***TUESDAY, JUNE 4, 2014 UPDATE***
The best story I've read on the case comes from LAW360:
"Mitchell R. Nolte of Gibbs Nolte Robison Rose PLLC, who represents Rogers, said Friday that his client intends to appeal the conviction, but noted that Rogers is in negotiations with state prosecutors to resolve six additional criminal charges related to the alleged scam.
“[W]e will examine our options in the next few weeks and try to make the best choice for Mr. Rogers and his family,” Nolte said. “Mr. Rogers would only like to express his disappointment in the verdict and sentence while also conveying his regrets to all harmed by his actions.”
Rogers, who is currently sitting in the Collin County Jail, is still listed with the state as eligible to practice law, but probably not for long. Texas State Bar spokeswoman Claire Mock said that compulsory discipline proceedings typically are initiated against lawyers convicted of felony charges immediately after they are sentenced".
“[W]e will examine our options in the next few weeks and try to make the best choice for Mr. Rogers and his family,” Nolte said. “Mr. Rogers would only like to express his disappointment in the verdict and sentence while also conveying his regrets to all harmed by his actions.”
Rogers, who is currently sitting in the Collin County Jail, is still listed with the state as eligible to practice law, but probably not for long. Texas State Bar spokeswoman Claire Mock said that compulsory discipline proceedings typically are initiated against lawyers convicted of felony charges immediately after they are sentenced".
Payback's a bitch, right Kelly Old boy?
***FRIDAY, MAY 30, 2014 UPDATE***
BREAKING NEWS! Good News, Good News, Good News all you Rogers victims.
Looks as if former Attorney Kelly G Rogers' troubles aren't over. It would appear the recent trial was for just one count; THEFT OF STOLEN PROPERTY, for the corporate entity FALCON ENERGY. If you're looking on the Collin County site, usually when charges are consolidated into one trial, the details for the trial are listed under all the SEVEN charges. However, that's not the case here. For example, look at the charge for "Money Laundering", the docket entries stop at the pretrial.
If they had consolidated all the charges, then the docket entries would show all the details of the trial;
While it will all be clarified on the Collin County site next week, STANDARD OPERATING PROCEEDURE tells us conclusively that the lack of entries under the other charges indicates the 20 years sentence is only for ONE FELONY CHARGE.
The other question being asked tonight, Is CARRIE ROGERS next? If Der Slick Meister was found guilty of stealing money from investors, then wouldn't Carrie's accepting of $30,000 of dirty money from Kelly make her an accessory to a crime? And wasn't Carrie caught lying under oath (Several times) during the Bradley Dean case? And isn't Carrie now fair game for prosecution since her being excluded from prosecution was part of the plea bargain that Kelly rejected?
Oh my friends, it's just getting started!
"Yes, you are correct. Rogers appears to be heading towards trying each of these cases one by one, which will then create a "stacking" or consecutive sentence. For example, if he received 20 on all 7 cases his sentence would 140 years. Typically in the prior cases, the defendants in the securities cases plead the remaining counts to run concurrent. I thought that he would be doing that, since neither he nor Carrie testified at the trial or sentencing. So this will be a long drawn out process for Rogers if he continues to push Prosecutor Barron. One would think that a below average lawyer like Rogers would be a little smarter than to pull this, since he can't even finish a bankruptcy case and file the appropriate documents. Maybe it's Carrie's strategy, who knows? For those of you that want to believe that Rogers soul is in any way salvageable, it's not! He is an arrogant, indignant sociopath that is going to get hammered over and over if he continues this failed endeavor. Grab some popcorn and a comfortable chair, going to be a long painful process for our resident at 4300 Community Avenue, McKinney, Texas 75071.
***WEDNESDAY, MAY 28TH UPDATE- 20 YEARS!
Jury Trial continues: Punishment/State's case in chief; 05/28/2014. Jury Trial continues: Defense witness taken out of order; State rests on punishment; Defense case in chief; Defense rests (Defendant does not testify). Both close (no rebuttal evidence) . Charge conference. Jury charged; final argument; jury deliberations begin. Verdict: 20 years TDCJI AND a fine of $10,000. Defendant admonished as to appeal rights; Sentence imposed; credit back time.
Helpful Comment #1
"So Carrie didn't testify? I guess this whole matter was just too much for her and she was rather annoyed by the inconvenience of all this. So Boy Kelly gets a 20 year sentence on one of the cases; Six more to go which will be consecutive or "stacked" if Kelly decides to try each of them one by one. 20 years in the Texas Department of Corrections is a rather severe sentence, given Rogers age and the fact that those of that are victims of his will annually remind the parole board, that he should not be paroled prior to his sentence expiration. There is a lot left to this story if Rogers doesn't plead out and from the sounds of what transpired in Court (Rogers not testifying and not testifying at the punishment and sentencing phase) our former Amway Diamond, Attorney extraordinaire and father of the year is going to be taking the hard road and taking his chances on very lengthy consecutive sentences. A 20 year sentence, Kelly never thought it would happen. A long time to ponder what he has done..."
