I Heard You on My Wireless Back in '52

Well, since I have my inaugural brief due in less than a week, I thought it would be a good idea to add something to my research pile. Seems wise doesn't it?


I may have told some of you this already, but pending a Justice Department background check, I will be interning for two months this summer at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas-Tyler Division. Ever since I contemplated the possibility of interning at the U.S. Attorney's office, I have been doing some research on what the various U.S. Attorneys are involved in across our country. My perusal of various websites and magazines has led me to this story.


For those of you who are not lovers of the law, U.S. Attorneys are appointed by the President in the same fashion as Federal judges. (This applies to the U.S. Attorney for the various Federal Districts across the U.S. and not necessarily to the Assistant U.S. Attorneys who work in each office). The article that I linked to above details the fact that 8 U.S. Attorneys across the country have recently been dismissed from their posts.


There are some who believe that the dismissals are related to the prosecutors' decisions to not pursue cases that are very politically sensitive, but members of the Justice Department have stated that the dismissals were related to a mutual disagreement over the direction that should be pursued at the various offices. A large part of the speculation that the dismissals were politically motivated centers on the fact that a majority of the dismissed prosecutors had received recent positive evaluations regarding their workplace performance.


Maybe some of the readers of this blog may not be excited about my decision to pursue this story, but my education has continued to show me that many executive branch departments have the tension-laden task of balancing between the political aims of the President and the need to be a neutral, faithful enforcer of the laws of our nation. We can learn a great deal about our national values when we examine the intersection between politics and law enforcement.

I had to stop myself before almost using the "Irresistible force/Immovable object" analogy. I'm pretty sure that Prof. CrimPro would not have been able to contain his glee if that had come to pass. Sorry, Professor. I just could not bring myself to do it. Maybe next time.