John Engler to AG's office: Unless you recuse yourself, I'm not doing interview with investigators
 |
| Former Michigan governor and former MSU interim president John Engler, right, and Peter Secchia sit courtside during the second half of the Michigan State, Michigan basketball game on Saturday, March 9, 2019, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. |
Well, yeah, duh!
"What has become clear is the ethical standards and objectivity required for the conduct of an investigation are inapplicable to your approach to Mr. Engler," says a letter sent Wednesday by Engler attorney Seth Waxman of Dickinson Wright to the AG's office. The letter was sent to Michigan Assistant Attorney Christina Grossi, who has been running the case for Attorney General Dana Nessel. "You have prejudged Mr. Engler’s veracity and motives without ever talking to him. You have launched unfounded attacks and besmirched Mr. Engler. ...
"Your conduct diverges so drastically from the most basic principles of fairness, justice and what is right that you have undermined the integrity of your own investigation, which may be a result of your lack of experience handling criminal prosecutions (this being your first), let alone a high-profile criminal investigation. Your actions also form a claim of prosecutorial misconduct and constitute grounds for your immediate recusal from the investigation."
Nessel could not be reached immediately for comment.
Damn! Dems* fightin' words. (*pun intended).
Dana is supposed to be nice when it comes to due process, not bully pulpit proselytizing political partisanship. It is called due process, like starting with a letter, then a subpoena. You must document the process.
Damn! Dems* fightin' words. (*pun intended).
Dana is supposed to be nice when it comes to due process, not bully pulpit proselytizing political partisanship. It is called due process, like starting with a letter, then a subpoena. You must document the process.
More on freep.com:
Engler's letter came one day after Nessel sent a letter to MSU Board Chairwoman Dianne Byrum claiming Engler was ducking her investigators and saying he wasn't able to meet with investigators in Michigan, despite attending home MSU basketball games.
Waxman's letter disputes that. Waxman says on March 4, the two sides finalized a meeting for March 28 in Washington, D.C., where Engler has worked in business leadership roles after serving as Michigan governor.
Well, if I were Dana, and I was in D.C. to meet with Engler, what I would do is to contact federal investigative authorities to see if I could possibly do a conjugal collaborative, but then again, I guess it would be awkward to work with those individuals if they were investigating me and "The Girls", but, hey, what do I know, I am not the State Attorney General.
Well, if I were Dana, and I was in D.C. to meet with Engler, what I would do is to contact federal investigative authorities to see if I could possibly do a conjugal collaborative, but then again, I guess it would be awkward to work with those individuals if they were investigating me and "The Girls", but, hey, what do I know, I am not the State Attorney General.
"Nevertheless, based on no action or statement by Mr. Engler, you claim that he has a
'brazen disregard' for the investigation and was not acting in 'good faith,' among other libelous statements," the letter from Waxman says. "Mr. Engler agreed to the interview, that interview date is nine days away, and there is nothing more a witness can do before meeting voluntarily and answering questions."
 |
| Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks during a press briefing on her office's investigation into the Larry Nassar scandal at Michigan State University on Feb. 21, 2019 |
The letter claims the two sides had also agreed that Engler was not a target of the investigation.
That is because if she targets Engler, she is going to have to target all "The Girls".
That is because if she targets Engler, she is going to have to target all "The Girls".
Nessel, a Democrat, said in her Tuesday letter she was shocked to learn that Engler was sitting courtside with promiment MSU donor Peter Secchia during MSU's basketball game with the University of Michigan. She said her office had been told Engler, a Republican, wasn't going to be in Michigan.
Sometimes, plans change.
Sometimes, plans change.
There could be a reason Engler doesn't want to be interviewed in Michigan, Nessel said in her letter.
"... an individual who interviews in another state is subject to different laws and processes for purposes of the interview. For example, the laws in Washington, D.C., related to intentionally lying to a police officer in the course of an investigation are not as strong as in Michigan."
That is why Dana should do the conjugal collaborative, but she will not. That would be self-incrimination. Messy.
That is why Dana should do the conjugal collaborative, but she will not. That would be self-incrimination. Messy.
