Thread: Blogger's arrest shakes up Mississippi Republican primary

Blogger's arrest shakes up Mississippi Republican primary

By Conor Finnegan, CNN
updated 10:33 PM EDT, Sat May 17, 2014


U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Mississippi, called his wife's illness "a very private family matter."

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Blogger who allegedly obtained an image of a senator's bedridden wife is arrested
• Attorney tells local paper the woman is Rose Cochran, wife of U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran
• Cochran staffers imply Chris McDaniel staff knew of arrest before police report was released
• Spokesman for McDaniel, who's opposing Cochran in primary, calls accusations "despicable"

(CNN) -- The arrest of a man who allegedly obtained an image of a senator's bedridden wife has shaken up an already intense Republican primary battle in Mississippi.

Political blogger Clayton Kelly was arrested Thursday for exploiting a vulnerable adult and illegally and improperly obtaining a photo of her without her consent for his own benefit, according to the Madison Police Department.

Donald Clark, an attorney for Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Mississippi, and his wife Rose, told a local paper that the woman in question is Rose, saying the Cochrans' "privacy and dignity have been violated." Rose Cochran suffers from dementia and has lived at St. Catherine's Village, the nursing home where Thursday's incident took place, for 14 years now, according to The Clarion-Ledger.

"I have been fortunate to have a wonderful family, and like so many families, we are deeply affected by my wife's serious, long-term illness, that we consider to be a very private family matter. We will continue doing everything we can to protect my wife's safety and security," said Cochran in a statement obtained by The Clarion-Ledger, a local paper.

Police say Kelly broke into the facility and took the picture by Rose Cochran's bedside. The photo surfaced in a political attack ad on YouTube that aimed to smear Cochran, according to The Clarion-Ledger. The ad was removed within hours of being posted, according to the newspaper.

Kelly, a 28-year old Madison, Mississippi, resident, has a host of social platforms that cover politics and often attacks the senior senator.

But the video, like the majority of Kelly's material, also supported Cochran's opponent in the Republican primary -- and that's where things get complicated.

Chris McDaniel is a lawyer, radio commentator, and Mississippi state senator. With tea party support and endorsements from Club for Growth and Sarah Palin, he is challenging Cochran, and the race has been heated, with plenty of name-calling.

When the incident first came to light, McDaniel's campaign distanced the candidate from Kelly, saying he was neither a volunteer nor a member of the campaign.

"I've reached out to Senator Cochran directly to express my abhorrence for the reprehensible actions of this individual. This criminal act is deeply offensive and my team and I categorically reject such appalling behavior. My thoughts and prayers are with Senator Cochran and his family," McDaniel said in a statement. "Politics is about the exchange of ideas and this type of action has no place in politics whatsoever and will not be tolerated."

Questions started to arise, however, when members of Cochran's staff suggested that a McDaniel staffer apologized to a Cochran staffer before the police report was even released, according to The Clarion-Ledger. The implication was clear: McDaniel's team must have worked with Kelly if they knew about his arrest before the news broke.

McDaniel's team was quick to fire back.

"The McDaniel campaign found out about the break in when a local political blog posted about it at 11:40 p.m. last night. Senator McDaniel has denounced the break-in and called Senator Cochran to extend his condolences. It is unconscionable for the Cochran campaign and the liberal media to use the act of a sick individual to lob despicable accusations," said Noel Fritch, a campaign spokesman.

So far, there has been no tangible evidence that links the campaign directly to Kelly.

Kelly is being held at Madison County Detention Center, with bond set at $100,000.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/17/politi...rimary-arrest/

Assume is a troublesome word-Cochran's campaign assumes that he was a campaign worker for McDaniel Another assumption may be that during investigation that the police contacted McDanil's campaign or staff as a matter of investigation. Rumors werre flying fast in both campaign's I would bet! Now it is a matter of whose campaign did the best job of fact checking. Interesting, but Kelly is a sorry SOB, either way. Poor Rose is the true victim/

McDaniel campaign clarifies when they learned of Cochran break-in

Geoff Pender, The Clarion-Ledger10:30 p.m. CDT May 17, 2014


(Photo: AP)

UPDATE 4: Noel Fritsch with the McDaniel campaign has released a statement clarifying the timeline of when the McDaniel campaign learned of the arrest and break-in:

"Melanie noticed the political blog post at around 1:00 AM CDT Saturday and was alarmed that it was likely Ms. Cochran who had been photographed based on the preponderance of evidence, including the name of the rest home and the comments on the blog.

"At around 7:30 AM CDT, Chris was notified only briefly of the incident and the need to personally reach out to Sen. Cochran.

"Shortly thereafter, Melanie called Cochran campaign manager Kirk Sims to express in strongest terms the campaigns' condemnation of the alleged crime. Alex Jaffe interviewed Chris at around 9:30 AM CDT during an event, at which time Chris had still not been fully briefed. Chris was not fully briefed until he left event around 10:30 AM CDT, at which point the campaign issued a statement at 10:49 AM CDT.​"

UPDATE 3: The Hill is reporting that "a GOP aide who has listened to the voicemail from Sojourner to Simms, McDaniel's manager says she was made aware of the incident late Friday evening. She emphasized that their campaign was appalled, and that McDaniel himself was disgusted by Kelly's actions and wanted to speak to Cochran directly to express his outrage."

