strengthening the inadequate HIV treatment infrastructure in the South.
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HEROES Act (Public Law No: 109-13)—On January 26, 2006, Senator
Sessions partnered with Senator Lieberman to introduce S. 77, the
Honoring Every Requirement of Exemplary Service (HEROES) Act. This
legislation expanded death benefits for the families of fallen combat
personnel from $12,000 to $100,000. It also increased the Servicemen’s
Group Life Insurance (SGLI) maximum benefit from $250,000 to
$400,000. This legislation was incorporated into the 2005 Emergency
Supplemental Appropriations Bill that passed both chambers of Congress
and became law on May 11, 2005.
Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (Pub. L. No. 108-79)—On July 21,
2003, Senator Sessions and Senator Kennedy introduced S. 1435, the
Prison Rape Elimination Act. This legislation heightened penalties for
prison rape, adopted national standards for preventing sexual assault in
prisons, and created a review panel in the Department of Justice to hold
public hearings on the operation of prisons with the highest and lowest
numbers of prison rapes. The bill also established a national clearinghouse
of information on preventing and investigating prison rape. It also provided
grant funding for states so that budgetary circumstances would not
compromise efforts to protect inmates and safeguard the communities to
which inmates return. This bill passed both chambers unanimously and
was signed onto law on September 4, 2003.
Military and Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act of 2000 (Pub. L. No. 106523)—On April 13, 1999, Senator Sessions introduced S. 768, the Military
and Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act along with Senator Zell Miller (D-GA).
This legislation—authored in response to concerns expressed by the
Department of Defense—placed military contractors under U.S. law by
amending the Uniform Code of Military Justice to make civilian employees
of the Department of Defense and its contractors subject to U.S. criminal
statutes when stationed abroad in support of a Department mission. It also
amended the federal criminal code to provide penalties for conduct
engaged in by these individuals that would constitute an offense punishable
by imprisonment for more than one year if the conduct had been engaged
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in the United States. This bill passed both chambers unanimously and was
signed into law on November 22, 2000.
Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act of 2000 (Public Law No. 106-185) –
Senator Sessions joined Senator Schumer to pass this law that raised the
government’s burden of proof from probable cause to preponderance of the
evidence and eliminated the requirement that a property owner post a cost
bond to retrieve his or her property. This act preserved the ability of law
enforcement to debilitate criminal enterprises while providing property
owners with procedural protections to reclaim property if it was not used in
the commission of a crime.
Paul Coverdell National Forensic Sciences Improvement Law of 2000
(Public Law No. 106-561) – Senator Sessions joined with Senator Durbin
to pass this law to authorize the use of Byrne Grants to improve the quality
and timeliness of forensic science services for criminal justice purposes.
Better funding for crime labs helped eliminate choke points in the
investigation and prosecution of crimes and also helped exonerate the
innocent.
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Civil Rights
Sessions Obtains Execution of KKK Murderer Henry Hays
In 1981 in Mobile, Alabama, the Ku Klux Klan ordered the murder of a
random African American man. KKK members Henry Hays and James
“Tiger” Knowles abducted nineteen-year-old African American Michael
Donald. They beat him, strangled him, cut his throat, and hung him from a
tree.
U.S. Attorney Sessions, the FBI, and the local district attorney investigated
the murder. Department of Justice Attorneys Barry Kowalski and Bert
Glenn worked on the case. (1986 Hr’g Tr. 235.)
When asked about Sessions’ work on the Donald case, Glenn testified that
“during the entire course of the investigation he [Sessions] has provided
unqualified support and cooperation to us and independently as an
individual who absolutely wanted to see that crime solved and prosecuted.”
(Id. 228) When asked if Sessions could claim credit as the prosecutor on
the case, Mr. Glenn responded “certainly.” (Id. at 129)
Bobby Eddy, chief investigator for the Mobile County District Attorney’s
office, testified: “Without his [Sessions’] cooperation, the state could not
have proceeded against Henry Hay[]s on a capital murder charge.” (Id.
499)
Barry Kowalksi, DOJ Civil Rights prosecutor, testified that there were
“problems in the evidence” at first. (1986 Hr’g Tr. at 225). He testified
further that investigators “were having difficulty learning exactly what
happened at the house where a number of Klansmen were, two of whom
were later proven to be involved in the murder. . . [O]ne of the problems
was that some of the Klansmen had been smoking marijuana that night and
they were having difficulty with their recollection of events.” (Id.)
