The Ten Worst U.S. Prosecutors Named: Texas Leads List With Four

    HOUSTON, Aug. 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- United States Attorney
 General, Alberto Gonzales, was selected as the worst prosecutor out of 10
 in the nation in 2007 for his involvement in the firings of nine U.S.
 Attorneys and the politicization of the Justice Department. At a close
 second, Texas ex-prosecutor Terry D. McEachern, who is best known for
 seeking unlawful cocaine possession charges against the African-American
 community of Tulia, Texas, and withholding exculpatory evidence. Next
 selected, former North Carolina D.A. Michael Nifong, for the
 widely-publicized debacle in the rape prosecution of Duke Lacrosse players
 causing his disbarment for having engaged in dishonesty, fraud, and
 withholding exculpatory information.
 
     While a prosecutor's job is to seek justice, there have been numerous
 instances in U.S. history where federal and state prosecutors have engaged
 in unethical conduct simply to secure a conviction where otherwise not
 possible if they had played "by the rules." The "Ten Worst Prosecutors,"
 list carefully researched and produced by the Bennett Law Firm (BLF) in
 Houston, Texas, features a handful of recent occurrences where federal and
 state prosecutors did not play "by the rules" with respect to evidence in
 criminal trials and ruined the lives of innocent people to further their
 own professional careers.
 
     The BLF and the "Bad Prosecutor Blog" website (visit:
 http://bennettlawfirm.typepad.com/badprosecutors) chose to recognize the
 ten worst prosecutors in the United States in 2007 to bring about an open
 discussion of prevalent prosecutorial misconduct, and most importantly, to
 stress the importance of holding bad prosecutors accountable for their
 unlawful indiscretions. For over thirty years, the BLF has been involved in
 criminal, civil, and administrative investigation. BLF Attorney Robert S.
 "Bob" Bennett, a former federal prosecutor, has been qualified as an expert
 on prosecutorial abuse and prosecutorial recusal. Mr. Bennett has also
 published numerous articles and has given countless speeches on these
 topics.
 
     Prosecutorial misconduct ranges from hiding, destroying, or tampering
 with evidence, case files or court records; failing to disclose exculpatory
 evidence; using false or misleading evidence during trial; to improper
 behavior during grand jury proceedings. The BLF's "Ten Worst" list exposes
 the harsh reality that bad prosecutors are not always disciplined for such
 misconduct and, in most cases, continue practicing law without missing a
 beat. The BLF and the website strongly believe that the list will heighten
 public awareness and, in turn, help curb unjust prosecutions and deter
 future prosecutorial misconduct.
 
     Other bad prosecutors selected for the BLF "Ten Worst" list include the
 likes of Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti, Jr., Massachusetts
 Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Auerhahn, Georgia Prosecutor David McDade,
 Oklahoma D.A. Bill Peterson, L.A. City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, and Texas
 licensed attorneys: Charles Sebesta and Randall W. Reynolds.
 
     Foti's persistence in attempting to prosecute a doctor and two nurses
 after hurricane Katrina and making extrajudicial statements surrounding
 their guilt have secured him a spot on the BLF's "Ten Worst" list.
 Auerhahn's blatant disregard for the constitutional rights of an innocent
 man which resulted in a 22-year sentence and 13 years behind bars before it
 was ever discovered has earned him a listing as well. McDade was selected
 for overzealously prosecuting a 17-year-old over oral sex with a consenting
 15-year-old girl under an archaic loophole in Georgia law (which has now
 been abolished) and for distributing a video of the sexual encounter in
 violation of federal child pornography laws.
 
     Texas prosecutor, Charles Sebesta, makes an appearance on the list for
 presenting false, misleading evidence and not disclosing an exculpatory
 confession during the murder prosecution of Anthony Graves which resulted
 in his conviction and being sent to death row for capital murder in 1994.
 Ward County D.A., Randall W. Reynolds, was selected for dragging his feet
 in response to reliable allegations of sexual abuse of inmates at the West
 Texas State School in Pyote, Texas, and delaying the prosecution of two
 accused prison guards for more than 2 years.
 
     Also selected was prosecutor Bill Peterson for inspiring John Grisham
 to write a novel about his vigorous yet erroneous prosecution and
 conviction of Ron Williamson for capital murder in 1988 on weak physical
 evidence and jailhouse informants. Last, but certainly not least, the list
 includes the Harvard-educated L.A. City Attorney, Rocky Delgadillo, who is
 best known for prosecuting famed Paris Hilton and publicly admitting that
 he misused public resources by negligently allowing his accident-prone wife
 to use a city vehicle for personal errands resulting in $1,200 of damage
 and then letting taxpayers foot the bill, all the while complaining about a
 two-tiered judicial system that gives "special treatment" to the
 privileged.
 
     If you would like to obtain a copy of the BLF's "Ten Worst Prosecutors"
 Article, please visit http://bennettlawfirm.typepad.com/badprosecutors or
 contact Scott Chauveaux at 713-225-6000; e-mail
 Schauveaux@bennettlawfirm.com. To contact BLF Attorney Bob Bennett, visit:
 www.bennettlawfirm.com or email Bbennett@bennettlawfirm.com.
 
 
 
 

SOURCE The Bennett Law Firm