A GOP aide who has listened to the voicemail also confirmed to The Clarion-Ledger that Sojourner said that McDaniel "was upset about the whole thing and wanted to talk to Cochran" about it.

However, that does not match up with what McDaniel told The Hill in DeSoto County on Saturday morning when he said he knew nothing about the arrest at that time. Noel Fritsch, McDaniel's communications director, also said early Saturday morning when contacted by The Clarion-Ledger that he had not heard of the arrest.

UPDATE 1: Noel Fritsch, spokesman for the Chris McDaniel campaign, issued the following statement:

"The McDaniel campaign found out about the break in when a local political blog posted about it at 11:40 p.m. last night. Senator McDaniel has denounced the break-in and called Senator Cochran to extend his condolences. It is unconscionable for the Cochran campaign and the liberal media to use the act of a sick individual to lob despicable accusations."

The Clarion-Ledger has asked for clarification on the statement as to which blog reported that the arrest was connected to Rose Cochran or how the campaign knew the arrest was related to Rose Cochran since the only known report last night did not mention Cochran's name.

UPDATE 2: Tea Party Patriots Chairman Jenny Beth Martin released the following statement on the arrest:
"Exploiting another human being for gain is deplorable in any circumstance. To use the elderly for some sick, perceived political advantage is despicable. We condemn this vile act in no uncertain terms.

"The Defendant has never donated to the Tea Party Patriots or the Tea Party Patriots Citizens Fund. He is not in any of our data bases, and we have had no email exchanges with him.

"There are plenty of legitimate issues to be debated in this campaign. And while we condemn this criminal act, we look forward to a primary election to decide these issues."

In recent days, the Tea Party Patriots held press conferences pushing the issue of Cochran's overseas travel with a female aide from whom the senior senator leases a basement apartment in D.C. They endorsed McDaniel early in the campaign.

ORIGINAL STORY
U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran's campaign is questioning how Chris McDaniel's campaign manager, state Sen. Melanie Sojourner, apparently knew about Clayton Kelly's arrest before news of him allegedly sneaking into Rose Cochran's nursing home room and taking photos broke.

RELATED: Man arrested for sneaking into Thad Cochran's wife's nursing home

Cochran campaign spokesman Jordan Russell said Sojourner left a voice mail message for Cochran campaign manager Kirk Sims at about 7:45 a.m. on Saturday, offering condolences over Kelly's alleged actions and assurance McDaniel's campaign doesn't condone it.

Russell said Sojourner indicated she had been concerned over the incident since Friday night.

Kelly was arrested Friday night by the Madison Police Department. Police released a statement about Kelly's arrest late that night, but neither it and nor initial news reports mentioned Rose Cochran. The release only included a brief statement about his charge of exploitation of a vulnerable adult. The blog Jackson Jambalaya was the first to report the arrest and post the statement from Madison police.

A Clarion-Ledger article posted online at 9:24 a.m. broke the news about a connection between the arrest and the Cochrans.

McDaniel campaign spokesman Noel Fritsch, contacted at 9:47 a.m., said he knew nothing about the arrest or news. Sen. McDaniel, interviewed for an article by the Capitol Hill publication The Hill less than an hour after the Clarion-Ledger story broke, said he knew nothing about it and "I don't guess I've been up long enough to see what's happened."

Russell said "this appears to be an inconsistent story," from McDaniel and his campaign.

"I think it would be interesting to know how she would hear about it before 7:45 a.m.," Russell said.

Sojourner could not be reached for comment.

Fritsch, contacted by telephone after the Cochran campaign raised the questions, had no immediate response, and requested any such questions be emailed in writing, which they were. There was no immediate response.

Contact Geoff Pender at (601) 961-7266 or gpender@jackson.gannett.com. Follow @GeoffPender on Twitter.

http://www.clarionledger.com/story/n...ak-in/9215899/

Clayton Kelly. Madison Police Department.

Police considering 'conspiracy' in Cochran video case

Scenes from Clayton Kelly's initial appearance, including "possible conspiracy" allegation

Therese Apel, The Clarion-Ledger6:58 a.m. CDT May 19, 2014

(Photo: Special to The Clarion-Ledger)

Clayton Kelly, the man accused of entering Sen. Thad Cochran's wife Rose's nursing home room and taking pictures which were posted to the internet, remains jailed on $100,000 bond after his initial appearance Sunday afternoon.

Judge Dale Danks told the court he was upholding Kelly's current bond, but scheduled a preliminary hearing for Thursday.

Kelly is charged with exploitation of a vulnerable adult after police said he gained access to St. Catherine's Village, a nursing home in Madison, and to Rose Cochran's room. He then allegedly took pictures of her that he posted on his blog, "Constitutional Clayton."