Chris Galanos, Mobile County District Attorney in 1981, stated: “We
needed some horsepower, which the feds through Jeff Sessions provided.
Specifically, we needed the investigative power of the FBI and the power of
the federal grand jury. I reached out to him [Sessions] and he responded
12
‘tell me what you need and you’ll have it.’ ” (speaking to WPMI 15 in Mobile
on November 21, 2016).
“Henry Hay[]s was tried in state court by Mr. Galanos’ office, and found
guilty and was sentenced to die in the electric chair by Judge Kittrell. . . .”
(Id.)
As Attorney General of Alabama, Sessions later successfully argued to
uphold Hays’ death penalty. In 1997, five months after Sessions became a
Senator, Henry Hays died in Alabama’s electric chair. (Klan Member Put to
Death In Race Death, N.Y. Times, June 6, 1997.)
Sessions Obtains Life Sentence for KKK Accomplice Tiger Knowles
Tiger Knowles was Henry Hays’s accomplice in the murder of Michael
Donald. He gave testimony against Henry Hays Bobby Eddy, chief
investigator for the Mobile County District Attorney’s office, testified:
“Tiger Knowles pled guilty on a civil rights violation and received a life
sentence in Federal Prison.” (1986 Hr’g Tr. 502.)
Sessions Obtains Conviction of KKK Great Titan Bennie Jack Hayes
Sessions’ office successfully prosecuted Alabama Ku Klux Klan “Great
Titan” Bennie Jack Hays, whose son, Henry Hays, murdered Michael
Donald, a completely innocent African American young man. Bennie Jack
Hays attempted to defraud his home insurer in order to collect money to
pay for his son’s legal defense.
Sessions Helped Morris Dees Bankrupt the KKK in Alabama
Sessions and the district attorney cooperated with Morris Dees and the
Southern Poverty Law Center to bring a civil suit against the KKK. District
Attorney Galanos testified: “After the criminal cases were over, the
Southern Poverty Law Center took the evidence we had developed and
gave to them and they sued civilly and got a $7 million dollar verdict on
behalf of Ms. Donald.” (speaking to WPMI 15 in Mobile on November 21,
2016.)
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The $7 million civil judgment against the KKK in Alabama bankrupted the
organization, leading to its demise in the State. (“In Alabama, Jeff
Sessions Desegregated Schools and Got the Death Penalty for KKK
Murderer,” The Weekly Standard, November 18, 2016.)
Sessions Fought to Protect the Voting Rights of African Americans
The record demonstrates that Sessions’ U.S. Attorney’s office brought this
absentee ballot voter fraud case in Perry County at the request of African
American office holders to protect the voting rights of African Americans
whose absentee ballots were being manipulated in a Democratic primary
election. Sessions brought the case after receiving approval of the
investigation and the grand jury indictment from the Department of Justice
in Washington, DC.
 In 1983, a grand jury—the majority of which was African American—
asked in its official report for a federal investigation of voter fraud in
Perry County. Sessions concluded that a local investigation may
have been sufficient to end the problems and declined to investigate
further at that time. [1986 Hr’g Tr. 147-48, Grand Jury Report; id. at 272-73,
Test. of LaVonn Phillips, African America legal assistant to Perry County District
Attorney.]
 In 1984, two County officials, both African Americans, asked
Sessions for a federal investigation. They told Sessions that Albert
Turner was going to collect absentee ballots, change votes previously
cast for the incumbents to indicate support for his favored candidates,
and then mail them from the Marion, Alabama, post office the day
before the election. [Id. at 177, Test. of Jack Keeney, Deputy Assistant A.G.
Criminal Division, DOJ, Washington, D.C.]
 FBI agents observed Albert Turner mailing hundreds of absentee
ballots.
Postal service inspectors reported that many of the
envelopes containing the absentee ballots showed signs of
tampering. [Id. at 176.]
