Lawyer for lawmaker in video to troops demands prosecutors preserve records for possible suit after failed charges
CBSN
Washington — An attorney for one of the lawmakers who appeared in a video telling members of the military to reject "illegal orders" demanded that the top federal prosecutor in Washington preserve records for a potential lawsuit if her office takes any further action related to the video.
Washington — An attorney for one of the lawmakers who appeared in a video telling members of the military to reject "illegal orders" demanded that the top federal prosecutor in Washington preserve records for a potential lawsuit if her office takes any further action related to the video.
Abbe Lowell, an attorney for Democratic Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, wrote in a letter to U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro that he was putting her and her office "on notice of the legal ramification" if they continue to pursue charges. A grand jury declined to sign off on an indictment against Crow and five other lawmakers on Tuesday, multiple sources told CBS News.
"The reports that your Office tried, and failed, to secure an indictment against Congressman Crow represents a breathtaking and unprecedented level of prosecutorial overreach and misuse of power," Lowell wrote. "Equally disturbing is the Justice Department's practice of ignoring numerous decisions of judges and juries who have rejected attempts to file baseless charges."
Lowell cited principles of federal prosecution requiring probable cause that a person has committed a federal offense to request or conduct further investigation, writing that "any further effort to pursue these baseless allegations would be actionable." He said Pirro and her staff are "hereby obligated to preserve any and all information, communications, documents, and electronically stored information … that may be relevant to the claims and defenses in this matter."
Crow was one of six Democratic lawmakers who released a video in November urging service members and members of the intelligence community to defy illegal orders, citing threats to the Constitution. The lawmakers, who are all veterans or former national security officials, also included Sens. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, and Reps. Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania and Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire.
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