THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION is on a losing streak against some of its loudest critics, as federal cases targeting opponents of aggressive immigration enforcement fall apart in courts nationwide.
In the span of a week, prosecutors failed to bring convictions in two high-profile cases in Los Angeles federal court. In the first, a jury acquitted Bobby Nuñez, a tow-truck driver who hooked an ICE vehicle and was charged with stealing government property. In the second, a judge dismissed the case against Carlitos Ricardo Parias, a TikToker who was facing assault and property damage charges after a confrontation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, due to concerns that officials had violated his civil rights. (In the October 21 confrontation, an ICE agent shot him.)
“These arrests are a form of retaliation by the government,” said Matthew Borden, an attorney representing protesters, journalists, and legal observers in a lawsuit against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stemming from protests in Southern California over the past year. “When you have a real judge and a real jury looking at the evidence, it just falls apart.”
It’s punishment by exprbitant legal fees. Jusges should start billing the costs of defending failed vindictive prosecutions to the government, or better yet, hold the prosecutors personally liable in those cases.
These defeats in court are good—necessary, even—but the protestors are still being prosecuted, put in jail, subjected to cash bond requirements and required to hire defense counsel. Yes, the Trump Admin loses a lot, but it doesn’t have to win every case to chill and deter opposition. The power imbalance is still a huge threat when a would-be autocrat can bring the full force of the federal government to bear on individual citizens. I want to see more AUSAs declining to prosecute at all, they have independent obligations as officers of the court to follow the constitution.
Amen to that! On the other hand, they know they are pushing uphill and they know there are plenty people that disapprove of what they are doing. Hence the masked faces of shame.
Tough because they will surely be fired if they do this. What good does that do?
The whole system needs reform at minimum to prevent this happening again.
You’re almost certainly right, they will be fired if they disobey the would-be autocrat. That’s basically what happened in Nixon’s “Saturday Night Massacre” when he wanted to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox. Attorney General Elliot Richadson refused and resigned immediately. So too did Deputy AG William Ruckelshaus. Then loyal fascism supporter Robert Bork did as instructed, and the story of the resignations became bigger than the firing of Cox, leading to the impeachment proceedings and a new special prosecutor.
I don’t really disagree with you, the system needs significant reform, and losing good career professionals is bad for everyone. But it’s worth it to fight like hell at every stage, it slows them down and sometimes the opposition shifts public sentiment.
I’m just wondering if you can do more on the inside now. Trump has fired people left and right and it didn’t really become a major news story. This level of authoritarianism has just become normal.
“You can beat the rap but you can’t beat the ride”
…and maybe some jail time, maybe lose your job, fall into debt, etc.
I am sorry, what? They dropped that charges against him. Okay. HE WAS FUCKING SHOT?! How about actually putting THOSE behind bars? This is REALLY not the good news you make it out to be. The fuck do they care?
Prosecutors care a lot about their conviction rates, so if they keep consistently losing in court they’ll be less likely to bring the cases to court in the first place.
It’s good news, not great news. Don’t let perfection stand in the way of good; take the small wins when you can.