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 The Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. approved the
investigation. [Id. at 177.] The FBI obtained the ballots. For example,
the FBI showed Mary Shelton, a 31-year old African American
female, her ballot. The names of the incumbent African American
candidates had been crossed out and the ballots altered to indicate
support for the slate of African American candidates preferred by
Turner. [Id. at 20-21, FBI Form 302 for Mary Shelton; see attached ballot of
Mary Shelton.]
 The Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., approved the
indictment. [1986 Hr’g Tr. 177, Test. of Keeney.]
 The defendants offered to plead guilty to criminal misdemeanors.
[Panel Denies Judgeship for Sessions, Montgomery Advertiser, June 6, 1986.]
 The federal judge denied motions for acquittal because there was
sufficient evidence to send the case to the jury. [U.S. v. Turner, et al.,
Trial Tr. 369-70.]
 Turner admitted that he altered the ballots but said the five members
of the Shelton family had all agreed to his changes. The Sheltons all
denied agreeing to the changes or ever meeting with Turner about
changing their votes.
 At trial, the defendants were represented by an experienced team of
more than eight attorneys from across the country. They conducted a
vigorous and combative defense. Their efforts resulted in the
acquittal of Albert Turner, Sr., who was in the forefront of the Selma
to Montgomery march, and the other two defendants.
 The witnesses were under intense pressure to change their
testimony. Many did, but the six Sheltons and others did not. Mary
Shelton testified concerning the delivery of her absentee ballot to
Albert Turner, Sr. as follows:
Q: Is this your ballot?
A: It is mine but I didn’t mark anything out.
15
Q: Are there some names on that ballot that are marked out?
A: Right.
Q: Did you mark out those names?
A: No, I didn’t.
Q: Did you authorize anybody to mark those names out for you?
A: No.
(1985 U.S. v. Turner Trial Transcript, volume 2, pp. 4-5.)
Mary Shelton’s absentee ballot is shown on the next page.
16
Ballots in the Perry County Case Were Clearly Altered
17
 Defendant Albert Turner, Sr. was a civil rights hero in Selma who had
been on the bridge with Martin Luther King. He was very popular.
And the majority African American jury acquitted all three defendants.
 Craig Donsanto, the long-time head of the Election Crimes Unit inside
the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., who wrote DOJ’s
manual on the “Prosecution of Election Offenses,” was recently
interviewed about the Perry County case. He said: “No prosecutor
faced with the evidence seen by the grand jury would have failed to
take the case and go forward with the prosecution . . . I told Jeff
Sessions to go forward with the case.” Donsanto said that anyone
who claims this was a racist prosecution by Jeff Sessions is “a liar
and a political opportunist of the worst kind.” [Hans von Spakovsky, How
Black Democrats Stole Vote in Alabama . . . and Jeff Sessions Tried to Stop It,
Conservative Review, Jan. 5, 2017.]
 Albert Tuner, Jr., the son of two of the defendants, recently said that
Jeff Sessions “is not a racist.” “He was a prosecutor at the Federal
level with a job to do. He was presented with evidence by a local
District Attorney that he relied on, and his office presented the case.
That’s what a prosecutor does. I believe him when he says that he
was simply doing his job. . I believe he will be fair in his application of
the law and the Constitution; as such I support his nomination to be
the next Attorney General of the United States.” [Statement of Albert
Turner, Sr., Jan. 4, 2017.]
Greene County Voter Fraud Prosecutor Wins Award from Janet Reno
Sessions’ Office investigated voter fraud arising out of the 1994 election in
Greene County, Alabama. In 1997, indictments were issued charging two
government employee with multiple counts of ballot fraud. This case
illustrated how absentee ballots were stolen and use to cast fraudulent
votes. The offenders had used registered voters’ names to apply for
absentee ballots, used false addresses so that the ballots would be sent
directly to them, convinced some voters to sign absentee ballot affidavits
without actually filing ballots, and forged voters’ signatures on other
affidavits. As in U.S. v. Albert Turner, Sr., et al., the offenders claimed that
they were victims of “selective prosecution” because they were African
18
Americans and Democrats, but the Eleventh Circuit rejected that argument
and affirmed their convictions. In 1998, six more individuals were indicted
on 31 counts of voter fraud for their role in the 1994 election. They all
pleaded guilty. By the end of the investigation, three more offenders were
indicted and pleaded guilty, for a total of 11 convictions and -0- acquittals.