Helpful Comment #2
"Perhaps Rogers likes Judge Rusch as much as I do - I find the judge to be very entertaining, at least when the jury is not in the courtroom. At least being in court would get him out of his jail cell so he can recover from the soreness on his backside. I doubt Barron would accept a 20 year concurrent sentence for the other charges, he recommended a minimum of 60 years to the jury, and it appears there are going to be 17 total charges, not 7".
***TUESDAY, MAY 27TH UPDATE-SENTENCING DAY***
This portion, the punishment phase, seems to resemble the trial. In fact, this might take all week where the prosecution will have witnesses testify as to the low down, dirty, rotten tricks exhibited by Der Slick Meister. Therefore, the jury will hear all the information before deciding the punishment. Jury Trial continues: Punishment phase begins; witnesses sworn/instructed on the rule; State's case in chief (Dale Barron) begins. Recess until 8:45 am on 5/28/14.
Helpful Comment #1
Anonymous said
"I don't know the reason for the delay, but the judge said to come back at about 10:30 this morning. In the meantime, the judge made an offhand comment the sentencing phase will take the remainder of the week. In the interim, he was talking with other people in his chambers and doing a few quick hearings in the courtroom. This wrapped up a bit after 10:00, and there were 2 of us sitting in the courtroom.
When we did start, there were no opening comments, the state swore in about 6 witnesses, 5 men and a woman, all appeared to be in their 60s to 70s. One at a time they told their story about how Rogers got them involved, and then they were shown the previous SEC lawsuits where Rogers was fined by the SEC for $150,000+. They got back a small fraction of what they invested, and even those gains were eaten up when they took the Falcon company back from Rogers, and had to pay the lawyers and other fees. When asked if they would have invested with Rogers if they had known about these lawsuits, they said no or probably not. Interesting, 2 offered unsolicited irregularities, one of them said it was "bizarre" how Rogers hand delivered him a check and didn't give one to his next door neighbor, also an investor. Another made a comment how it was "just a check," with no summary of how much the others received for their part of the investment, as he was expecting to see."
When we did start, there were no opening comments, the state swore in about 6 witnesses, 5 men and a woman, all appeared to be in their 60s to 70s. One at a time they told their story about how Rogers got them involved, and then they were shown the previous SEC lawsuits where Rogers was fined by the SEC for $150,000+. They got back a small fraction of what they invested, and even those gains were eaten up when they took the Falcon company back from Rogers, and had to pay the lawyers and other fees. When asked if they would have invested with Rogers if they had known about these lawsuits, they said no or probably not. Interesting, 2 offered unsolicited irregularities, one of them said it was "bizarre" how Rogers hand delivered him a check and didn't give one to his next door neighbor, also an investor. Another made a comment how it was "just a check," with no summary of how much the others received for their part of the investment, as he was expecting to see."
One of them said his son did some research (assuming this was online research) and found the SEC lawsuit. When he asked for an explanation, Rogers indicated that "everything was taken care of" via the coordinator of the investors. One of them also said how "professional" the presentation that Rogers gave was, and how all of his references said what a "great guy he was."
Carrie, the kids, and I believe the people that looked like one set of grandparents were in court as well. Rogers was dressed up in a suit, and there were 3 sheriff's deputies in the courtroom as opposed to the 1 that was there during the trial".
