Maligned Denver Federal Judge Shortens IRP6 Defendant's Sentence Based on Fantastic Lies

Denver, CO -- (ReleaseWire) -- 07/06/2017 --The IRP6 case concerns six information technology executives of the IRP Solutions Corporation (David A. Banks, Kendrick Barnes, David A. Zirpolo, Clinton A. Stewart, Demetrius K. Harper and Gary L. Walker) who were wrongly-convicted of conspiracy and mail and wire fraud charges and have spent nearly 5 years in prison. The government absurdly claimed the IRP6, through their company IRP Solutions that developed a sophisticated software program to help law enforcement collaborate and share information, somehow duped staffing companies into extending credit to them by making false statements about having a current or impending contract with a large law enforcement agency such as the Department of Homeland Security. Former federal appeals judge H. Lee Sarokin confirm that the IRP6 were prosecuted, convicted and received unduly harsh prison sentences for "failing to pay corporate debt" and trial records show that the government's own witnesses debunked the indictment's allegations and proved the government's case to be a fraud. The six men would not be pressured into a plea deal by court appointed attorneys who they say were not interested in using overwhelming proof of their innocence from government discovery to fight for them. As a result, they fired their attorneys and represented themselves.

On June 28, 2017, Judge Christine M. Arguello, shockingly cut IRP6 defendant Gary Walker's sentence in half after he audaciously claimed that he was not in control of his mind when he made the decision to represent himself. Court records allegedly show Walker repeatedly saying that his decision to represent himself was an individual decision and not a result of coercion. But Walker now fantastically asserts in recent court filings related to his post-conviction ineffective assistance of counsel proceeding, that his decision to fire his attorney was based on him being under the spell of his mother-in-law, Pastor Rose M. Banks of the Colorado Springs Fellowship Church (CSFC), where he, his wife and his son have attended for decades. Walker also claimed that Pastor Banks kept him away from his family and that the other 5 IRP6 defendants committed a crime even if they deny it. Walker, the President of IRP Solutions says he was not really the President and that Pastor Banks was running the company. IRP6 defendant David Banks discusses Walker's statements about his sister, who is Walker's wife, and Pastor Banks, who is Banks' mother.

"I think everyone will agree that a man like Gary Walker, who, in his fifties, changes his story multiple times and blames his personal decisions on his pastor, mother-in-law and wife is not a real man, but the world's biggest coward," says IRP6 Defendant Banks. "Gary claiming that my mother was running our company and that he was a front-man President who knew nothing of our business activities is an unbelievable lie," adds Banks. "Rose Banks is 72 years old and virtually knows nothing about computers or cell phones (except to answer it when it rings) and definitely knows nothing about the software business or staffing industry," says Banks. "Irrespective of Gary's despicable and cowardly actions and absurd lies, the facts and evidence in this case shows nothing but our innocence," adds Banks (IRP6). "Our case was a civil matter turned criminal by the government and no amount of lies told by Gary will change that," says Banks. "Judge Arguello knows this is true and so does the AUSA Matthew Kirsch and former U.S. Attorney John Walsh," adds Banks. "Our fidelity and unwavering allegiance is to the truth and I would die before I sell out my mother, my sister, my codefendants or any other person by telling lies to get a shortened sentenced after being wrongly convicted and imprisoned," exclaims Banks (IRP6). "It is unconscionable that Gary hatched this fraudulent scheme and chose to throw his wife and mother-in-law under bus in an attempt to get out of prison when the facts and evidence support his innocence," says Banks.

