The Blog of the Legal Times is reporting that more than 50 former federal judges and prosecutors are urging the
U.S. Supreme Court to hear a dispute over alleged government misconduct
taking a position in the case against the Justice Department. The Wall Street Journal law blog has more information here.
The case presents an interesting question: does a prosecutor act unethically (or illegally) if he or she charges a defendant with a crime out
of vindictiveness, malice or spite, but under circumstances that can support an argument of probable cause for the charge. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled
last August that prosecutors can’t be sanctioned for “subjective
ill-will,” if they have an objectively reasonable basis
for bringing charges.
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