***SUNDAY, MAY 25TH UPDATE***
A day of rest. Food for thought: Matthew 6:33-34. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
***SATURDAY, MAY 24TH UPDATE***
Kelly Gordon Rogers in Jail. Rogers was processed and spent the night in jail. His new mugshot is a permanent feature of this blog (look on the right). Thanks to our highly educated readers, we now know he was convicted on case 380-81036-2012 "Theft of Stolen Property" and will face his penalty on Tuesday, May 27th at 9:00 am. We also know the other charges will sorted out either by way of a plea bargain, OR the State will go to trial on each individual charge. That's up to Rogers on Tuesday. Either way, he's going away for a long time. Several victims will make appearances in court to speak to the bad character of Kelly Rogers before sentencing. Please, someone MUST be in that courtroom to take notes for the readers. Again, thanks to a reader;
"Our favorite local miscreant and recently convicted lawyer, Kelly Gordon Rogers, is now residing in pod 3A, Cell 32, Bunk 1. This is the classification pod, so Rogers will get up at roughly 3 am on Tuesday morning, the 27th of May, 2014 and begin his long arduous process to court, for what is believed to be the beginning of his mammoth sentence. Rogers will sit for hours in a holding cell, shackled at the ankles, with a fashionable belly chain and handcuffs, awaiting his transport to Court. Will Carrie be rushing down to the jail to bring Rogers a change of clothes for his sentencing? After Rogers receives his much deserved sentence, he will then again wait hours for the "jail chain" van to bring the inmates back to the jail. I'm sure from the looks of his current mugshot, the smirk, the arrogance and defiance is evaporating. Rogers gets to be in a tiny cell with another inmate while he awaits the outcome of his 6 other cases, or his transport to TDCJ. The rest of his life is in front of him, maybe now he wonders, if all the lies, scamming, cheating, stealing and manipulation was worth this?"
Helpful Comment #1: (May 24, 2014 at 12:33 pm)
"Just an update on Kelly Rogers current accommodations. Since the jury came back in light speed with a conviction and it being a holiday weekend, Rogers spent the night in a plastic chair in the 'book in'. He will stay in the 'book in' according to the sheriff's department, at least until this evening. If he had been convicted on a regular business day, he would have spent the night in jail and then immediately brought to Court the next morning. However, since the jury had enough time to file out and go into the deliberation room, pull their chairs out, vote GUILTY, push their chairs back in, file back into the courtroom and render their verdict early Friday, Rogers gets to stay in 'book in for an inordinate amount of time. How fitting. I also noticed in the jail records, Rogers still lists the house at 18 Stonebriar Way as his residence. I'm sure this will be made very clear to the jury by the State amongst the plethora of other matters that the State will present in the punishment phase. The utter audacity of both Kelly and Carrie Rogers to continue the facade on other people's hard earned money is utterly astounding to me. I also noticed on Rogers visitation list he put Fred Sewell. Is Fred that delusional? Carrie will blame it on everyone else and the "plot" to destroy her family, when in reality she was just as culpable and complicit as Kelly Rogers in these fraudulent transactions".
Helpful Comment #2: (May 24, 2014 at 10:27 am)
"Just to add some clarification on the case information. Rogers was convicted of one of the indictments. What will more than likely happen is that when Rogers is given a significant sentence then the State will either offer to plea the others and run the sentences concurrently. If Rogers elects to be indignant and try the other six cases, then the State would try them and "stack" them or run them consecutively. If Rogers received a sentence of 10 years, (highly, highly unlikely) then he could post appeal bonds on the sentence. However that is not likely to happen since the State would have six more chances for a large sentence and also the extraneous offenses. So on Tuesday when Rogers receives an enormous sentence of over 50 years or more (as I suspect) then he will either plea the other 6 out or remain indignant and force the State to try the others. Either way, Rogers is cooked and maybe reality finally set in that it is OVER!!"
Helpful Comment #3 (May 24th at 11:30 am)
"If you look at the past convictions of The State Securities Board prosecuting through the Collin County District Attorney's Office, those who went to trial ( Karen Bowie, William Seelye and others) all were given 80 years to life on the first conviction, first charge. This charge carries 5 to 99 and when the State really let's loose in the punishment phase and adds the extraneous charges, Rogers will get a minimum of 50, guaranteed. Add the fact (unlike the other crooks) he at the time was a lawyer and Rogers' sentence will surpass the others. And if he pushes it, Rogers will come out with more than likely hundreds of years in consecutive sentences. If Rogers thinks in his warped mind that he will fair better on appeal, that will never happen. The 5th District in Dallas doesn't overturn convictions. What is a guarantee is that somewhere down the road, Rogers will blame this on his current attorney's and argue ineffective assistance of counsel, which will not work either. Rogers doesn't have a play anymore, this part is over,. Justice was served in the penal system, the investors, friends and others he financially raped will still never be made whole. At least Rogers' is in the process of getting what he deserved. You know what they say about KARMA!"
***FRIDAY, MAY 23RD UPDATE***
One account: "I walked into court this morning, shortly after 9:00 a.m. Nothing was happening yet, and there were a lot of extra people in the courtroom for other cases. Standing right in front of me is Kelly and Carrie, and as I sit down, he says, "There's Mr. Anonymous." I finished sitting down and then stared straight at them, and they walked away.
Eventually, the judge showed up around 9:30, and told everyone who wasn't connected to Rogers' case that they can leave and enjoy the wonderful sausage biscuits in the downstairs restaurant, that the court would be busy until at least 10:30 and probably a couple of hours more.
