August, 2026
Washington — In a blog post in June, I expressed my deep appreciation to Dan Moldea, Nandan Joshi, and Mike Camoin for the remarkable work they did to advance the causes behind my longstanding (and ultimately successful) litigation against corporate and government-complicit corruption.
Before discussing further how these cases now have a life of their own, and how they are making new waves, I'd like to thank two individuals who made them possible in the first place, attorneys Lynette Whitfield and Jason Zuckerman. Lynette, my neighbor, understood the strength of the cases and advised me almost two decades ago not to be discouraged that my initial attempts to obtain counsel were not successful. She sought out her friend Jason Zuckerman to review the cases and he took them with enthusiasm. I had almost given up.
Now the cases have left their much-welcomed marks on both the Eleventh and First amendments to the Constitution. Thank you, Lynette and Jason.
It doesn't end there, however. The Camoin case involving the First Amendment has inadvertently turned up a serious problem that extends across many federal district courts: the loss of documents. When the Fourth Circuit in 2024 instructed the Eastern District of Virginia (EDVA) district court to unseal documents in my litigation as sought* by filmmaker Mike Camoin, the court's documents could not be located, as apparently they had been destroyed in violation of federal retention rules. Who knew this, and when, inevitably raises questions as to how this knowledge might have affected the merits arguments on the First Amendment.
The ensuing search to find replacement copies of the lost documents is its own story, likely comical to some and troubling to others. Both, to me.
As the Camoin 2024 decision on unsealing documents is applied across the land (at least in some parts), the problem of lost documents will come up, perhaps often. How will courts handle it? The experience of EDVA may be instructive, to anyone who seeks it. The Supreme Court may take its own closer look, soon.
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*I replied to his inquiry that I was not a potential source for the documents but that I believed on advice of counsel that the documents were public and should be provided by the court, which ultimately happened. See Moldea, Money, Politics, and Corruption in U.S. Higher Education, p. 103.
