United States v. Pursley

HOLMES, Circuit Judge.

Defendant Carl William Pursley, Jr., was charged, along with three codefendants, (1) with conspiring to retaliate against a witness in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1513(b)(1) and 371 (2005), 1 and (2) with retaliating against a witness in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1513(b)(1) and aiding and abetting the commission of this crime in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2. The testimony of a witness named Jessie Cluff had been used to secure a conviction against Mr. Pursley for various tax-fraud offenses. After testifying, Mr. Cluff was brutally beaten in a cell at the courthouse. A video…