(3 of 3)
At week's end, the Government seemed close to resting its case. Undoubtedly, further furor will envelop the court, spurred by Judge Hoffman's harsh handling of the defense. He has repeatedly denied defense motions, including a pre-trial request for a ruling on the legality of the Government's wiretaps on some of the accused. At another point, Hoffman refused to accept a defense motion because it had not been filed 24 hours in advance, as required by court rules. The same afternoon, he accepted a new prosecution motion submitting additional wiretap evidence. The judge also threatened to revoke some of the defendants' bail privileges. This move would have stopped trips such as the one Rubin and co-defendant Abbie Hoffman made to Washington to announce plans for a Nov. 15 march on the Justice Department. But Judge Hoffman is determined not to let his courtroom degenerate into greater disorder, and maintains that he was correct in binding Seale. Said Hoffman: "It's the first time I've seen it happen, but it's also the first time I've been called a 'pig.' "