Trials of Judicial Shame  - The Who's Who Tragedy

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5280
1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - X
3 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, : CR 96 1016(S-1)
4 v. : U.S. Courthouse
5 Uniondale, New York BRUCE W. GORDON, WHO'S WHO
6 WORLD WIDE REGISTRY, INC., : STERLING WHO'S WHO, INC.,
7 TARA GARBOSKI, ORAL FRANK : OSMAN, LAURA WEITZ, ANNETTE
8 HALEY, SCOTT MIChaveLSON, : and MARTIN
9 REFFSIN, :    TRANSCRIPT OF TRIAL
10 Defendants. :February 23, 1998
11 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - X 9:28 o'clock a.m.

12 BEFORE:

13 HONORABLE ARTHUR D. SPATT, U.S.D.J. and a jury
14 APPEARANCES:
15 For the Government: ZACHARY W. CARTER
16 United States Attorney One Pierrepont Plaza
17 Brooklyn, New York 11201
By: RONALD G. WHITE, ESQ.
18 CECIL SCOTT, ESQ. Assistant U.S. Attorneys
19 For the Defendants: NORM AN TRABULUS, ESQ.
20 For Bruce W. Gordon
170 Old Country Road, Suite 600
21 Mineola, New York 11501

22 EDWARD P. JENKS, ESQ.
For Who's Who Worldwide
23 Registry, Inc. and
Sterling Who's, Who, Inc.
24 332 Willis Avenue
Mineola, New York 11501
25
(cont'd)


HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
5281

1 APPEARANCES (cont'd):

2 GARY SCHOER, ESQ. For Tara Garboski
3 6800 Jericho Turnpike
Syosset, New York 11791
4
ALAN M. NELSON, ESQ.
5 For Oral Frank Osman
3000 Marcus Avenue
6 Lake Success, New York 11042

7 WINSTON LEE, ESQ.
For Laura Weitz
8 319 Broadway
New York, New York 10007
9
MARTIN GEDULDIG, ESQ.
10 For Annette Haley
400 South Oyster Bay Road
11 Hicksville, New York 11801

12 JAMES C. NEVILLE, ESQ.
For Scott Michavelson
13 225 Broadway
New York, New York 10007
14
THOMAS F.X. DUNN, ESQ.
15 For Mr Shortcuts ,
150 Nassau Street
16 New York, New York 10038

17 JOHN S. WALLENSTEIN, ESQ.
For Martin Reffsin 18 215 Hilton Avenue
Hempstead, New York 11551
19

20 Court Reporter: HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR
United States District Court
21 Two Uniondale Avenue
Uniondale, New York 11553
22 (516) 485-6558

23
Proceedings recorded by mechanical stenography, transcript
24 produced by Computer-Assisted Transcription
25

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
5282

1 M O R N I N G S E S S I O N

2

3 THE COURT: Good morning, members of the jury.

4 Have a seat.

5 We are almost starting a minute before 9:30, not

6 quite. We didn't quite make it. Not due to any fault on

7 your part. I am the one at fault, as always. Other

8 matters.

9 Are we interrupting the previous witness?

10 MS. SCOTT: Yes, your Honor. We have another

11 witness ready.

12 THE COURT: Members of the jury, we are going to

13 interrupt the testimony of Steven Watstein and take

14 another witness.

15 Incidentally, alternate juror number one,

16 apparently you have a doctor's appointment on Wednesday,

17 and you wish to leave 15 minutes early on Wednesday.

18 A reasonable request, which is granted.

19 Where is the witness?

20 MS. SCOTT: We are waiting for him, your Honor.

21 He disappeared for a couple of minutes.

22 THE COURT: We also have a new deputy courtroom

23 clerk this morning. I want to introduce Ilene. Not that
24 I fired my former. She is away for a week. Not
25 withstanding my efforts, and I practically granted a

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
5283

1 preliminary injunction preventing her from going. But she

2 left anyway.

3 JUROR NO. 4: She went to rainy Florida.

4 MS. SCOTT: The government calls Charles Smith.

5 THE CLERK: Please stand for the oath.

6

7 C H A R L E S S M I T H,

8 called as a witness, having been first

9 duly sworn, was examined and testified

10 as follows:

11

12 THE CLERK: Please be seated.

13 Can you state and spell your full name for the

14 record.

