My Day in Court will come. The US Attorney’s Office Has Given Itself a Head Start.docx
1. My Day in Court will come. The US Attorney’s
Office Has Given Itself a Head Start
2.
3. I will defend myself in court against charges stemming from my efforts
to help the people of Puerto Rico recover from the devastation wrought
by Hurricane Maria. I do not doubt that the trial will demonstrate my
innocence and confirm that I acted in good faith. I look forward to my
attorney calling all the witnesses in my case, which includes FEMA
employees (current and former) and congressional aides.
Through no fault of their own, potential jurors have already been
subject to a campaign of persuasion against me. The reasons for this
campaign, and the methods used by prosecutors, should be deeply
troubling to everyone reading this piece. If it can happen to me, it
can happen to you.
This represents more than legal gamesmanship: it undermines the very
foundation of due process, which in Justice William Rehnquist’s words
“means a jury capable and willing to decide the case solely on the
evidence before it” (Smith v. Phillips, 1982).
2022 has had a very clear anti-woman theme. The past two years —
dominated by the Covid-19 pandemic — have impacted women and
girls disproportionately. Decisions taken by governments and
authorities have worsened the situation of women and girls. All people
are entitled to fair due process, including women.
I have been utterly humiliated, and my character has been tarnished. I
have stayed quiet to wait for my day in court. However, I have realized
I need to speak my truth in the court of public opinion. The court of
4. public opinion works directly and feeds into the court system on all
levels. This is clearly why the federal government has a 95% success
rate.
In the article by Scholar Greene entitled, “Media Effects on
Jurors,” jurors’ decisions may be influenced by legally relevant
information gleaned from media sources, including newspaper reports,
radio and TV news, advertising, movies, and TV crime shows and
courtroom scenes.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of
Georgia press release of my sealed indictment was released on
Monday, October 17, 2022. My arraignment was Thursday, October
13th. It was deliberately held for emphasis and possible media
attention from major outlets. The potential jurors have learned a
significant amount about my case without me being allowed to provide
information to the public. This amounts to prosecutorial misconduct
because it prejudices the jury pool.
I understand highlighting verdicts, but all pretrial publicity affects the
outcome. This is especially true in high-profile cases.
The public needs to know the following about my case and my
character:
• My company Tribute Contracting LLC delivered 50,000 meals to
Crowley Logistics (FEMA Delivery Agent) and had an additional 2
5. deliveries en route.
• I have no criminal record nor does my businesses
• I only received $255,000 on a $156 million contract. I do not have
$156 million in the bank and was unwilling to give the funding back. I
was paid for what I delivered. Deliveries were inspected upon delivery.
• I have worked in the government contracting industry since 2011; a
primarily male-dominated field.
• I have been an authorized FEMA natural disaster vendor since 2013
and was under (3) separate IDIQ contracts at the time of the award
with a maximum amount of $6.2 million cumulative (HSFE70–13-D-
0142,HSFE70–13-D-0145 and HSFE70–13-D-0148).
• I had years of experience in the food industry with contacts from the
Federal Bureau of Prisons under my company Tiffany Brown LLC.
• It is easy to cite website language in a proposal, but even easier to
remove citations.
• Government Contracts canceled by the small business contractors
only show they were canceled.
Scholars Amy L. Otto, Steven D. Penrod & Hedy R. Dexter in their
article held that “The biasing impact of pretrial publicity on juror
judgments” indicates pretrial publicity, particularly negative
information about the defendant’s character, can influence subjects’
initial judgments about a defendant’s guilt. This bias is weakened, but
not eliminated by the presentation of trial evidence.
Yet none of this was communicated. I have been turned into a
caricature. If it can happen to me, it can happen to you.
6. None of the other businesses (Bronze Star LLC and Whitefish Energy)
whose contracts were canceled during Hurricane Maria were disbarred
or extensively investigated. Reason: They were men despite having
ZERO government contracting experience and businesses located
in residential addresses.
FEMA has a horrible history of treating its contractors terribly with
ever-evolving contract specifications. As it happens, FEMA itself was
sued by an agent it hired to deliver supplies to victims of Hurricane
Maria. Crowley Logistics successfully proved that FEMA had agreed to
a contract valued at $25 million before unilaterally expanding its scope
to $96 million. The court found that “FEMA failed to tell Crowley
about [the mistake in the modification] while actively insisting upon
continued performance.” My experience with FEMA was unfortunately
like Crowley’s.
Court cases being tried in court opinion and not the court of law puts
all defendants at a disadvantage. It also shapes the opinion of the jury
pool, which in itself is a miscarriage of justice.
“I Can Do All Things through Christ Who Strengthens Me” Philippians
4:13
Tiffany Brown, MPA, PhD