One of best all-time magistrate judges wrote an op-ed in the Miami Herald, DOJ firing of Miami federal prosecutor is a ‘gut punch’ to the rule of law. Some snippets:
Until my recent retirement, I worked for nearly 19 years as a U.S. magistrate judge on our Miami federal trial court in the Southern District of Florida, where I had the honor to preside over a wide variety of criminal and civil lawsuits. Last week I read with despair – for our country – that acting U.S. Attorney General James McHenry fired one of Miami’s finest federal prosecutors, Michael Thakur. Did Thakur not do his job? No. Quite the opposite. Thakur, a Harvard College and Harvard Law School graduate and a 15-year veteran of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, was one of the best to appear before me and my colleagues on the bench. Intelligent, ethical, hardworking, with excellent judgment.
Assistant U.S. attorneys, who are career prosecutors, may only be fired for cause — not for a political reason. They are career civil servants who must fairly apply the law, “without fear or favor.” They serve under both Democratic and Republican administrations, as Thakur did. They do not “implement a president’s agenda,” but rather follow where the facts and the law lead them. During my years on the bench, I watched Thakur represent the U.S. in the courtroom and behind the scenes. Magistrate judges review countless sealed applications submitted by prosecutors investigating crimes, asking for government access to possible evidence. Thakur’s search warrant and similar applications were top notch, carefully prepared and supported by evidence and law. He displayed the same sound judgment in the courtroom as he prosecuted terrorists, foreign spies, narcotics traffickers, fraudsters and violent criminals.
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Our justice system is designed to protect against mistaken, incompetent or even corrupt prosecutors. The DOJ imposes high internal standards on its lawyers, which is another backstop against error. The standards are higher yet for investigations of political figures as the department imposes layers of review of those cases. The dismissal of brilliant, hardworking, conscientious career public servants like Michael Thakur is a gut punch. Thakur is ushered out the door, and the morale of his colleagues tanks. If such unjustifiable dismissals in the DOJ continue, we will no longer have the best among us, proud to serve and protect us. It will take generations for this country, and our institutions, to recover.
3 comments:
It’s not a firing. None of these dismissals are. This is a purge. Make no mistake. And every American should be concerned about it.
Doj is not independent from the executive. You can see why this magistrate judge never got bumped up. Trump can fire anybody in the executive branch for whatever reason
These unelected political lawyers tried to destroy the country. They failed spectacularly
I don't think Judge McAliley was questioning whether Trump had authority to fire Thakur. I think his point was that the firing was unjustified.
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