During my years as a practicing lawyer, I came in contact with several impressive Black lawyers with degrees from prestigious schools. Almost all of them were–like me–practitioners of civil or corporate law, usually with one of the larger law firms. The Blacks I knew who did practice criminal law were all defense lawyers. And it goes without saying (so I’ll say it), during those years, they all encountered considerable discrimination.
So what made Kamala Harris decide to be a prosecutor? I think that early decision sheds considerable light on her judgement, her capacity to analyze the legal landscape and determine how best to seek justice.
The politics of criminal justice have inured most of us to a lopsided view of a prosecutor’s role. In communities large and small, lawyers have for years run for the office on promises to bring “law and order,” to be “tough on crime” and to “put the bad guys away.” We do want to put bad guys away, but we also want to be sure that the guys we’re putting away are really the bad guys. And even a cursory attention to the news confirms that–in too many places–innocent people have been imprisoned or worse. (Also in too many places, those errors have been the result of prosecutorial misconduct.)
It’s important that a prosecutor be concerned with justice–not simply with a win/loss ratio.
What triggered this observation was a recent article in the Indianapolis Star about the exoneration of a man who’d spent 15 years behind bars for a crime he didn’t commit. The case against Anthony Bedolla had unraveled amid allegations of potential police misconduct and constitutional violations.
A re-examination of Bedolla’s murder conviction raised serious concerns about whether detectives arrested the wrong man, then failed to disclose evidence that someone else may have been the killer. Instead, they relied largely on the testimony of a compromised and unreliable eyewitness, according to Bedolla’s petition for post-conviction relief.
Last week, a Marion County judge granted the petition and dismissed the charges against Bedolla, who had been sentenced to 45 years in prison for the killing.
The lawyers who obtained Bedolla’s release worked for the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic and the Conviction Integrity Unit of the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office. I have been aware of the existence of that Unit, which was created by Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears. to “identify, remedy and prevent wrongful convictions” because my youngest granddaughter has interned with the Unit since her senior year in high school. (She’s now entering her junior year in college.) She will also be participating in the opening and operation of the Indiana affiliate of the national Innocence Project.
As Mirror Indy has reported, the establishment of that affiliate is something of a homecoming for its director, Fran Watson, and “will build on her decades-long career as the director of IU McKinney law school’s Wrongful Conviction Clinic, which was a founding member of the Innocence Network.” As she explained to the Mirror, while innocence work exposes the reality of wrongful convictions, and the various reasons for them, it was really the science of DNA that made exonerations possible.
Without DNA, no one would ever believe public defender people like me who said they’re innocent. Then DNA comes along, and the math is the math, and the numbers are the numbers, and they don’t lie, you have the wrong man in prison, and you lied to put them there.
My granddaughter was present when Anthony Bedolla was released. She’s passionate about justice, and–at least at this point–intending to go to law school. (And yes, I am one proud grandma.) But the reason I mention her participation is that without it, I would not have had the opportunity to interact with Ryan Mears, who–like Kamala Harris–became a prosecutor for the right reasons.
It was Mears who established the “Integrity Unit” in the Marion County Prosecutors office. Mears is one of an emerging generation of prosecutors who understand that the justice system has two equally important tasks: to put away the people who pose a danger to public safety, and to ensure that the people being incarcerated are, indeed, the people who deserve that punishment– that the real “bad guy” isn’t still free to harm others.
Public respect for the criminal justice system requires attention to both tasks.
Marion County is fortunate to have someone in that office who understands the importance of both of those obligations. And if Kamala Harris becomes President, we will be incredibly fortunate to have a Chief Executive who understood the importance of systemic justice at a time when far fewer of us did.
At an impressionable age, Donald Trump’s father lied on his behalf to avoid the draft. Trump learned early if you have wealth and power it is OK to abuse the system that holds all accountable to the rule of law … with a few anointed exceptions. Trump now offers theater for empty promises apparently his base feeds off of. His theater sells newspapers. Everyday, Trump gets free advertising. Harris campaigns for practical policy reform she is confident can be done, but it doesn’t sell newspapers.
