Chad Haber faces two felony charges for petition perjury. Since he says he has no money and is listed as representing himself on the Hughes County grand jury indictment, I’d like to offer some free legal advice on how to keep the law from falling on him like a ton of bricks.
The case against him is as open and shut as it was against his wife, convicted felon Annette Bosworth. So serious legal advice has to focus not on avoiding the inevitable guilty verdict but on minimizing the sentence.
While reviewing the few court documents posted on Haber’s upcoming October 26 court appearance, I also paged through the documents available at the courthouse on Bosworth’s trial and sentencing. The state’s presentencing memorandum included several exhibits intended to support the state’s argument that Bosworth deserved a stiff sentence.
The state’s presentencing exhibits included images and transcripts from the wild online content that Peter Waldron and others generated on Bosworth’s behalf prior to trail and sentencing in hopes of swaying the public and the judge. Among the most provocative were images and text from the Waldron video that compared Bosworth to Jesus, complete with stigmata and the sensationalist statement that “Dr. Bosworth’s life may depend on these videos reaching millions of Americans before it’s too late.” Such wild propaganda from Bosworth’s camp actually played into the state’s hands, helping them portray as a confabulator who did not deserve leniency. And indeed, the court denied Bosworth the suspended imposition of sentence she requested.
Recommendation #1, Mr. Haber: discourage your allies from waging a propaganda war before trial and sentencing. It will only make you look worse.
The state’s presentencing exhibits also included this June 30, 2014, letter from Division of Consumer Protection director Jody Swanson to Bosworth and Haber’s attorney at the time, Joel Arends. (I know, Chad, you say you’re going to grind Joel’s bones to make your bread, but calm down and listen a moment.)
As we know, Haber and Bosworth’s non-profit (hee hee!) Preventive Health Strategies sold numerous raffle tickets in 2012 and maybe 2013 and never held drawings for the prizes. The Attorney General’s office was able to shake five refunds of thousand-dollar land tickets out of PHS, but as we know from Attorney General Marty Jackley’s testimony before the 2015 Legislature, at least thirteen ticketholders remain unrefunded. The June 30, 2014, letter from DCP doesn’t mention Bosworth by name; it mentions Haber and PHS employees confirming receipt of payment, then stonewalling refund requests. But the state considered Bosworth’s association with this raffle scam relevant to determining her sentence. It will likely do the same with Haber.
Recommendation #2, Mr. Haber: refund all those ticketholders immediately. You say you have no money, but you found money this summer to send your kids on overseas trips and your family on another posh fishing trip to Alaska. A three-day Alaska fishing package can run about $4,000 per person. Those trips documented by Bosworth this summer for the five people pictured could easily have costs more than the $13,200 in outstanding refunds itemized in the DCP letter. If you want to keep the judge from imposing the maximum sentence, you had better dig up another couple bags of money and clear those raffle claims before the first gavel raps.
Of course, Haber could save himself and the public all sorts of money, follow the lead of ultimately sensible petition fraudster Clayton Walker, and plead guilty. Haber’s press conference yesterday suggests that Haber remains determined to do the absolute opposite of anyone’s good advice. Oh well. Don’t say I didn’t try to help, Chad.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but this may not even be the end of Haber’s legal problems. Once this case is wrapped up doesn’t he still need to deal with the fact he failed to file campaign finance reports for his failed run for Attorney General?
The good news for Chad is that it won’t be difficult to fit all of these court appearances into his schedule since he doesn’t have a day job to worry about.
Maximum sentence means maximum victimhood for the grifters and maximum fund raising potential from maximum numbers of unwitting boobs for the grifters.
This is just a bump in the road. Haber will see some striped sunlight, but he probably has a few scams left in him after the prison door opens.
Sounds like Annette’s sister Peggy Craig is neck deep in the raffle scams. Someone better keep an eye on that one too.
I have spent a little time near and among the Habers. Annette is (must I say, “I think…” ?) is a very nice person with little realization of the nastiness of the world out there. Chad, with whom I have spent less time, has a kind of sociopathic air about him. (Must I say, “that’s my opinion, for whatever value that has”?) They both seem to have a disconnect from reality in their assessment of their situations.
The “I love Jesus” act (well, maybe it’s not an act) has served them well in fundraising, but it doesn’t carry much weight with most judges.
As of this moment, I think Annette has lost her right to call herself an MD in the USA. There’s been a massive expenditure of funds, by somebody, for lawyers. Chad is looking at possible imprisonment. I am assuming the evidence I have seen is accurate. This is some crazy shit.
I am mystified by commission of crimes inspired by arrogance. Wait, no, I guess I shouldn’t be, should I?
Bob, is Annette taller than you? When will you see the Habers again?
Two words: Dick Wadhams.
They are both better people than grudznick.
Dick Wadhams is grudznick?
wadhams background (wipes off hands), a bit dated, but steve jarding pops up, as does:
(karl rove: met him in austin while gant was doing his thing here)
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2006/0609.sinderbrand.html
Craig, you are correct: he faces a financial penalty for that unfiled campaign finance info that is probably bigger than any money he raised last year for his “campaign.”
But hey, this perjury trial may get Chad a job… at Pheasantland Industries.
Hey, Pheasantland industries!! They put out some quality stuff. At the ASBSD conference, they were handing out some mighty fine yardsticks. Not the flimsy ones you get at the state fair – these are 1/4 inch thick knuckle cracking monsters! Every K-12 teacher should be equipped with one of those.
I appreciate a good yardstick… although given how much I wave my arms when I speak, I don’t dare hang onto one as a pointer while lecturing. Children could be harmed.
Making yardsticks could be Chad’s first real job in years.