Bad Prosecutors

Timeline of Events of Dismissal of U.S. Attorneys

Download timeline_of_events.doc

What Should We Do With An Untruthful Attorney General?

The United States Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales, is under immense heat from not only Democrats, but also fellow Republicans for his involvement in the firings of nine United States attorneys.  Although federal prosecutors serve at the President’s discretion, they may not be used as political pawns.  Some of the attorneys have alleged they were targeted because of their involvement in prosecuting political corruption cases against Republicans. Revelation of the dismissed attorneys’ favorable performance reviews, and the Attorney General’s less-than-candid Congressional testimony, drew bi-partisan criticism and have the American public questioning Gonzales’ integrity.

Whether Gonzalez acted illegally remains to be determined. If his Congressional testimony is to be believed, then at the very least, the Attorney General is guilty of shirking his professional responsibility. During his April 19^th questioning Gonzalez repeatedly insisted on his limited involvement in the firings. The Attorney General plays an important role in overlooking the process.  Over the past weeks it has become increasingly more apparent that the decision originated not in the Justice Department, but the White House instead. New emails indicate the involvement of the ubiquitous Karl Rove. This reason alone is enough for many to call for Gonazales’ resignation.

But the uproar over the U.S. attorney firings is only one of a string controversies surrounding Gonzales including his much publicized denial of the right to habeas corpus in the U.S. Constitution and his involvement in the President’s warrantless wiretapping program. In shocking testimony, former Deputy Attorney General James Comey, who lead the Justice Department in the absence of an ailing John Aschcroft, described a nighttime visit by Gonzales to Ashcroft’s hospital room. Accompanied by then White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card, Gonzales attempted to persuade Ashcroft to sign an authorization of the NSA’s domestic surveillance program that Justice had already determined to be illegal.

While Democrats continue to rally around the Attorney General’s misdeeds in calling for his ouster, Republicans seem to be focusing primarily on Gonzales’ perceived lack of candor while under Congressional investigation. Throughout his questioning Gonzales was vague and elusive. So frequently did he claim to have forgotten key events and conversations related to the U.S. attorney firings that one Senator commented facetiously about his concern for the Attorney General’s memory. In addition to alienating members of his own party, Gonzales’ testimony did also not sit well with the American public. From the Los Angeles Times, to the Washington Post letters poured in expressing frustration and disgust for the man who tasked with protecting our civil rights.

Firing attorneys to obstruct an official proceeding is illegal. So is lying to Congress. It is no wonder that a no-confidence vote appears to be forthcoming.

Comical Satire of Alberto Gonzales

Duke case aftermath

Our firm has been following the Michael Nifong ordeal quite closely.  Please read this article published in the Houston paper about jury selection for rape trials, in particular the section about prosecutors "inclined to bend the truth."

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/4852403.html

Is it that our Local Attorney Can Do No Wrong or Why Won't the Houston Chronicle Do What's Right?

With recent media buzz about the United States Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and his role in the dismissal of nine United States Attorneys, many members of Congress from both parties have called for his resignation.  Not only that, many writers, columnists, and editorials from various newspapers around the country have commented on the actions of the Attorney General and believe he should step down from his position.  Yet, the Houston Chronicle’s editorial section has only alluded to his resignation, but still has not demanded Gonzales to resign.  This raises the questions: 1) Why does the Houston Chronicle specifically not mention that he should resign and 2) Is the Houston Chronicle improperly favoring a Houston attorney?  The public has a right to know.

Joseph Nichols case

The execution of Houston resident Joseph Nichols occured two months ago, however it could have been prevented had it not been for an attorney "so inept he was ultimately disbarred."  Please read the summary article from the Houston Chronicle below.

http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2007_4300407

Genarlow Wilson case

The trial and eventual imprisonment of young Genarlow Wilson made headlines two years ago.  Unfortunately, the behavior of Georgia DA David McDade requires particular scrutiny to this day. 

He charged Mr. Wilson with raping a girl though a jury ultimately acquitted him of the charge. He also distributed a graphic videotape of the events in the case to legislators as part of a lobbying effort at the State senate against Wilson's release.  McDade's actions are irresponsible at best.  Please read more about this injustice by following the links below.

Atlanta Magazine article

ESPN: The Magazine article

Relentless defense

A recent commentary on unethical prosecutors from Relentlessdefense.com. This is another great web resource.

http://www.relentlessdefense.com/prosecutors.html

Incompetent prosecutors involved with Daniel Yeh case

As some of you may know, our firm is currently handling the Daniel Yeh competency case.  Please see my recent editorial in the Galveston County Daily News, as it highlights our dealings with federal prosectutors thus far.

Download yeh_editorial.doc

Ethics Scoreboard

I came across an interesting website recently sponsored by the founders of ProEthics, LTD.  The ethics "scoreboard" spotlights different ethics programs on a variety of topics, including legal ethics, sexual harassment, government and lobbying ethics, business and compliance, etc.  Take a look.  Perhaps this can serve as a resource for up-do-date ethics information from numerous different fields.

http://www.ethicsscoreboard.com/index.html