Prosecutors everyday are advancing the rule of law, but they don’t get news coverage … corrupt lawyers do. Corruption and sordid drama sells newspapers.
It is left to the intelligent electorate to see through the drama of theater and vote for the candidate who has the confidence of, yes, Deep State and our standing armed forces to do what is right to defend our Constitution and a just society where everyone gets a fair chance to succeed.
As a prosecutor in good standing, Harris will be tough on crime and corruption. The bully’s in the playground will retreat into the shadows, but the likes of Trump will have nowhere to hide.
His father couldn’t live forever to lie for him.
Exactly! It’s amazing that we ignore misconduct by both the police AND the prosecutor. I’m a cynic and I admit it, but I really don’t like the fact that it seems like the use of grand juries is primarily a way for prosecutors to avoid the inconvenient issue of official misconduct. The prosecution calls all the shots, but it’s not his fault that the jury returned a no-bill? Not likely.
What should we do about it? One solution would be to have independent lawyers act as grand jury consultants. A second would be to take the issue out of the hands of the prosecutors and put it in the hands of a committee that would be made up of a prosecutor, a police officer, a defense attorney and three citizens from different sections of the county.
Two questions and a comment
1. How does a citizen make a responsible choice when voting for a prosecutor? Are there other quantifiable components to measure success?
2. What repercussions does a prosecutor face when a prisoner is exonerated?
3. I think your pride in your granddaughter is well-deserved and I’m glad you shared that here.
Thank you for telling us about the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic and the Conviction Integrity Unit of the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office. It is good to know there are lawyers in Indiana that care enough about wrongful convictions to actually do something about them.
I wish there was a way to prosecute and punish judges for their own criminal behavior or absolute refusal to obey the laws they are entrusted with in cases they preside over. Judges are far too protected – at least in Indiana they are. Years ago I filed a formal complaint against a judge for exparte communication and for clearly ruling against the state’s child support laws. He was investigated and obviously found guilty, but there is no public record of it so I have no idea if he suffered any punishment. All I knew about was that he suddenly recused himself from the case – after his prior refusal to do so when I petitioned for that a year earlier.
I’ll say it again – Judges are far too protected by our legal system. If a judge willfully rules against the laws I believe they should, at the very least, lose their job as a judge and possibly also be disbarred so they could not even work as a lawyer. They should be held to a much higher legal standard.
I suspect Sheila has much more faith in the legal process than I do. Maybe it’s because I live in one of the most corrupt counties in Indiana and have witnessed more than enough in my days as a journalist. I had evidence from a source of clear fraud by a judge and two lawyers in our county. I contacted the Indy FBI office twice and was told agents would be stopping by to pick up the documents. They never showed up.
Mind you, this was after the FBI spent two years investigating primarily the Democratic Party officials for fraud. It was everywhere. You would think our county prosecutor might have sniffed some of that out on his own without the FBI’s help, but it’s one happy family in Delaware County.
Therefore, I have no faith in our criminal justice system because the wolves are holding the wolves accountable. The local corrupt judge, who was raking in piles of cash based on tax sales of personal property, was allowed to retire without any charges made against her.
With that kind of poor judgment, how often did they make the wrong call on a defendant represented by an unskilled public defender?
I suspect there are many innocent people serving time in our jails and prisons for crimes they didn’t commit but couldn’t afford an expensive lawyer, so one was appointed to them, sealing their fate.
It doesn’t end with local prosecutors. How about Antonin Scalia’s gibberish-laden Citizens United decision? And then there are the three Trump appointees … Their lying and hypocrisy/corruption is as clear as today’s headlines. And who can ignore the incredibly idiotic/corrupt performances of Alito and Thomas? Does prosecutorial misconduct begin at the top, or does it diffuse upward until we get these wooden-headed liars in SCOTUS?