With that, about 2/3 of the audience left, and I saw Rogers' wife with 2 teenagers, they looked like their daughter and son. Also sitting next to them was an older couple, probably one set of the grandparents.
The judge was held up because his word processor was acting up when finishing up the jury instructions - he said when he changed one letter, it repeated entire paragraphs, so it took at least 4 drafts to get it right. He then negotiated that each side got 30 minutes of closing comments, and the state took the first 15 minutes, the defense had the next 30, and the state wrapped up the last 15 minutes. He also mentioned it was the first day this week the air conditioning was working, and it was the first day the PowerPoint illustrations on a flat screened worked correctly. It was a good review of the week's activities, without all of the details and witness testimony.
Basically, the defense made the argument that Rogers didn't make the oil deals because he didn't find any good deals, but the state countered that he took large chunks of money into his own accounts the same day he collected it from his "investors," and used it for remodeling his house, spare cash, etc.
Now it's in the jury's hands".
JURY OUT. DELIBERATING. STAY TUNE.
Later.......
"I returned about 4:00 pm, wanted to get there about 3:30, but heavy traffic construction slowed me down. I went into the courtroom, and it was empty. I waited around until about 4:30 and decided to peak in before I left. The bailiff was there this time, and I asked him if the jury was still deliberating. He said no. I asked what they decided and he said "guilty."
Although I wished I had been there for the decision, I would have much rather missed a guilty decision than been on time for a not guilty decision. One less dirt bag on the streets. I'll try to make next Tuesday's hearing".
Although I wished I had been there for the decision, I would have much rather missed a guilty decision than been on time for a not guilty decision. One less dirt bag on the streets. I'll try to make next Tuesday's hearing".
***THURSDAY, MAY 22ND UPDATE***
Jury Trial continues. State's concludes its case and State rests. Defense submits motion directed Verdict. Denied. Defense case is presented by Mitchell R Nolte. Defense rests (Don't blink or you missed it). Defendant Kelly G Rogers does not testify. Jury recessed. Charged conference. (With both the State and Defendant having presented it's case, this should go to the jury tomorrow. I can't imagine this jury wanting to come back AFTER Memorial day so this could be a very quick verdict. This "Charged Conference" could be a discussion over the last change for the Defendant to accept a plea bargain).
***WEDNESDAY, MAY 21ST UPDATE***
Jury Trial continues as the State and Dale Barron presents it's case. Proceedings will go all day. End of Day 2. Recessed to 05/22/14 at 8:30 am.
***TUESDAY, MAY 20TH UPDATE***
Jury Trial begins. The State presents it's indictments and Kelly G Rogers enters a pleas of NOT GUILTY. LOL! State prosecutors make their opening statements, followed by the defense. A Hearing on the admissibility of the video deposition of William James Weaver Jr. A ruling is issued, although we do not know the outcome of that ruling. A juror is excused (must have read the Kelly G Rogers Report) The State begins to present it's case. End of day 1. Recessed to 05/21/14 at 8:30 am.
***MONDAY, MAY 19TH UPDATE***
Jury Selection all day. Went to the courthouse a little past 4:30 today. There were about 50 people standing in the hall next to the courtroom, nobody inside. The 50 people were probably the jury pool waiting for the judge to decide which questions are okay, and which ones aren't, he was probably talking to both sides of lawyers in his chambers.
Jury Trial scheduled for May 20th at 8:30 am. Parties present and ready. Defendant arraigned; plea of NOT GUILTY entered. Jury selected, sworn in and instructed. Recess to 05/20/14 @ 8:30 am.
***FRIDAY, MAY 16th UPDATE***
The pretrial hearing was a riot, here’s a summary of the morning:
1. I show up about 8:45 for the 9:00 scheduled hearing, nobody from the defense is there.
2. At about 8:55, I go into the courtroom, Rogers shows up. For several minutes, it’s only me, him, and the judge’s court reporter in the courtroom. The prosecution was meeting in a back/side room. The Sheriff deputy/bailiff asks me what case I’m there for; I tell him I am an observer.
3. One of Rogers’ two lawyers is late, he finally shows up at 9:45.
4. The judge asks the other Rogers’ lawyer if he can cover the issues to be discussed, and he declines, saying he wants the other guy to present the issues he was working on, and also wants the other guy present when he presents his own issues. They talk about the proposed jury questionnaire briefly, it was clear the judge thinks questionnaires are a waste of time. At about 9:30, the judge leaves to go to his chambers.