Alabama Assistant Attorney General Greg Biggs investigated the 1994
Greene County election while Sessions was the Alabama Attorney General
and thereafter. On October 1, 1999, Biggs, an Assistant U.S. Attorney, and
a retired FBI agent were honored in Washington, D.C., for their work on the
Greene County cases. The three were given special commendations by
Director Louis Freeh. U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno presented the
commendations on behalf of the Department of Justice at its 1999
Director’s Awards Ceremony. [Hans A. von Spakovsky, Absentee Ballot Fraud: A
Stolen Election in Greene County, Alabama, Heritage Foundation Legal Memorandum
No. 31, Sept. 5, 2008; Tommy Stevenson, Awards Handed Out in Voter Fraud Ca se,
Tuscaloosa News, Oct. 11, 1999; Louis J. Freeh Letter to Greg Biggs, Jan. 23, 1998.]
Sessions Co-Authors Crack Cocaine-Fair Sentencing Act
In 2010, Senator Sessions and Senator Durbin worked to pass the Fair
Sentencing Act. This law reduced penalties for crack possession, which
many felt unfairly targeted African-Americans, and brought these penalties
more in line with the penalties for powder cocaine possession.
Sessions Praises Civil Rights Progress Reported in Shelby County v.
Holder
In Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder, 133 S. Ct. 2612, 2625-26 (2013), the
Supreme Court concluded that the Voting Rights Act of 1965 had resulted
in dramatic progress in the States covered by section 5:
Nearly 50 years later [after enactment of the Voting
Rights Act], things have changed dramatically. . . . In the
covered jurisdictions, “[v]oter turnout and registration
rates now approach parity. Blatantly discriminatory
evasions of federal decrees are rare. And minority
candidates hold office at unprecedented levels.”
Northwest Austin, 557 U. S., at 202. The tests and
19
devices that blocked access to the ballot have been
forbidden nationwide for over 40 years. See §6, 84Stat.
315; §102, 89 Stat. 400.
Those conclusions are not ours alone. Congress said the
same when it reauthorized the Act in 2006, writing that
“[s]ignificant progress has been made in eliminating first
generation barriers experienced by minority voters,
including increased numbers of registered minority voters,
minority voter turnout, and minority representation in
Congress, State legislatures, and local elected offices.”
§2(b)(1), 120Stat. 577. The House Report elaborated that
“the number of African-Americans who are registered and
who turn out to cast ballots has increased significantly
over the last 40 years, particularly since 1982,” and noted
that “[i]n some circumstances, minorities register to vote
and cast ballots at levels that surpass those of white
voters.” H. R. Rep. No. 109–478, p. 12 (2006). That
Report also explained that there have been “significant
increases in the number of African-Americans serving in
elected offices”; more specifically, there has been
approximately a 1,000 percent increase since 1965 in the
number of African-American elected officials in the six
States originally covered by the Voting Rights Act. Id., at
18.
. . ..
Census Bureau data from the most recent election
indicate that African-American voter turnout exceeded
white voter turnout in five of the six States originally
covered by §5, with a gap in the sixth State of less than
one half of one percent. See Dept. of Commerce, Census
Bureau, Reported Voting and Registration, by Sex, Race
and Hispanic Origin, for States (Table 4b). The
preclearance statistics are also illuminating. In the first
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decade after enactment of §5, the Attorney General
objected to 14.2 percent of proposed voting changes.
H. R Rep. No. 109–478, at 22. In the last decade before
reenactment, the Attorney General objected to a mere
0.16 percent. S. Rep. No. 109–295, at 13.
Senator Sessions said that the Supreme Court’s decision “was good news,
I think, for the South, in that [there was] not sufficient evidence to justify
treating them disproportionately than say Philadelphia or Boston or Los
Angeles or Chicago.” [Molly Ball, No, the Voting Rights Act is Not Dead, The
Atlantic, June 28, 2013.]
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African American Support for Jeff Sessions
Condoleezza Rice, former Secretary of State—“I know that Senator
Sessions will uphold the laws of our great country and will work to
ensure that every person here in the United States is given the voice
that is deserved.” [Condoleeza Rice Ltr. to Sen. Chuck Grassley, Jan. 9,
2017.]
