West Virginia Attorney General J.B. McCuskey
CHARLESTON – West Virginia Attorney General J.B. McCuskey is leading a coalition of 14 state AGs in fighting back against organized, politically motivated campaigns designed to intimidate Department of Justice attorneys.
The AGs say such efforts are meant to “cripple the federal government’s ability to enforce the law.”
The coalition submitted formal comments April 6 to Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche in support of a proposed rule that would establish a federal review process for bar complaints filed against DOJ attorneys.
“DOJ attorneys must be able to continue to enforce our nation’s laws without fear of politically motivated bar complaints or ethics investigations being filed against them,” McCuskey said. “We have seen an increase in these unfounded complaints.
“This lawfare has gone unchecked for too long and must stop. Yet our state bar and others have perversely labeled this modest effort to restore order as an attack on the law.”
According to McCuskey’s office, there has been a surge in organized bar complaint campaigns by advocacy groups targeting DOJ attorneys “for simply carrying out their official duties.”
McCuskey’s office says “radical groups” have filed more than 90 complaints to “shame attorneys and deter legal talent from working for the department.”
The AGs say it’s a problem on both sides of the aisle as former AGs Eric Holder and Bill Barr, special counsel Jack Smith and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh all facing “politically tinged complaints.”
The coalition of state AGs supports the proposed rule that would give the DOJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility the right of first review over bar complaints filed against DOJ attorneys before state bar proceedings move forward.
The rule would not eliminate state bar oversight as state bars would retain full authority to investigate and impose sanctions once OPR completes its review, and OPR would be required to disclose its findings.
Joining McCuskey in the letter are the AGs from Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas.
