Some Ask if U.S. Attorney Dismissals Point to Pattern of Investigating Democrats

[maddezmom]

WASHINGTON, April 30 — When a jury acquitted Carl J. Marlinga, a former county prosecutor from suburban Detroit, of bribery charges last year, his initial reaction was to write off the episode as a terrible mistake that at least had been corrected.

“Prosecutors can make mistakes for innocent reasons,” Mr. Marlinga said. “I know that first hand.”

But as he looks back at the case, Mr. Marlinga, 60, who was charged while he was a Democratic candidate for Congress, no longer has such confidence in the integrity of the legal system.

“Was there some extra pressure on the United States attorney’s office, whether articulated or tacitly understood, by their superiors in Washington who would not look favorably upon the office if this case was not pursued?” he asked. “I have to wonder.”

That kind of second guessing has surfaced with increasing frequency in recent weeks in states including Alabama, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Since the dismissals of eight United States attorneys, local lawyers, politicians, editorial writers, members of Congress and defendants are questioning what they say is a pattern of investigating Democrats. They point to inquiries that drag on for years but end with no charges, an acquittal or convictions for relatively modest infractions.

more:http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/01/washington/01corrupt.html

[aquart]

1. Dirty, dirty, dirty.

[Demeter]

2. Given the Tenor of the Times, I'd Say YES

This prosecution was politically motivated and instigated at the highest levels: in the White House.

Why else were former GOP state officials Senator Spencer Abraham and Governor John Engler "retiring" in DC, instead of Michigan? The climate isn't that much better, and the cost of living is much higher. And if it's the white bread / redneck life you want, Michigan is your state of choice.