15 THE WITNESS: Charles Smith, S M I T H.

16 THE COURT: You may proceed.

17

18 DIRECT EXAMINATION

19 BY MS. SCOTT:

20 Q Good morning, Mr. Smith.

21 A Good morning.

22 Q Can you tell us where you live?

23 A Jacksonville, Illinois.
24 Q And what do you do for a living?
25 A Self-employed.

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 Q How are you employed?

2 A Nursing home business, methane gas, for development

3 of methane gas energy project, and organic fertilizer. We

4 are working on some special metal recovery projects.

5 Q These are businesses you are starting up?

6 A Businesses I have been involved in like 12 or fifteen

7 years developing.

8 THE COURT: I didn't get where you are from,

9 Mr. Smith? Sorry.

10 THE WITNESS: Jacksonville, Illinois.

11 THE COURT: Jacksonville, Illinois, as opposed to

12 Jacksonville, Florida.

13 THE WITNESS: Yes, and Jacksonville, Texas and

14 Jacksonville, Illinois, yes. Our mail goes to all those

15 places.

16 THE COURT: I didn't know there were so many

17 Jacksonvilles.

18 THE WITNESS: A tremendous amount.

19 THE COURT: Okay.

20 Q Now, Mr. Smith, have you ever had any contacts with a

21 company called Who's Who Worldwide?

22 A Yes, ma'am.

23 Q And did you eventual ly make a purchase from that
24 company?
25 A Yes, ma'am.

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 Q What did you purchase from them?

2 A A membership, five year membership, and a CD-ROM.

3 Q Now, when were you first contacted approximately by

4 this company?

5 A '93, 1992, or '93.

6 Q And do you remember how you were first contacted?

7 A I was contacted by -- I received a card in the mail.

8 Q Now, what did this contact in the mail tell you to

9 the best of your recollection?

10 A That they had membership in an organization called

11 Who's Who Worldwide, and that I had been -- they were

12 contacting me about becoming a member, or being a member

13 or membership, joining the organization. I don't remember

14 exactly what the card said, but something along that line.

15 Q Now, did you return anything to the company?

16 A Yes, ma'am, I returned the card.

17 Q I am showing you Government's Exhibit 17-D, as in

18 Daniel.

19 (Handed to the witness.)

20 Q Do you recognize that, sir.

21 THE COURT: Is that in evidence?

22 MS. SCOTT: No, I am sorry. It is for

23 identification.
24 A Yes, ma'am.
25 Q What is that?

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Smith-direct/Scott


1 A The card I received and filled out and sent back in.

2 MS. SCOTT: I offer Government's Exhibit 17-D, as

3 in Daniel.

4 THE COURT: Any objection?

5 MR. TRABULUS: No objection.

6 THE COURT: Government's Exhibit 17-D, for Dog,

7 in evidence.

8 (Government's Exhibit 17-D received in evidence.)

9 Q Mr. Smith, is the postmark visible on that item?

10 A No, ma'am.

11 Q Now, if you take a look at the front of it.

12 MR. NEVILLE: I am sorry, I can't hear

13 Ms. Scott.

14 MS. SCOTT: I will speak up.

15 THE COURT: Keep your voice up, Ms. Scott.

16 Q If you take a look at the front of the post cards in

17 the lower right-hand corner --

18 A Yes.

19 Q By the front, I mean the part that you have written

20 on?

21 A The backside, okay.

22 Q Sorry about that.

23 A Okay.
24 Q In the lower right hand corner do you see printed
25 there a small code?

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 A Global L S1.

2 THE COURT: Global L S1?

3 THE WITNESS: It looks like L S1 or L SI. I

4 think it is L S1.

5 Q Now, what happened after you sent this card back?

6 A Someone called me. A gentleman called me.

7 Q Did you ever a conversation with this gentlemen?

8 A Yes, a lengthy one.

9 Q Did he say he was from Who's Who Worldwide?

10 A Yes.

11 Q What did this gentleman say in your conversation with

12 him?

13 A That my name had been put in nomination for

14 membership, and a publication directory that listed 5,000

15 business people worldwide.

16 Q Did he tell you anything else about the company?

17 A That there was exclusive membership, only about

18 5,000. And they published a directory to be distributed

19 worldwide also.

20 Q Now, what, if anything, did he tell you how members

21 were selected?

22 A He said they had to be -- your name had to be put in

23 selection by a member or a former member, someone who
24 might have been a member two years ago, or no longer was a
25 member, or had passed away, or by attrition only. It

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 could have been anyone -- and I asked him when was I put

2 in, my name submitted? And he said there was no way of

3 knowing. It could have been several years ago or it could

4 have been recently.

5 Q What if anything did he tell you would happen to a

6 nomination after it had been made?

7 A They would submit it to the committee, and the

8 committee would accept it or turn it down.

9 Q You mentioned it was by attrition. What did you mean

10 by that?

11 A It was like two year membership, five year

12 membership, if you get dropped out or the person deceased,

13 and dropped out, it was limited to 5,000 per publication.

14 So someone had to leave the list out of the directory

15 before someone else could be submitted for approval.

16 Q Approximately how many membered, memberships did they

17 say were available for --

18 A That year he said maybe four or five. I remember

19 that because he said there were two deaths and they didn't

20 explain the others.

21 Q Did you ask any questions during the course of this

22 conversation?

23 A Yes.
24 Q Do you remember what you asked him?
25 A Yes.

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 Q What was that?

2 A About ten times, who submitted my name.

3 Q What was the answer to that question?

4 A He couldn't give my name. That is not disclosed. He

5 said we can't tell you who it was.

6 Q What, if anything, did he tell you about what you

7 would receive for the money if you purchased a membership?

8 A I would receive a directory listing 5,000 people by

9 category of profession, and by -- with a plaque, and

10 credit card discount, travel discounts. And I wasn't

11 interested in some of those things that he did tell me

12 were offered.

13 Q Of the things said to you, what was the most

14 important thing said to you about the offer?

15 A Worldwide and someone had submitted my name for

16 nomination.

17 Q When you say worldwide, what do you mean by that?

18 A The methane gas energy project was something very few

19 people had been involved in. And like all research and

20 development, you need contact with other people involved

21 in that kind of a business. And I know the United States

22 is not only place in the world where people are doing

23 research and development on alternative energy projects.
24 So if it was worldwide, possibly Germany or some other
25 company, Japan, a lot of those places are far advanced

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 fro m what we were doing. And there is a possibility I

2 would get contact with them. They told me the directory

3 would be distributed and for referral all over the world

4 internationally. And I was hoping for something like

5 that, to get contact with somebody of that type.

6 Q If in fact your name was obtained from a mailing list

7 and not by nomination or from a member, would you be

8 interested in becoming a member and would you be

9 interested in joining?

10 A No.

11 Q Why is that?

12 A I get things submitted two or three hundred items a

13 month that comes from a mailing lists, I am sure. I throw

14 them away because I just don't purchase off a mailing

15 list.

16 Now, if I know it came from a mailing list I

17 wouldn't. But he stated off the -- right off the

18 beginning it was a nomination.

19 Q You say you purchased a five year membership, do you

20 know what you paid for it?

21 A $291, or something like that, 290.

22 Q And how did you pay?

23 A A cashier's money order from a bank, Elliott State
24 Bank in Jacksonville.
25 Q I am showing you Government's Exhibit 17-A, 17-E,

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 17-F, as in Frank, and 17-G, as in George, for

2 Identification.

3 (Handed to the witness.)

4 If you look first at 17-A, the pink sheet, can

5 you tell us what it is?

6 A The invoice I received from the company after they

7 said I was improved for inclusion in the directory.

8 Q If you look at the orange sheet next to it, and I

9 believe it is 17-E.

10 A I am color blind. Is that orange or yellow.

11 Q It could be either one.

12 17-E.

13 THE COURT: Before you get into that, 17-A, is

14 there a date on that, Mr. Smith?

15 THE WITNESS: Yes, invoice date 4/27/93.

16 Q Is 17-E, a copy of 17-A?

17 A Yes, ma'am.

18 MS. SCOTT: I offer Government's Exhibit 17-A and

19 17-E.

20 THE COURT: What was 17-E, for Easy, again?

21 MS. SCOTT: It is a triplicate copy, a carbon

22 copy of 17-A.

23 THE COURT: Any objection?
24 MR. TRABULUS: No.
25 THE COURT: Government's Exhibit 17-A, 17-E, in

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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Smith-direct/Scott


1 evidence.

2 (Government's Exhibit 17-A received in evidence.)

3 (Government's Exhibit 17-E received in evidence.)

4 Q Now, do those documents commemorate your purchase of

5 this membership from Who's Who Worldwide?

6 A Yes, ma'am.

7 Q Now, do you see in a box on the middle of the page on

8 17-A, the pink sheet, do you see a box that says approved

9 by?

10 A SMI. Yes, ma'am.

11 Q SMI is the letters typed in under approved by?

12 A Yes, ma'am.

13 Q Also, if you take a look at Government's Exhibit 17-F

14 and 17-G, can you tell us what those are?

15 A 17-F is membership confirmation.

16 Q Does your handwriting appear on that?

17 A Yes, ma'am.

18 Q And if you take a look also at 17-G, what is that?

19 A The personal money order from Elliot State Bank,

20 Jacksonville, Illinois.

21 Q That's the money order you used to pay for the

22 membership?

23 A Yes, and I wrote on the corner five year membership,
24 and it is on the check.
25 MR. WHITE: I offer Government's Exhibit 17-G and

HARRY RAPAPORT, CSR, CP, CM OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
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To continue this testimony
here is a full version of Feb 23 transcript here


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This site is concerned with the Who's Who Worldwide Registry tragedy, and the undeniable odor of corruption in high placesin one of the Trials of Judicial Shameand the concomitant news media blackout regarding this astonishing story.

Sixteen weeks of oft-explosive testimony, yet not a word in any of 1200 news archives. This alone supports the claim that this was a shamefully corrupt federal trial; in fact, one of the worst trials of the century.

Show your support for justice, for exoneration of the innocent, and for that all-important government accountability, by urgently contacting your Senator, the White House, and the U.S. Department of Justice. Let YOU be the one to provide the straw



The Who's Who Tragedy
Thomas FX Dunn distinguished himself here as the Coprophile of the Year

This site is concerned with the Who's Who Worldwide Registry tragedy, and the undeniable odor of corruption in high placesin one of the Trials of Judicial Shameand the concomitant news media blackout regarding this incredible story.

Sixteen weeks of oft-explosive testimony, yet not a word in any of 1200 news archives. This alone supports the claim that this was a shamefully corrupt federal trial; in fact, one of the worst trials of the century.

Show your support for justice, for exoneration of the innocent, and perhaps most importantly, government accountability, by urgently contacting your Senator, the White House, and the U.S. Department of Justice. Let YOU be the one to provide the straw



The Who's Who Tragedy
How Thomas FX Dunn demonstrated himself to be the worst attorney of all time
Worst Trials of the Century


Biggest Miscarriages of Justice - Justice Has Left The Building

How rare it is to find a case that can offer not merely two or three, instead, more than a dozen major reasons for overturning that conviction.
Here is a case studied by a respected federal judge for many months, who found that no crime had been committed, and dismissed the case.

Reed Elsevier, Ltd, as the single richest and most powerful publisher in more than one hundred countries around the world,
easily. empirically and truthfully described as one of the most corrupt corporations in all of human history,
perverted the foundations of American justice in the Who's Who Worldwide case with cash, power, and perqs.

Imagine a trial where not ten percent of the proceedings have ANY connection with most of the defendants.
That alone should require a separation of trial. In this case, NOT EVEN ONE PERCENT of the proceedings,
accusations, presented evidence, or accepted facts, had anything to do with the "sales" defendants.

The Who's Who Worldwide case was all about Bruce Gordon, his machinations and his accountant,
and the many companies operated in secrecy by Gordon and Liz Sauter, his true "henchman."

For days and days and weeks and weeks, all the discussion was about Gordon and his actions.
Prosecution witness after prosecution witness exculpated the sales defendants, yet,
this same judge who had previously dismissed the case after months of study,
was under one of the worst pressures any judge can be subjected to:
pressure from the federal court of appeals above him, who, in
New York's bailiwick, remains under the control of....
Reed Elsevier, the most powerful force today
in the American arena of jurisprudence.

This can be fixed by Presidential Pardon.
Call 202-456-1414 to lift your voice.




Worst Trials of the Century
Worst attorneys in America Thomas FX Dunn