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Why is he being charged in the Eastern District of Virginia when the alleged crime was perpetrated in Hawaii? Shouldn't any prosecution be under the original ju

Why is he being charged in the Eastern District of Virginia when the alleged crime was perpetrated in Hawaii? Shouldn't any prosecution be under the original jurisdiction of the District of Hawaii/9th Circuit? Amendment VI In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed[...]

jdp23 13y ago
From the article: The complaint was filed in the Eastern District of Virginia, a jurisdiction where Snowden’s former employer, Booz Allen Hamilton, is headquartered and a district with a long track record of prosecuting cases with national security implications.
- charonn0 13y ago
  Yes, I read that part. But the Sixth amendment says nothing about where the defendant's employer is headquartered or the convenience of the prosecutors, judges, etc. To me, the choice of Virginia as the original jurisdiction is clearly unconstitutional. Also, Rule 18 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure states: Unless a statute or these rules permit otherwise, the government must prosecute an offense in a district where the offense was committed.
  - dllthomas 13y ago
    It's quite possible a statute or those rules permit otherwise...
    - charonn0 13y ago
      Perhaps, but that still wouldn't address the problem of the sixth amendment.
      - dllthomas 13y ago
        Agreed.
  - baddox 13y ago
    It's pointless to reference US law or an amendment to the Constitution. If that were relevant, none of these events would have occurred.
  - dragonwriter 13y ago
    The complaint does not allege offenses occurred in Hawaii.
  - o0-0o 13y ago
    I believe since he stole the laptops from his employer there, they can charge him there. At least, this theory may explain why that bogus little charge was included.
malandrew 13y ago
Completely agree, however, it may also depend on his employment contract with Booz Allen Hamilton. For example, many tech companies are Delaware C-corps but all legal issues involving employees are resolved in the state of employment, i.e. California in most cases. It would be great if a BAH employee can share details on the jurisdiction of disputes, arbitration and other legal issues in their employment contract.
- dragonwriter 13y ago
  Any such contract clauses would only affect civil litigation between BAH and the employee based on the contract, not effect proper venue for criminal cases brought against the employee by the government.
dragonwriter 13y ago
> Why is he being charged in the Eastern District of Virginia when the alleged crime was perpetrated in Hawaii? It wasn't. Per the complaint [1], the alleged offenses occurred in the county of "Not Applicable" in the District of "Not Applicable". Which would appear to charge offenses that did not occur within any judicial district, which, IIRC, can be charged in any US District Court. [1] http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/edward-snowden-complaint-unsealed-93181.html http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/edward-snowden-complai...

jdp23 13y ago

From the article: The complaint was filed in the Eastern District of Virginia, a jurisdiction where Snowden’s former employer, Booz Allen Hamilton, is headquartered and a district with a long track record of prosecuting cases with national security implications.

charonn0 13y ago
Yes, I read that part. But the Sixth amendment says nothing about where the defendant's employer is headquartered or the convenience of the prosecutors, judges, etc. To me, the choice of Virginia as the original jurisdiction is clearly unconstitutional. Also, Rule 18 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure states: Unless a statute or these rules permit otherwise, the government must prosecute an offense in a district where the offense was committed.
- dllthomas 13y ago
  It's quite possible a statute or those rules permit otherwise...
  - charonn0 13y ago
    Perhaps, but that still wouldn't address the problem of the sixth amendment.
    - dllthomas 13y ago
      Agreed.
- baddox 13y ago
  It's pointless to reference US law or an amendment to the Constitution. If that were relevant, none of these events would have occurred.
- dragonwriter 13y ago
  The complaint does not allege offenses occurred in Hawaii.
- o0-0o 13y ago
  I believe since he stole the laptops from his employer there, they can charge him there. At least, this theory may explain why that bogus little charge was included.

malandrew 13y ago

Completely agree, however, it may also depend on his employment contract with Booz Allen Hamilton. For example, many tech companies are Delaware C-corps but all legal issues involving employees are resolved in the state of employment, i.e. California in most cases. It would be great if a BAH employee can share details on the jurisdiction of disputes, arbitration and other legal issues in their employment contract.

dragonwriter 13y ago
Any such contract clauses would only affect civil litigation between BAH and the employee based on the contract, not effect proper venue for criminal cases brought against the employee by the government.

dragonwriter 13y ago

> Why is he being charged in the Eastern District of Virginia when the alleged crime was perpetrated in Hawaii? It wasn't. Per the complaint [1], the alleged offenses occurred in the county of "Not Applicable" in the District of "Not Applicable". Which would appear to charge offenses that did not occur within any judicial district, which, IIRC, can be charged in any US District Court. [1] http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/edward-snowden-complaint-unsealed-93181.html http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/edward-snowden-complai...