A Just Cause questions the legitimacy of Judge Arguello's bizarre handling of Walker's ineffective assistance of counsel proceeding and will be asking Congress to investigate why Judge Arguello not only sealed these proceedings from the public but shortened Walker's sentence after he had served nearly half of his sentence based on an absurd new claim that his mind was under the total control of Pastor Banks. Judge Arguello permitted numerous disgruntled church members who were unaffiliated with the case and left the church years many years ago to provide affidavits demonizing Pastor Banks and attacking her good reputation in the community, but never requested affidavits from the other 5 defendants. Judge Arguello also permitted testimony from Chaplain Henderson of the Florence federal prison camp to discuss his opinions of how Pastor Banks applied the word of God with Walker. "The chaplain made no attempt to contact Pastor Banks and ask her about Walker's claims," says Lisa Stewart of A Just Cause. "Inmate accusations against prison staff are routinely dismissed because they believe inmates are nothing more than lying crooks, but Chaplain Henderson was all too ready to believe the lies Walker was peddling about Pastor Banks," adds Stewart. Chaplain Henderson's hatred for Pastor Banks is nothing new as he refused to allow the IRP6 to view ten DVD's sent from CSFC that were in the prison library.

Judge Arguello also used personal letters from Gary's wife Yolanda expressing her anger and frustration with Walker's treatment of her mother and letters from Pastor Banks to Walker telling him, in essence, that God will punish him and his father for lying. This is Pastor Banks' right and it is based on biblical scripture. The proceeding also shows that Judge Arguello considered how Walker's parents complained about how greeting cards to their grandson were returned to them. "Judge Arguello engaged in misconduct when she used her courtroom to criticize and demean Pastor Banks and the church, cast aspersions on religion and pass judgment on Yolanda Walker's personal letters to her Gary Walker and made negative comment on marital issues that does not concern her," says Stewart. "None of these personal family and religious matters have any place in a post-conviction criminal proceeding related to ineffective assistance of counsel," says Stewart.

Judge Christine M. Arguello and Assistant United States Attorney Matthew T. Kirsch have been under constant public scrutiny and are subject of a judicial complaint (http://bit.ly/2s863pr) and letter to U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts (http://bit.ly/2sfjTpr) that alleges Arguello intentionally disregarded both a federal statute and prevailing laws of the 10th Circuit and Supreme Courts that resulted in violations of the IRP6 defendants 5th and 6th Amendment constitutional rights. The other five defendants filed the complaint without Walker. Former federal appeals judge H. Lee Sarokin confirmed the 5th Amendment violation in the Huffington Post and said there was uncontroverted evidence that Judge Arguello violated the defendants Fifth Amendment rights (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/judge-h-lee-sarokin/the-case-of-the-missing-t_1_b_5340397.html). Pastor Banks and the church have been the targets of Kirsch and Arguello from the beginning.

In the first grand jury in 2007, Kirsch only called church members to testify, including Pastor Banks' daughter Lawanna Clark and her husband, Amos Clark where they all were peppered with questions about Pastor Banks, the church parsonage where she lives, and even asked whether the church was a cult. The grand jury foreman admitted in open court that Pastor Banks, was the target of the government's investigation. "Kirsch and Arguello have been trying to attack and destroy Pastor Banks and the Church from the beginning," says Cliff Stewart of A Just Cause. "First with the grand jury and now they have abused and misused a used a sealed post-conviction court proceeding as subterfuge to attack Pastor Banks' religion and family issues," adds Stewart. "A Just Cause will immediately notify Congress about Judge Arguello's misconduct," concludes Stewart.

"Gary Walker's lies are disgusting and disgraceful and we will defend Rose Banks who is our Pastor, our friend and our second mother," says IRP6 defendant Clinton Stewart.

"When my family deserted me after this wrongful conviction, Pastor Banks and my friends at the church supported me and visit me every week at the prison," says IRP6 defendant David Zirpolo. In the past, when I was out of work for a year, it was Pastor Banks and the church that helped me pay my bills so I wouldn't be put on the street," says Zirpolo "Yolanda has my power of attorney and I trust her with my life," adds Zirpolo.

"There is much more to tell concerning Judge Arguello and Kirsch's attacks on Pastor Banks and CSFC that A Just Cause will be revisiting in the near future, including Kirsch illegally obtaining church and parishioner banking records without a subpoena," says Lamont Banks, Executive Director of A Just Cause.