Monday, September 3, 2007

Standing for principle

DOJ lawyers refusing to work on Guantanamo detainee appeals: report

Jurist reports that up to 1/4 of DOJ civil appellate attorneys are refusing to represent the government in Guantanamo detainee appellate proceedings. I'm guessing that these are not the political hires Monica Goodling bragged about.

The article notes that DOJ doesn't have a formal structure to allow lawyers to recuse themselves from cases because they disagree with the legal arguments in those cases. So in all probability, their jobs are in jeopardy. A salute to them, then, for standing for principle even when the personal cost is likely to be great.

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