Prosecutors Protect Us, But Sometimes Harm Us

TRIGGER WARNING:  Wherein we discuss the fact that not all rape accusations are factual.
For John, BLUF:  No good deed goes unpunished.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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This is not so much about a false allegation of rape as it is about a corrupt Albemarle County (Virginia) prosecutor, Ms Denise Y Lunsford.  I started with the short discussion at The InstaPundit, who linked to a Tuesday article by Reporter Ashe Schow in The Washington Examiner, "Man wrongly accused of rape finally released from prison".  This, in turn, linked to an item in Slate, by Ms Dahlia Lithwick, "When Prosecutors Believe the Unbelievable".

The thing is, the prosecutor, Ms Lunsford, had evidence showing the accused didn't do it and not only did not just free the man, but actually withheld the evidence from the Defense.  This is why there is a Bill of Rights.  There are people in Government who are not to be trusted.  The good news is that they seem to be concentrated in Virginia and Maryland.  We have Ms Denise Lunsford in this case and then there is, in Maryland, Ms Marilyn Mosby, whose handling of the Freddie Gray death leaves a lot to be desired.

I do differ somewhat from The InstaPundit, Law Professor Glenn Harlan Reynolds, who says:

This is why “believe the women” is a lousy foundation for a legal system.  And Denise Lunsford should lose her job for this travesty.

I say Ms Lunsford should lose her job now, not at the next election (her's is an elected position), but she should be liable, by law for prosecution for withholding evidence.  And, because one cannot always trust the Government to police the Government, she should be liable to being civilly sued for damages by the defendant (and, her Governmental Entity should be automatically included as a defendant in the suit, so there are some deep pockets).

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff