No Tweets Blago

UPDATED:

It seems very strange to me that a judge would ever have to caution the defendant in a high-stakes criminal trial against tweeting from the courtroom. In my limited experience in criminal trials (as a clerk to a federal judge), they are pretty somber affairs. I can't remember a situation in which it would have been appropriate for the defendant to fire off: "Liar! I never sold her more than 10g of cocaine. What a biyotch."

But, time have changed. Now that my former governor is on trial for political corruption, the admonition might be well calculated. The former first couple of Illinois have been reality TV "stars" (not sure that is the right word). He as an Apprentice to Donald Trump and she as a jungle dwelling counterpoint to Heidi Montag. Plus, he has a radio show and both have Twitter accounts.

That seems like the kind of defendant who might need a reminder to shut up.

Update: For a more serious take on this trial, see the commentary by my friend Peter Baugher in the Huffington Post.

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