""For decades, the guiding tenet for those working at the department was to do the right thing, in the right way, for the right reasons. Many believe that's no longer possible," Stacey Young, executive director and founder of Justice Connection, which organized the letter, said in a news release on Monday. "They're being asked to put loyalty to the President over the Constitution, the rule of law, and their professional ethical obligations," she said. "We're seeing the erosion of the Justice Department's fabric and integrity at an alarming pace. Our democratic system cannot survive without the primary institution that enforces the law.""
"The group says the department is no longer upholding the law when it works to carry out the president's "retribution campaign," violates court orders, evades due process requirements; or fires its employees without cause in violation of America's civil service laws."
"The signers also claim that the DOJ can't protect civil rights when it "drives out 75% of attorneys from the Civil Rights Division and refuses to enforce" America's anti-discrimination laws "as Congress intended, using them instead as a cudgel against marginalized groups.""
Roughly 4,500 employees have officially departed the DOJ after buyout offers, and a broad swath of former staff signed a letter alleging institutional collapse. Signers include prosecutors, agents, analysts, immigration judges, and grant managers who say the department prioritizes loyalty to the President over the Constitution and professional ethics. The group alleges the DOJ enacts a retribution campaign, violates court orders, evades due process, and improperly fires employees in contravention of civil service laws. The letter warns that ousting seasoned personnel, shuttering violence-prevention offices, and hollowing the Civil Rights Division undermines safety and civil-rights enforcement.
Read at Axios
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