Did I mention that the above-listed “justices” were appointed by Republicans? Oh, snap!
Whew! True: there are on occasion some bad apples in the criminal justice barrel that, when they come to light, suggest that the whole batch is rotten. But there are far more instances of integrity and competence and personal sacrifice and dedication to justice and the rule of law being played out on a daily basis which never make it into public view. It’s not a perfect system by any means, but the imperfections most often reflect the personal failures of individual participants who violate their oaths of office, rather than structural failures. I know this for a fact!
Kudos top your youngest daughter!
Kudos to any, and every, part of any Innocence Project!
Trump is a circus, and the clowns get sooo much attention.
Back in the 80s, I got a divorce through the Notre Dame law office in which some students represented me and the professor was the legal entity to make it all legal. It was free to me which is what I could afford. The students were great. I’m happy to see that they have expanded that office to serve in the Innocence project. There are some good things that came out of Indiana.
“Freedom and justice for all.” The legal profession maintains justice according to the laws passed by Congress and state legislators that define what is criminal and what is not.
Part of the wildfire that brought us and maintains MAGA is distrust in the institution of law. It’s time to get that fire under control and be vigilant about stamping out all remains of it.
Society cannot operate without justice and government.
Congratulations to your granddaughter (and grandma, too). It gives me faith in the future of the profession in which I spent more than 40 years.
You’re so right, Sheila, I’ve said, over and over again, to those who have little appreciation for the critical two-part responsibility of a prosecutor, that we want excellent people, with commitment and integrity, in this role. We have seen, altogether too often, the other kind. As you say, Sheila, “we do want to put bad guys away, but we also want to be sure that the guys we’re putting away are really the bad guys. And even a cursory attention to the news confirms that–in too many places–innocent people have been imprisoned or worse. (Also in too many places, those errors have been the result of prosecutorial misconduct.)”
Prosecutors who intentionally shield evidence or rely on questionable sources to get “a win,” rare face consequences. They certainly should given the consequences of their actions, not least the imprisonment of innocent people while they guilty go free. It’s unconscionable that “the office” is insulated from accountability.
My grandson started his legal career this year–in Michigan–following his graduation from Ohio State’s Moritz School of Law! I heartily agree with the previous commenter, his presence in the profession gives me faith.
It’s important that a prosecutor be concerned with justice–not simply with a win/loss ratio.
Did I mis-read the CNN article where the orange hairball said he was perfectly justified in election interference in 2021? Jack Smith is doing his best to prosecute this arrogant, blatant criminal. Too bad the courts don’t follow the swift justice doctrine anymore.
The festering carbuncle that is Donald Trump will never see prison if SCOTUS has its way. Sickening
Vernon – the question you brought up about a statement the orange hairball made doesn’t surprise me at all. Ever since the despicable extreme right wingers on the country’s top court (I just cannot refer to them as supreme) told the entire world that they will let him get away with whatever he wants to, they might as well have plainly stated that he could order innocent citizens to be murdered just for refusing to vote for him.
Sheila – it looks like a few of us on this blog have experienced that there is no system to hold unethical judges accountable. In a future blog post would you consider explaining why judges aren’t held to strict ethical standards, even if those standards exist? I would also like to know why the ‘system’ decided that judges’ reputations and their ability to keep their jobs is much more important than holding them accountable for their dishonest and/or criminal actions.
Sheila – You have much to be proud about in your granddaughter. It gives us hope for the future.
Kudos to Fran Watson (whom I’ve long admired), Ryan Mears, the Notre Dame folks, your granddaughter, and you.
Taxpayers and journalists don’t have the time, resources, or expertise to root out the mistakes of our criminal justice system. I wish all law schools would do what Fran Watson and Notre Dame are doing to engage law students and professors to monitor our criminal justice system. That provides a real-world education as well as a public service to the criminal justice community and to the community at large – a win-win-win.
Thank you Fran and Notre Dame for being such great role models for justice.