Crime & Federalism

There may not be a Lord, but vengeance is often the universe's.  This week has been a bad one for unethical prosecutors.  All of these prosecutors have graced the pages of Crime & Federalism.  Correlation does not prove causation, but it's damned strong evidence of it.

Case 1: The prosecutor who sexually harassed a domestic violence victim has resigned:

A Wisconsin prosecutor facing removal from office over accusations that he abused his position in seeking relationships with vulnerable women will resign instead, his attorney said Monday.

Attorney Robert Craanen said Calumet County District Attorney Ken Kratz will step down before Oct. 8, the date set for a hearing to hear testimony on his possible removal from office.

Case 2: One of the unethical prosecutors in the Ted Stevens case has killed himself:

A Justice Department prosecutor who played a lead role in the corruption case against former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, has committed suicide.

Nicholas Marsh, who was transferred from the Public Integrity Section amid a criminal investigation of the government's handling of the case against Stevens, killed himself over the weekend. Marsh had been working in the Office of International Affairs. NPR first reported the suicide Monday morning.

I'm supposed to feel bad for him and his family.  Whatever.  People die every day, and if you really believed that every death was a tragedy, you'd be paralyzed with grief.

Marsh was a narcissist who was exposed as a criminal.  Why should I feel bad when someone who tormented innocent men died?  I'm not going to pretend to care.

If he had done the right thing by quitting his job, I might feel sorry for his family.  Instead, he refused to accept personal responsibility for his crimes.  He continued working as a prosecutor.  Did he indict more innocent men as a prosecutor?  Well, he won't be able to anymore.  He refused to the right thing, and so the universe forced his hand.

Case 3: Sean Cronin has been accused of a sex offense against a child.  This is great news.  Cronin, who is unethical and has prosecuted innocent men, has been falsely-and-justly (never thought I'd see those two words together!) accused of a crime:

A Miami federal prosecutor was arrested Sunday afternoon at a local bar after a young girl and her mother accused him of being indecent when he went swimming in his boxers at the establishment's pool overlooking the Miami River and downtown.

Sean Cronin, 35, was charged with a felony, lewd and lascivious exhibition, and a misdemeanor, resisting a police officer without violence, as he left Finnegan's River, 401 SW Third Ave., according to an arrest affidavit.

Hahahahaha.   Yes, the charges are bunk.  Yes, this prosecution is part of a broader theme at Crime & Federalism - the War Against Men.  A man who walks out of a pool is now a sex offender?  That's all it takes?  Yep, men, there is a war being waged against you.

Whatever.  I am going to rejoice in his suffering.  He's a bad person, and has earned every negative headline he'll receive.  Sure, the charges will be dropped - as they must under Florida law.  Let's hope more bad things happen to the wicked.  

In the meantime, we shall continue showcasing unethical prosecutors.  In my more motivated days, I've started a business plan for the Prosecutorial Misconduct Project - a non-profit devoted to holding unethical prosecutors accountable.  The problem is that I am suspicious of anyone who runs a non-profit - and I trust myself no more than I trust you - and so am having trouble in good conscience creating it.

There is currently a market failure.  I blog about prosecutorial misconduct more than anyone else.  People are too busy creating Twitter norms.  Because criminal lawyers should be more worried about whether some moron is duping lawyers into signing marketing contracts.  (!)

Anyhow, State Bars refuse to punish prosecutors.  A non-profit would write letters to state bars, demanding action.  It would file freedom of information act requests.  It would issue press releases when prosecutorial misconduct is uncovered.  It would be like Judicial Watch - but for prosecutors.

Someone should start this.  Maybe the guys at the Cato Institute could hire a person to do this full-time?  I don't know.  I do know that something other than my blog postings should be done to combat prosecutorial misconduct.

And I do know that I should start the thing myself, and thus proposing this idea is something of a cop-out.