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Laura Duffy is a federal prosecutor in San Diego. She has apparently made it her mission to obliterate the Arellano Felix cartel.

Don't know if this story made the San Diego press, but I just saw it in today's LA Times. It just might make for a good movie script.

Excerpt-

"The Mexican drug kingpin was shackled to the railing of a U.S. Coast Guard cutter cruising up the coast of Baja California when he saw a curious sight: A hovering helicopter lowering somebody by rope onto the deck of a nearby boat.

The dangling person in the green flight suit was Laura Duffy, a federal prosecutor from San Diego. She had come after getting word that U.S. authorities had arrested the kingpin, Javier Arellano Felix, aboard his yacht on the Gulf of California.

Duffy, a blue-eyed 47-year-old, questioned Arellano Felix that day, but it was her air-drop entry that made a lasting impression. Throughout the case that culminated in 2007 with his being sentenced to life behind bars, Arellano Felix referred to Duffy as La Mujer del Cielo, the woman from the sky."

Full story-


Determined federal prosecutor targets the Tijuana cartel - latimes.com

Wish we could get her working on some of the real scoundrels that are a little closer to home and who have put the country at even greater risk in the financial markets. As good as she may be, her victories against narco criminals are likely to be short lived as articulated in the very same article:

"The Arellano Felix cartel may be on its last legs, but other organized crime groups are probably jockeying to fill the void, they say. And the cartel contributed greatly to its own demise, earning the wrath of rival cartels and the Mexican government, which provided U.S. prosecutors with extraordinary cooperation."

As you know, I have familial ties to Wall Street. Was just in a debate with the young man who works with J P Morgan yesterday. The so-called braintrust on Wall Street is betting that Mexico WILL become the next Colombia. Sheesh. Absolutely the last thing I wanted to emanate from his mouth. I don't believe it. but, when the folks controlling the vast majority of our nation's wealth say such things, kinda makes one shudder.

Good news story! Great publicity for Ms. Duffy. I am guessing she will go far (politically), at least, as long as a Democrat is president.

Originally Posted by Bajahowodd

...The so-called braintrust on Wall Street is betting that Mexico WILL become the next Colombia.

I keep hearing folks trying to make that connection but while there are some similarities, there are also many differences. I was in Colombia many times back in the 80's and the scene was quite different from the one I see today in Mexico. The violence there was much more wide spread and the general public was hard pressed having to "choose sides" between the government, the cartels and FARC as they seemed to become one and the same at times, with FARC wanting to install a new government and constitution, backed by the drug money.

In Mexico the current government is simply following the US wish to keep the fight against the cartels south of the border. The cartels are fighting back but I don't think the cartels want any of the problems or responsibility of taking over the government on some level, which is what was happening in Colombia. If anything I suspect we may well see Mexico slowly back off this war on the cartels. There are no winners in the war here and until the demand ceases north of the border it is a futile fight.

At least that is how I see/saw it...

PS Don't forget that the same brain trust on Wall Street was telling everybody back in 2007 that... well, you know. Too many soon forget it seems...

Oh man, could we start another thread on that one...

Originally Posted by Msterieus

Good news story! Great publicity for Ms. Duffy. I am guessing she will go far (politically), at least, as long as a Democrat is president.

She should be able to go as far as she wants, despite having a Democrat as president

Originally Posted by Teniente

She should be able to go as far as she wants, despite having a Democrat as president

Despite? Oh, come on. Who in their right mind would really think that people in our government would be aiders and abettors of the cartels. Hmmm. I'll go away now.

Do you guys really want to go back and review some of the drug running op's under Republican administrations?

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

Do you guys really want to go back and review some of the drug running op's under Republican administrations?

BG...I learned a long time ago to never go back.........always move forward......

Originally Posted by Teniente

BG...I learned a long time ago to never go back.........always move forward......

Sometimes if we forget the past too easily we develop this bad habit of repeating it over and over again. Keeping the past in mind while pushing forward is what has made my latter years a lot more trouble free than when I first started out...

Originally Posted by Teniente

She should be able to go as far as she wants, despite having a Democrat as president

Maybe you didn't understand. She is a long-term DOJ employee. To rise much further in DOJ likely will require that she be APPOINTED to a position (e.g., US attorney). The Executive Office does the appointing. : }

Originally Posted by Msterieus

Maybe you didn't understand. She is a long-term DOJ employee. To rise much further in DOJ likely will require that she be APPOINTED to a position (e.g., US attorney). The Executive Office does the appointing. : }

AHHHHHHH, now I get it....she is probably better off where she is......less headaches

Originally Posted by Teniente

AHHHHHHH, now I get it....she is probably better off where she is......less headaches

Maybe so, although "just" being an Assistant US Attorney for the rest of her life would not likely be too rewarding. (They don't even get paid that well!)

Oh, and previously, I misspoke. She is NOT necessarily a "long-term DOJ employee;" I gather that her last job was at DEA. So I should have said she was a "long-term Federal Agency employee."

Originally Posted by Bajahowodd

Arellano Felix referred to Duffy as La Mujer del Cielo, the woman from the sky."

More likely, "The woman from heaven."

cielo=heaven [yeah..I know. Cielo translates to SKY as well although in your reference, it would be better assigned to someone in a Cargo Cult. This Arellano dude probably wouldn't be making repeated remarks about someone who came from a chopper]

But...at our scientific best, we all know the sky holds up heaven so it doesn't cave in.

Don't we.


Is this woman a babe? I haven't seen her picture.

Originally Posted by DENNIS

...a babe?...

{snicker}

Google Image Search

How did I KNOW before I even hovered(over each image); let alone clicked...

Hey. Hey. Are you having a DADT moment?

Originally Posted by Bajahowodd

Hey. Hey. Are you having a DADT moment?

Who you be talkin to and what's that?

OK........Google straightened me out on that one.

She does look like she smokes and drinks too much as well as stands to pee.