The Division of Justice has provide you with a reasonably distinctive litigation technique within the paper-thin case towards New York Legal professional Basic Letitia James: antagonize the choose overseeing the case. I do know, BOLD!
U.S. District Choose Jamar Walker ordered the federal government to offer discovery to James’s authorized crew associated to their vindictive/selective prosecution argument. However as an alternative of getting their paperwork so as, the DOJ went all Bartleby, the Scrivener, saying they like to not.
Yesterday, the federal government filed “Discover Of Causes For Not Offering Pre-Vindictive/Selective Prosecution Movement Associated Discovery.” Which was only a fancy approach of claiming the DOJ was going to go all Eric Cartman and do what they need and ignore the choose. The submitting, signed by Roger Keller Jr., introduced in from the Missouri workplace to present an help to the woefully inexperienced interim U.S. Legal professional Lindsey Halligan, is a wild romp (for a courtroom doc) that makes an attempt to impose the federal government’s will on the courtroom.
“Within the October 24, 2025, continuing, the Court docket instructed america of America (the Authorities) to offer Defendant with vindictive/selective prosecution-related discovery earlier than she filed any such movement. The Court docket’s instruction is untimely because the Authorities bears no such obligation till a defendant ‘overcomes a big barrier by advancing goal proof tending to point out the existence of prosecutorial misconduct. This customary is a ‘rigorous’ one.’”
And there’s extra! Keller continues that the regulation “doesn’t ‘enable[ ] a defendant to have discovery on the federal government’s prosecutorial selections [until] the defendant … overcome[s] a big barrier by advancing goal proof tending to point out the existence of prosecutorial misconduct.”
“The Order to provide vindictive/selective prosecution-related discovery earlier than Defendant filed her movement relieved her of her obligation to beat the prosecution’s presumptive lawfulness with ‘proof tending to point out the existence of prosecutorial misconduct,’” the submitting reads. “The Authorities shouldn’t be required to provide vindictive/[selective] prosecution-related discovery till Defendant overcomes the presumption of the prosecution’s lawfulness.”
What a fully insane factor to learn in a DOJ submitting! No movement to rethink the courtroom’s order, only a daring proclamation — nah, we’re not doing that. What a completely odd response. Don’t consider me? Nicely, let’s verify in with a conservative authorized commentator.
When the far-right authorized technique is to this point afield you have got Ed Whelan — the person who will gladly peddle conspiracy theories for the trigger — balking, methinks you’ve gone too far.
Choose Walker certainly thinks so.
“The Court docket has obtained the federal government’s submitting relating to discovery on the problem of vindictive and/or selective prosecution. The Order on the events’ collectively really useful discovery plan governs discovery on this case,” the choose mentioned. “To the extent any discovery dispute arises, the events could deal with it in a movement.”
Appears to be like like he’ll be retaining a reasonably tight leash on the events.
Learn the total submitting under.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Regulation, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the very best, so please join together with her. Be at liberty to e mail her with any ideas, questions, or feedback and observe her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @[email protected].
