Malicious prosecution? Perish the thought...
Ballistics reports, used in the trial of Ignacio "Nacho" Ramos, one of two Border Patrol agents convicted of shooting fleeing drug dealer Osbaldo Aldrete-Davila, do not support the prosecution's claim the bullet was fired from Ramos' gun, according to documents provided to WND from Andy Ramirez, chairman of the Friends of the Border Patrol.
Despite the conclusion of a laboratory criminalist that he could not conclusively link the bullet removed from Aldrete-Davila with Ramos' service weapon, a Department of Homeland Security agent swore, in an affidavit of complaint filed against Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean, that Aldrete-Davila was hit by a round fired by Ramos.
"Johnny Sutton and his assistants are guilty of malicious prosecution," Ramirez charged to WND. "The prosecutors lied to the jury and he twisted evidence to make it fit his case. And when he couldn't twist the evidence, the government demanded that the court seal evidence which would have been exculpatory to the defense."
Nearly two years after the conclusion of the trial, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas has yet to release a transcript of the trial.
WND asked Ramirez if he was aware of the seriousness of his charges.
"I am very aware and I am accusing Mr. Sutton of a felony," Ramirez told WND, "but I am basing my conclusion on the evidence I have examined in this case and the refusal by the government to provide evidence to substantiate its claim to the Congress and the American people."
And you thought it was just something that happened to poor blacks and rich Duke students. Malicious prosecution is a lot more common than we would like to think it is because it is the final stage of truly pernicious behavior on the part of our government. Prosecutors enjoy a large degree of discression in the sorts of cases that they take on, and can have a singificant degree of power over whether or not a case is brought forward or not. They can even take actions such as dropping charges that they don't think are suitable to the case, without even having to run through a maze of bureaucracy to justify their actions. If a prosecutor looks at the evidence and says, "what else could he have done," they can conclude that the situation was so extraordinary as no decent, law-abiding citizen could act otherwise and thus show mercy to the defendant. In cases like this, however, they get so caught up in getting convictions that it never even occurs to them that they are behaving in a way that is as evil and society-harming as any criminal could behave.
Prosecutors who willfully mislead and deceive juries, through such means as withholding evidence that would disprove their case, deserve no mercy. That is not human error or ambition that got a little bit out of control. It is a gross injustice and personality flaw that must be bitterly punished by the government. It would not be unjust to sentence them to serve the exact sentence they would have gotten for the innocent party. Whether that is a day in prison or the death penalty is irrelevant. The government should regard this sort of corruption as tantamount to treason because of how much it undermines the moral authority of the criminal justice system before the public.
I do not consider myself to be a "law and order" type of person for the same reason that Thomas Jefferson did not consider himself to be a law and order type of person. The law itself is amoral. It has no inherent knowledge of goodness, virtue, evil or depravity. "The law is the law" is in fact not a moral statement, but a statement in favor of amorality. It is the suspension of rational thought that says, "what is the good?" It is unconcerned with justice and social stability and harmony. You can't hide that behind the "rule of law" because the rule of law implies "the rule of good law." Society would be better off without the rule of law altogether, than being ruled by law which is systematically unconcerned with truth, justice, wisdom and mercy. At least then, that which is evil, corrupt and profane would not be institutionalized.
I rather like the idea of throwing a DA in for the same sentence. I seriously doubt it would ever happen as they will claim he would be in physical/mortal danger being around the people he prosecuted. But I say that is what makes it all the more appealing. If that were in the back of my mind during trials I would certainly be more fair.
I'm following this case closely via the Net and TV pundits. Based on what I have read to date, I believe the justice system was subjected to corrupt influences in this case. The public's outcry and the merits of the case demanding a thorough review.
There are substantial checks and balances throughout the law enforcement community to deal with corrupt cops. What is begining to surface is a realization that an effective system is also needed to police corrupt state and federal prosecutors and judges.
Their independence in the performance of their jobs virtually assures them immunity from criminal prosecution. However, they could be suspended or removed for ethics violations. In my view, that is not enough.
Federal judges are apppointed for life but can be removed via impeachment via the US Senate. US Attorneys, such as the one in this case, is appointed by the President and confirmed via the US Senate. They serve at the pleasure of the President.
In most states, the malicious prosecutor can be brought up on ethics charges via the State Bar which can suspend or disbar from practicing law. Although very rare, the State Attorney General can also remove an appointed prosecutor. It is much more difficult to remove an elected prosecutor. A recall by the district electorate is another offical method.
What the prosecutors and judges all have in common is they all have law degrees and a protective legal culture.
No doubt the standards for their offices are very high. However, they are just people and subject to corrupting influences and making bad decisions.
The time has come to establish a more strict and proficient way of removing and incarcerating the worst of their kind.
I think this whole situation is one of the worst miscarriages of justice I've ever seen. I believe conscious evil is behind it.