Tim Scott, U.S. Senator from South Carolina—“After his nomination, I
invited Senator Sessions to Charleston, South Carolina in December
of 2016 to meet with African-American pastors, law enforcement and
leaders of color. We had what both the attendees and I believe to be
a very productive conversation, which gave us all a clearer picture of
not only Jeff's policy positions, but what is in his heart." [Eugene Scott &
Dana Bash, Tim Scott Backs Jeff Sessions for Attorney General, CNN Politics,
Jan. 10, 2017.]
Larry Thompson, former Deputy Attorney General—“I have known
Senator Sessions for over 30 years and I am honored to consider him
a good friend. . . . Senator Sessions will seriously look at the role of
federal law enforcement to help our citizens achieve a greater sense
of personal safety in their homes and neighborhoods. This will be
especially important for some of our minority and low income citizens
against whom violent crime has a disproportionate impact.” [CQ
Congressional Transcripts, Congressional Hearings, Jan. 11, 2017, pp. 23-24.]
Gerald Reynolds, former Chairman of U.S. Civil Rights Commission—
“During my discussions with Senator Sessions and his staff, it was
clear the senator has a strong interest in ensuring our nation’s
antidiscrimination laws are vigorously enforced. Senator Sessions is
a man of great character and integrity with a commitment to fairness
and equal justice under the law. Based on these qualities, his deep
knowledge of the Department of Justice from his time with the U.S.
Attorney’s office and his decades of service on the Judiciary
Committee, I have no doubt he will be guided solely by fidelity to the
Constitution and the laws of our great country. I am honored to give
him my highest personal and professional recommendation.” [Gerald
A. Reynolds, Ltr. to Charles Grassley and Dianne Feinstein, Nov. 28, 2016.]
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Peter Kersanow, member U.S. Civil Rights Commission—“Senator
Sessions’ approach to civil rights matters, both in terms of his
legislative record and his other actions is consistent with mainstream,
textbook interpretation of rolled in statutory and constitutional
authority as well as governing precedent. . . . Sessions approach to
civil rights is consistent, is legally sound, enrichingly honest and has
appreciation and understanding of the historical basis for civil rights
laws.” [CQ Congressional Transcripts, Congressional Hearings, Jan. 11, 2017,
p. 10.]
Regina Benjamin, former U.S. Surgeon General--“I think he’ll be fine. I
consider him a friend. … At least he will listen as attorney general.”
“My hope is that he’ll do what is best for the American people.” [Seung
Min Kim & Nancy Cook, Sessions to African-Americans: Fear not, Politico, Dec.
18, 2016.]
William Smith, former Republican General Counsel, U.S. Senate Judiciary
Committee—“After 20 years of knowing Senator Sessions, I have not
seen the slightest evidence of racism because it does not exist.” “He
fought for sentencing reform, and not only did he fight for it he
accomplished it. He fought for civil rights. He prosecuted members of
the Ku Klux Klan.” [CQ Congressional Transcripts, Congressional Hearings,
Jan. 11, 2017, p. 101.]
Quinton Ross, Minority Leader of Alabama Senate—“We’ve talked about
things from civil rights to race relations and I think anyone – once you
gain a position like that, actually partisanship has to go aside
because you represent the United States and all people. So you just
have to have a global view on various issues. So just through our
conversations I feel confident [Sessions] will be an attorney general
that will look at it from all different perspectives to just do what’s right
for the citizens of the United States.” [Barbara Hollingsworth, Democrat
Leader of Alabama Senate: Sessions ‘Will Do What's Right' as AG,
CNSNews.com, Dec. 8, 2016.]
Willie Huntley, former Assistant U.S. Attorney in Sessions’ Office—“He
also assigned me to civil rights case and I would supervise all the civil
right cases that came through the office. During this time period, I can
recall where we successfully prosecuted a police officer that was
charged with excessive use of force. . . . At no point in time that I’ve
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known Jeff has he demonstrated any racial insensitivity.” [CQ
Congressional Transcripts, Congressional Hearings, Jan. 11, 2017, pp. 91-92.]