Engler often in Michigan
Waxman's letter Wednesday disputed that.
 |
| Seth Wexman |
"There has been no effort to hide that on two occasions Mr. Engler traveled to Michigan on weekends to see Michigan State University basketball games. Yet, you scurrilously allege that Mr. Engler somehow acted improperly by attending those events, as if he attended in disguise. He is not a criminal defendant. He is not under the supervision of a court. You penalize and criticize Mr. Engler for exercising his unrestricted right to travel and, as do hundreds of millions of Americans, enjoy college basketball games."
That is right. There are no restrictions in travel for Engler in place.
That is right. There are no restrictions in travel for Engler in place.
Nessel's letter Tuesday said that "our offer to travel to Mr. Engler was contingent on Mr. Engler being unavailable to interview in the State of Michigan."
Engler was unavailable to interview. He was busy at the MSU game...making plans....
Engler was unavailable to interview. He was busy at the MSU game...making plans....
"Finally, as if your false representations and strong-arming is not enough, you now threaten to use Mr. Engler’s lawful employment contract with Michigan State University against him.
".... what right does the Attorney General’s Office have to interject itself into and twist a contract between a private citizen and his employer into an illegitimate law enforcement tool? You not only appear to have acted beyond your authority, but also made yourself a witness to the broader investigation. That is a rare accomplishment for a prosecutor to subject herself to personal liability and become a witness."
Oh, SNAP! That was very eloquently stated. I like this cat. Seth used to be the U.S. Solicitor General. Seth works for WilmerHale, the same law firm Jeannie Rhee and Mueller hail. Seth did the SCOTUS Arizona Redistricting Law case that seems to question the people usurping the powers of the Legislature by stopping elected officials from privatizing. This is a very interesting attorney client privilege situation to watch unfold.
Oh, SNAP! That was very eloquently stated. I like this cat. Seth used to be the U.S. Solicitor General. Seth works for WilmerHale, the same law firm Jeannie Rhee and Mueller hail. Seth did the SCOTUS Arizona Redistricting Law case that seems to question the people usurping the powers of the Legislature by stopping elected officials from privatizing. This is a very interesting attorney client privilege situation to watch unfold.
Email exchange
The two sides have exchanged emails over the past months trying to schedule the interview, according to records obtained by the Free Press from a Freedom of Information Act request.
That included an email from Grossi to Waxman late Tuesday night saying if Engler wanted to voluntarily come in and interview in Michigan, he should contact the AG's office.
"Otherwise, there's no reason for you to contact me, certainly not to feign outrage or plead ignorance about the reason the interview was canceled," Grossi said in her email.
The two sides also disagreed about topics for the interview, with Waxman trying to get Grossi to confirm limited topics of conversation and questioning as suggested by an AG investigator and Grossi saying she wasn't going to agree to a script.
Hey, I have a few suggestions for a topic for the interview! Medicaid fraud in child welfare, the Children's Trust Fund and MEDC. How about privatization of foster care and adoption, which brought in those Public Private Partnerships that funded you and "The Girls'" political campaigns for office...oups, j'ai dit une bétise!
Hey, I have a few suggestions for a topic for the interview! Medicaid fraud in child welfare, the Children's Trust Fund and MEDC. How about privatization of foster care and adoption, which brought in those Public Private Partnerships that funded you and "The Girls'" political campaigns for office...oups, j'ai dit une bétise!
The ongoing investigation has resulted in criminal charges against several MSU employees, including former MSU President Lou Anna Simon — whom Engler replaced. Simon is charged with lying to investigators.
Engler inherited the duties of office, and the breech of trust. In order for Engler to bear witness to what happened at MSU, Nessel must also bear witness to what is still going on in the Michigan Office of Attorney General.
They shall eat each other alive, and I shall be intently watching.
Engler inherited the duties of office, and the breech of trust. In order for Engler to bear witness to what happened at MSU, Nessel must also bear witness to what is still going on in the Michigan Office of Attorney General.
They shall eat each other alive, and I shall be intently watching.
Voting is beautiful, be beautiful ~ vote.©
No comments:
Post a Comment