The American Bar Association’s ethical standard 2.1 reads: “When deciding whether to initiate or continue an investigation, the prosecutor should not be influenced by partisan or other improper political considerations…or hostility or personal animus toward a potential subject.”
No reasonable person can believe sincerely that New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) did not breach her ethical duty under this strict professional standard. To the contrary, she obliterated any semblance of fairness and impartiality with a pernicious investigation driven by prejudice. Her hatred of Trump is palpable and laid bare for all to see in her many chronic condemnations of him before she ever opened her investigation.
Unwittingly, James has delivered to Trump a jurisprudential gift and self-sabotaged her own ability to prosecute. Beyond recusal, he could demand that any criminal charges filed must be dismissed due to overwhelming evidence of bias. In other words, James has been chasing Trump, not crimes. This is a flagrant violation of his due process rights which are designed to protect citizens from abusive prosecutions. Her own incriminating words would be used against her.
If a motion to dismiss fails, Trump could argue what’s known as “selective prosecution” as a procedural defense. That is, he was singled out by James for political and personal reasons, thus violating the guarantee of equal protection under the law.
Once again, the invectives hurled by the attorney general against Trump constitutes strong evidence that she specifically targeted him in an unequal way compared to countless other developers who have utilized identical methods of calculating real estate values, loans, and tax breaks. In several cases, the U.S. Supreme Court has reminded prosecutors that they are constitutionally forbidden to bring criminal charges “that have a discriminatory effect and are motivated by a discriminatory purpose.”
Bear in mind that any criminal case brought by James would be exceedingly difficult to prove. In valuing his holdings, seeking loans, and filing taxes, Trump has always relied scrupulously on the judgment and advice of real estate experts, lawyers, and tax accountants. Proving that he “intended” to violate the law by following the counsel of experienced professionals would be a tremendously high burden for any prosecutor to achieve.
But for someone like James, it’s an impossible burden. Her skills as a lawyer are unimpressive to say the least. She couldn’t manage to successfully prosecute a J-walking ticket.
This is probably why James decided recently to join forces with a fellow Democrat and T.D.S. sufferer, Manhattan District Cyrus Vance Jr. He has been flogging his own politically-motivated investigation of Trump. When asked by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals what evidence he had of any financial impropriety or illegality, Vance refused to reveal to the judges exactly why Trump is under investigation. So, there you have it. It’s kind of like double-secret probation in the film “Animal House.” Vance is playing the part of the slimy Dean Wormer who famously said, “The time has come for someone to put his foot down…and that foot is me.” Right. The plain language translation is this: Vance doesn’t have jack. He’s just fishing…and always has been. And so has Letitia James.
For nearly three years, James has been waging an implacable political and personal vendetta against the 45th president. In so doing, she has undermined herself, corrupted her high office, and debased the rule of law that was founded on the principle of fundamental fairness. The words “Equal Justice” are not a mere nuisance engraved on the pediment of the Supreme Court. They are a necessity in our constitutional republic.
Letitia James is the one who should be investigated for her malicious actions.