Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Prosecutor overload on SCOTUS




Merrick Garland is a possible candidate to replace Justice Stevens who has been a Judge on the District of Columbia Court of Appeals since 1997.  Garland was once mentioned by D.C. insiders as a potential dark-horse candidate for attorney general. Garland is one of two candidates to replace Justice Stevens who have judicial experience (the other is Judge Diane Wood of The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals).  Garland is generally considered a judicial moderate, which is a fact that will not endear him to liberals and those who fear the rightward shift in the Court's philosophy.  He's almost certainly to the right of other possible nominees such as Wood and Kagan.

Garland has worked on and off for the Justice Department as an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. He was promoted to deputy assistant attorney general in the Justice Department's criminal division in 1993 and became principal associate deputy U.S. attorney general in 1994, where he stayed until his court nomination. Garland is known for  his management of the investigation of the 1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building and subsequent prosecution of bomber Timothy McVeigh. His prior work under the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice could give him a pro-prosecution bias.


Many defense lawyers are opposed to another ex-prosecutor on the bench.  Garland and Sotomayor have a clear law and order profile not sympathetic to criminal defendants

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