Norman Hsu wants a do-over on grand-theft case

The San Francisco Chronicle reports:

Disgraced Democratic fundraiser Norman Hsu should be allowed to dump a 15-year-old plea agreement that could send him to state prison for three years because the state didn't try hard enough to find him after he fled before sentencing, his attorney said this morning.

Law enforcement officials "could have found (Hsu) in literally one minute of effort," said James Brosnahan, standing outside a Redwood City courtroom. "He was public, he was visible and politicians loved being in his company.

"It makes a tremendous difference that this case was allowed to sit there for 15 years."

Hsu, dressed in an orange sweat suit with "Prisoner" stamped across the back, appeared briefly before a judge today to request a new court date. He answered "yes" when Judge Stephen Hall of San Mateo County Superior Court asked if he would waive his right to a speedy trial.

He is set to return to court Nov. 2, when the judge will be asked to decide whether Hsu should be allowed to withdraw his no-contest plea in a 1991 grand theft case. Prosecutors say Hsu ran a Ponzi scheme that cost his investors more than $900,000.

The amazing Norman Hsu.