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|    MATZDOBRE    |    The Mad Dog Matzdobre Echo    |    343 messages    |
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|    Message 198 of 343    |
|    Jeff Binkley to All    |
|    Justice Department    |
|    07 Jul 10 04:59:00    |
      Let's see how far under the rug Holder will try to sweep this...              ==================================              http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/06/ex-official-accuses-justice-       department-racial-bias-black-panther-case/                     Ex-Official Accuses Justice Department of Racial Bias in Black Panther        Case              Published July 06, 2010              In emotional and personal testimony, an ex-Justice official who quit        over the handling of a voter intimidation case against the New Black        Panther Party accused his former employer of instructing attorneys in        the civil rights division to ignore cases that involve black defendants        and white victims.               J. Christian Adams, testifying Tuesday before the U.S. Commission on        Civil Rights, said that "over and over and over again," the department        showed "hostility" toward those cases. He described the Black Panther        case as one example of that -- he defended the legitimacy of the suit        and said his "blood boiled" when he heard a Justice official claim the        case wasn't solid.               "It is false," Adams said of the claim.               "We abetted wrongdoing and abandoned law-abiding citizens," he later        testified.               The department abandoned the New Black Panther case last year. It        stemmed from an incident on Election Day in 2008 in Philadelphia, where        members of the party were videotaped in front of a polling place,        dressed in military-style uniforms and allegedly hurling racial slurs        while one brandished a night stick.               The Bush Justice Department brought the first case against three members        of the group, accusing them in a civil complaint of violating the Voter        Rights Act. The Obama administration initially pursued the case, winning        a default judgment in federal court in April 2009 when the Black Panther        members did not appear in court. But then the administration moved to        dismiss the charges the following month after getting one of the New        Black Panther members to agree to not carry a "deadly weapon" near a        polling place until 2012.               In a statement Tuesday, a Justice spokesman said the civil rights        division determined "the facts and the law did not support pursuing        claims" against the two other defendants and denied Adams' allegations.               "The department makes enforcement decisions based on the merits, not the        race, gender or ethnicity of any party involved. We are committed to        comprehensive and vigorous enforcement of both the civil and criminal        provisions of the federal laws that prohibit voter intimidation," the        spokesman said.               The Civil Rights Commission, which subpoenaed Adams, has been probing        the incident since last year. Adams said he ignored department        directives not to testify and eventually quit after he heard Assistant        Attorney General Thomas Perez testify that there were concerns the Black        Panther case was not supported by the facts.               Adams has described the case as open-and-shut and said Tuesday that it        was a "very low moment" to hear Perez make that claim.               But he described the department's hostility toward that and other cases        involving black defendants as "pervasive." Adams cited hostility in the        department toward a 2007 voting rights case against a black official in        Mississippi who was accused of trying to intimidate voters. Adams said        that when the Black Panther case came up, he heard officials in the        department say it was "no big deal" and "media-generated" and point to        "Fox News" as the source.               But as the investigation unfolded, he said he discovered "indications"        that the Black Panther Party was doing the "same thing" to supporters of        former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton during the Democratic        primary season in early 2008. He urged the commission to pursue        testimony from other Justice officials to corroborate his story.               It's unclear how far the commission will get. The commissioners want to        hear from Christopher Coates, the former chief of the Justice        Department's voting section, but the commission claims the Justice        Department is blocking Coates from testifying about why the case was        dropped.               In a written statement last week, the department questioned the motives        of Adams, now an attorney in Virginia and a blogger for Pajamas Media.               "It is not uncommon for attorneys with the department to have good faith        disagreements about the appropriate course of action in a particular        case, although it is regrettable when a former department attorney        distorts the facts and makes baseless allegations to promote his or her        agenda," the statement said.               Adams said Tuesday that his personal views played no part in his        handling of the case. He also said he did not fight to testify before        the commission but resigned after the department would not take action        to quash the subpoena.              CMPQwk 1.42-21 9999        Hope and change = $1T deficit and 10%+ unemployment .....              --- PCBoard (R) v15.3/M 10        * Origin: (1:226/600)    |
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