Jesse Seroyer, former Chief Investigator for Alabama Attorney General
Jeff Sessions and former U.S. Marshal—“I’ve known Jeff Sessions for
20 years. He’s a good and decent man. He believes in law and order
for all the people. . . . He’s the type of individual that I support for the
United States attorney general’s office because of my reputation and
his history with me as a person and the things that I’ve seen over the
years in Jeff Sessions.” [CQ Congressional Transcripts, Congressional
Hearings, Jan. 11, 2017, p. 96.]
Stephanie Billingslea, Alabama Assistant Attorney General—“I believe
that Jeff Sessions will protect the rights of all Americans. I fully
support his nomination as Attorney General. And I think he will do a
great job.” [www.confirmsessions.com.]
Bob Woodson, President of the Woodson Center—Recounted how
Sessions helped a rural, African American community in Lowndes
County, Alabama, get sanitation and economic development. “For the
past 50 years, Woodson told me, “purported spokespersons of the
black community have conducted annual parades through the route
to commemorate the march. But it seemed that they never looked left
or right to witness the poverty that surrounded them. They certainly
took no effort to alleviate it.” “Yet at the end of each annual parade,
the leaders typically returned to their speaking engagements and
elected official posts, putting thoughts of Lowndes County aside to
the following year,” Woodson added. “Many would be among the
cohort to rail against Sen. Session’s recent appointment. Yet, where
they did nothing, Sen. Sessions stood up and took action and
marshaled support to revitalize the desolate community.” [Carr
Sheffield, Calling Jeff Sessions “racist” conveniently ignores the work he’s done
for Alabama’s black community, Salon.com, Dec. 1, 2016.]
Catherine Flowers, Founder of the Alabama Center for Rural Enterprise—
“His actions have included organizing and personally attending
meetings in Washington to help us gain support for two tier one
suppliers to Hyundai to locate in Lowndes County; fighting to prevent
24
arrests of poor rural residents who could not afford onsite wastewater
treatment; supporting the Lowndes County Interpretative Center
which tells the history of the Selma to Montgomery march; and more
recently offering to attend a design charrette that was held to seek
more sustainable solutions to the wastewater problem. I have no
doubt that he will continue to seek opportunities to reach out and
establish a dialogue with all races and ethnic groups in search of
solutions to our pressing problems. As an African American woman, I
see this as the only way forward for our country. Therefore I support
the confirmation of Senator Jeff Sessions for United States Attorney
General.” [Ltr. from Catherine Flowers to Charles E. Grassley, Chairman
Senate Judiciary Committee, Dec. 18, 2016.]
25
Following the Law Not Politics

Although Sessions supports the death penalty, he agreed to drop the
death sentence of Terry Lee Ponder when he determined that the
“aggravating circumstances” standard for applying the death penalty
was not properly met for the convicted double murderer. For this
principled action, he was severely criticized. [Ponder v. State, 688 So. 2d
280 (Ala. Crim. App. 1996).]
 Although he had been politically supported Republican Governor Guy
Hunt, Sessions, when he became Alabama’s Attorney General,
argued to uphold on appeal Hunt’s conviction for a violation of
Alabama’s ethics law. [Sessions Not Celebrating Win in Hunt Case,
Montgomery Advertiser, August 31, 1996; Hunt v. Tucker, 93 F.3d 735 (1996).]
 Republican Attorney General Sessions declined to prosecute former
Alabama Insurance Commissioner James Heywood Dill (a
Democrat). Sessions received criticism for not doing so, but he did
not prosecute because he did not believe that the evidence showed a
criminal violation. While the local district attorney did try and convict
Dill, his conviction was overturned in full by the Alabama Court of
Criminal Appeals that concluded “[n]one of these activities”
“fall within the applicable statutory definition” of the crime. [Dill
Convicted; Probe Continues, Birmingham News (Alabama) February 15, 1997;
Taking His Lumps: Judge Tough on Jeff Sessions, Montgomery Advertiser, July
18, 1997; Dill v. State, 723 So. 2d 787 (Ala. Crim. App. 1998).]

Republican U.S. Attorney Sessions prosecuted Alabama Republican
Party Vice Chairman John S. Gonas, Jr., who pled guilty to
concealing knowledge of a cocaine deal. [News Briefs: Informant Fails to
Show for Hearing, Birmingham News, May 14, 1993.]
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Articles
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