A representative of the Madison Police Department said there are other individuals in the case that they'd like to talk to "who might have been part of a conspiracy." At this point, police won't comment further, citing the ongoing investigation.

Kelly's attorney, Kevin Camp, argued that his client had cooperated with police and that a bond of $10,000 to $25,000 would be more fitting, but the city argued that the facts of the case were "very serious and grave in nature."

When Danks told the courtroom he was leaving the bond as is, Kelly sighed audibly and hung his head for a second. He left the courtroom the same way he came in, looking to the back of the courtroom at his wife Tara.

Tara Kelly provided the Clarion-Ledger with a photo of a pass from St. Catherine's from a Sunday. She says he was given the visitor's pass, but it is unclear where it came from.

The pass says, "St. Catherine's village visitor vehicle pass, Sunday." The directions state, "Place on vehicle dashboard facing outwards. This permit authorizes the bearer to enter and park on the grounds of St. Catherine's Village. This pass must be returned to the welcome center upon exit."

It does not have a more specific date than "Sunday." No one answered the phone at St. Catherine's Village Sunday to answer questions about how passes are issued.

To contact Therese Apel, email tapel@gannett.com or call (601) 961-7236. Follow @TRex21 on Twitter.

http://www.clarionledger.com/story/n...iracy/9260015/

Two more arrested over photo of Sen. Thad Cochran’s wife

05/22/14 04:10 PM—UPDATED 05/22/14 04:26 PM

By

Zachary Roth

Two more men have been arrested in connection with a bizarre alleged scheme to illegally photograph the elderly wife of Mississippi Republican Sen. Thad Cochran—a scandal that already has shaken up the state’s GOP primary.

Mark Mayfield, a lawyer and board member of the Central Mississippi tea party, has been charged with conspiracy. And Richard Sager has been charged with tampering of evidence and conspiracy, reports Mississippi’s WLBT, citing a lawyer for political blogger Clayton Kelly.

Kelly, who is said to go by the nickname “Constitutional Clayton,” was charged Friday with breaking into a nursing home in order to photograph Cochran’s wife, Rose, who has been a patient there since 2000. Rose Cochran is reportedly bedridden and suffering from dementia.

Kelly, 28, allegedly posted the photo online, as part of an anti-Cochran video. Kelly is a supporter of tea party favorite Chris McDaniel, who is challenging Cochran for the GOP nomination.

Kelly is charged with conspiracy, exploitation of a vulnerable adult, and photographing an individual without permission.

The sensational episode has shaken up the Senate race, in which McDaniel was seen as having a good chance of upsetting Cochran, who has been in office since 1979. Since news of the break-in surfaced, McDaniel’s campaign has been on the defensive, denying claims that it knew in advance about the plot.

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/scandal-g...d-cochran-wife

Tea Party Chairman Arrested in Connection to Illegal Photographs of Senator’s Wife

by Tina Nguyen | 2:44 pm, May 22nd, 2014


Last week, Clayton Kelly, a political blogger in Mississippi, was arrested for allegedly breaking into a nursing home to get pictures of Rose Cochran to use in a political attack video against her husband, Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS).

However, three new arrests made today hint at a grander conspiracy: The Clarion-Ledger reports that Mark Mayfield, a vice chairman of Mississippi’s Tea Party, was also arrested in connection with the photographing of Mrs. Cochran, who suffers from advanced dementia and is bedridden (authorities haven’t released the name of the other suspects). Both Mayfield and Kelly are vocal supporters of Cochran’s Tea Party challenger, State Senator Chris McDaniel.

Though charges have not yet been announced against Mayfield, Kelly himself faces felony charges of up to ten years for “photographing or filming another without permission where there is expectation of privacy and exploitation of a vulnerable adult.” At Slate, Dave Weigel speculated that Kelly was trying to push rumors that Cochran was having an affair, and attempted to get photos of Rose’s physical state to prove how bedridden she was. “Pointing out that a candidate’s wife is bedridden is more likely to induce sympathy for the candidate than anything else,” he noted dryly. Kelly’s wife has claimed that an anonymous source sent her husband the address to Mrs. Cochran’s nursing home and encouraged him to pursue the story.

The race between McDaniel and Cochran, already furious, went ugly when news of Kelly’s actions broke. Cochran’s campaign openly questioned discrepancies between the timeline of the story breaking, and statements made by McDaniel’s team. While they eventually released a timeline that made sense, the news of an actual political organization’s involvement will certainly bring more scrutiny to their claims that they had nothing to do with it.

UPDATE (3:00 p.m. EST): The name of the second man arrested today has been released. Richard Sager, an elementary school P.E. teacher from Laurel, MS, faces one charge of conspiracy and one charge of tampering with evidence. Mayfield and Kelly are also charged with conspiracy. It’s unknown how Sager is connected with either Mayfield or Kelly.

http://www.mediaite.com/print/tea-pa...senators-wife/

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