5. While the judge is gone, one of Rogers’ lawyers goes up to the judge’s desk to check that he has a particular, late-breaking document in his file (and found that it was there), and somebody mentioned if he would like to be a judge, but he says he couldn’t be a judge, he has too many skeletons in his closet. Also, the sheriff deputy/bailiff makes a comment to somebody that he can’t wait to be reassigned, I assume to a more interesting position, such as on the street, instead of a courtroom circus act.
6. Judge finally shows up at 10:30, apparently he was seeing a couple of other lawyers in his chambers. Make me wait for you, and you can wait for me!
7. Rogers’ lawyers try for a continuance (delay to start the trial), as apparently the state filed another charge just two days previously, and the defense claimed they need more time to address it. The judge asks the state what the total count of offenses is, the judge thought it was at least 8-9, and perhaps around a dozen, and the state lawyer didn’t know, and starts looking through his files. One of Rogers’ lawyers says the new charge brings the count to 17. The judge says, “Aren’t 13-14 charges enough?” I am sitting a bit to the judge’s right side, behind and to the left of the 2 sets of lawyers and Rogers, the lawyers are in the center of the room looking towards the corner where the judge is located. The judge looks straight at me for my reaction, I smile broadly. The judge obviously is cracking a joke like a comedian, waiting for the “crowd” reaction, except we are in a setting where it’s not good form to laugh out loud, but I was laughing inside. This happened 2-3 more times during the hearing, I felt like I was in a very small audience for a stand up comic. The state attorney stated all of the new charges were discovered during various depositions and other fact-finding activities. The judge denies the continuance.
8. The judge asked the state lawyer how long he thought the trial would last, and he stated he thinks it should be over by the end of next week, before the Memorial Day holiday. The judge was dubious, and asked the defense for their estimate. The defense thought they would need about a day for the 4-5 witnesses they had, and the judge said it would probably take at least another day for cross examination, and everybody agreed. The judge said, “Nothing in the history of this lawsuit has been quick.” They eventually agreed the trial would take 2-3 weeks.
9. State asked about whether they would go for a “significant” time at sentencing. The judge said “significant” means 50+ years to him, and the state lawyer said they are on the same page. The defense said they would go for probation/community service if convicted, as it would be Rogers’ first felony. These lawyers definitely have some huge gazambas. I got the feeling Rogers’ lawyers won’t put up much of a defense against him being guilty, but the fact that Rogers is a “first timer” felony offender.
10. There was some discussion about Brady and his progeny (I didn’t know what they were talking about, and looked it up when I got back, it refers to a Supreme Court case where the prosecution didn’t turn over evidence favorable to the defendant, which was found to be illegal). The state lawyer said that shouldn’t be an issue, then one of Rogers’ lawyers agreed, saying they have provided “a truckload” of documents. When the judge asked if he meant that literally, he said, yes, if the documents had been paper, they would have filled up a truck. But most of them were electronic, and wouldn’t fit on a DVD when he wanted to share them with the other lawyer, and he had to buy a new, larger thumb-drive to give him a copy of everything. I’m sure Rogers squirmed in his chair when hearing this, as this could not, in any way, be considered favorable to his position of innocence.
11. The proposed questionnaire came up, and was opposed by the state lawyer. The judge mocked a few of the questions, such as dealing with which TV programs the prospective jurors watch, and then rejected using a questionnaire. Apparently a higher Texas court has also discouraged using questionnaires, so the judge appears to be on firm ground on this issue.
12. The defense was concerned about having enough of a jury pool when the jury selection starts next Monday, May 19, 2014, based on the upcoming Memorial Day holiday, the media coverage, Rogers’ local “political and social” status, making him more well-known than other scammers, and the Kelly Rogers blog! The judge agreed to have a few extra jurors in the pool to compensate for people who may have vacation/travel plans, but didn’t care about the other issues, as he covers them in his jury instructions. The judge decided to go with 60 prospective jurors, instead of the normal 52-54 pool size, and include two alternate jurors. The judge said maybe they will get lucky with a bunch of school teachers who aren’t going anywhere (and I assumed would LOVE to get a chance to get out of teaching for a couple of weeks.
***May 16 ORIGINAL STORY***In a show of massive arrogance, Attorney Kelly G Rogers asked for some goodies at the Pre-Trial hearing today.
First, they filed a motion for a Continuance. Like they haven't had enough time to prepare since his July 2009 indictment?
In Kelly Rogers' mind, you getting screwed out of your investment should only result in a simple slap on the wrist and court supervision, like nothing ever happened! Just like his agreed settlement with the SEC, right?
He really must think he's going to beat this or get sympathy from the jury and get a lesser sentence than what the prosecutors are asking. Only time will tell. If your a former investor, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts?
