Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Is "Watchdog" Awakening on Siegelman Case?

The Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) in the U.S. Department of Justice is supposed to act as a watchdog, keeping a sharp eye on possible misconduct by federal prosecutors.

With evidence of prosecutorial misconduct mounting around the country, one must wonder if the OPR watchdog has overdosed on Ambien.

Particularly troubling is a report from Richard B. Schmitt, of The Los Angeles Times, noting OPR's penchant for shrouding its work in secrecy. Schmitt's report indicates the sleuths at OPR are more interested in covering up prosecutorial misconduct than in bringing it to light.

With that as a backdrop, Tommy Stevenson of the Tuscaloosa News reports that OPR officials, at long last, have contacted the attorneys for former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, the subject of the best-known case of possible political prosecution by the Bush Justice Department.

A reasonable person might think that OPR would have contacted Siegelman's attorneys months ago. But the wheels of "justice" turn slowly, and very unreliably, in BushWorld. Stevenson says it is too early to know if the contact from OPR is anything more than a courtesy call.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

It may be nothing but perpetual optimism on my part but I do feel that some of the career federal employees have to see the hand writing on the wall and know that they will need to show the next administration that they did something to expose the Bush administration's illegal activities. They have to know it will all come out over the first year or so of the Obama administration and it will be a career killing judgment if they are found to have helped in the cover-up.

Jim Gundlach

Anonymous said...

Check out this interview at http://www.waka.com/

This is a CBS 8 News Exclusive -- Former Gov. Don Siegelman sits down with CBS 8 News for his first interview with an Alabama TV station since his release from federal prison