Statement of Former Prosecutors on Muslim Ban

STATEMENT  OF  FORMER  ASSISTANT  UNITED  STATES  ATTORNEYS  IN   OPPOSITION  TO  ENFORCEMENT  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  ORDER  TITLED   “PROTECTING  THE  NATION  FROM  FOREIGN  TERRORIST  ENTRY  INTO  THE   UNITED  STATES”     We  are  former  Assistant  United  States  Attorneys  from  the  Central  District  of   California.  Many  of  us  held  supervisory  positions  during  our  tenure  with  the   Department  of  Justice.    The  time  periods  during  which  we  were  in  the  office  extend   back  to  1958,  with  some  of  us  leaving  the  office  as  recently  as  2016.  Representing   the  United  States  of  America  was  a  privilege  and  an  honor.  As  government  lawyers,   our  highest  duty  was  not  to  win,  but  to  seek  justice.  It  was  to  make  our  case  based   on  the  law  and  the  evidence,  fairly,  without  favor  or  prejudice.  It  was  to  speak  with   candor  to  the  courts  that  questioned  the  positions  taken  in  the  name  of  the  United   States.  And  always,  it  was  to  follow  the  law  and  the  fundamental  tenets  upon  which   our  nation  was  founded,  embodied  in  our  Constitution.     Now  the  Justice  Department  is  called  upon  to  defend  an  Executive  Order   signed  by  President  Trump  on  January  27,  2017,  titled  “Protecting  the  Nation  from   Foreign  Terrorist  Entry  into  the  United  States.”  Then  Acting  Attorney  General  Sally   Yates,  a  career  government  lawyer,  declined  to  enforce  this  order  because  she  was   not  convinced  that  it  was  lawful.    For  doing  her  job  by  following  the  law  and  by   doing  justice,  she  was  summarily  fired  by  the  President.  Like  many  other  former   federal  prosecutors  who  have  served  in  U.S.  Attorneys’  Offices  across  the  country,   we  have  been  considering  a  fundamental  question  over  the  last  few  days  in  light  of   these  extraordinary  recent  events:  If  we  were  called  upon  to  defend  the  Executive   Order,  could  we  do  it  within  the  guidelines  we  learned  and  lived  by  as  lawyers  for   the  United  States?  We  could  not.  

  We  could  not  candidly  tell  a  court,  consistent  with  these  principles,  that  the   Executive  Order  is  not  in  fact,  a  thinly  veiled  attempt  to  exclude  Muslims  from   certain  countries  based  on  their  religion.  We  could  not  candidly  tell  a  court  that  the   United  States  has  the  right  to  turn  away  refugees  fleeing  grave  danger,  even  though   they  have  already  been  fully  vetted  and  approved  for  admission.  We  could  not   candidly  tell  a  court,  consistent  with  these  principles,  that  the  United  States  has  the   right  to  bar  admission  to  people  who  are  otherwise  lawfully  permitted  to  enter  the   United  States,  based  solely  on  the  fact  that  others  of  their  religion  are  perceived  to   be  potential  security  threats.  We  could  not  candidly  tell  a  court  that  the  United   States  has  the  right  to  detain  or  forcibly  return  people  who  have  lawfully  traveled   here,  based  solely  on  their  religion  and  country  of  origin.  If  asked  whether  the   language  of  the  Executive  Order  would  permit  the  President  to  give  preference  to   Christians  over  Muslims  for  admission  to  the  United  States,  a  position  the  President   has  publicly  expressed,  we  would  have  to  say  yes,  the  language  would  so  allow.  If   asked  whether  such  a  religious  preference  comports  with  our  Constitution,  we   would  have  to  say  we  do  not  believe  so.     In  short,  the  Executive  Order  is  inimical  to  the  values  of  the  Justice   Department  and  the  United  States,  most  significantly,  that  individuals  may  not  be   treated  more  harshly  under  the  law  solely  on  account  of  their  religion.    In  our  view,   that  is  exactly  what  the  Executive  Order  does  and  is  intended  to  do.  It  would  be  our   job,  if  we  were  representing  the  United  States  today,  to  say  that  this  Executive  Order   is  wrong  and  should  not  be  defended.  

SIGNATURES     (In  alphabetical  order,  and  listing  name,     positions  held  (in  the  Central  District  of  California    unless  otherwise  mentioned),  and  total  years  of  tenure)         Edward  E.  Alon   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2008-­‐2015     James  Michael  Aquilina   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1999-­‐2006     Xochitl  D.  Arteaga   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2008-­‐2013     James  Berliner   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1983-­‐1989     Brad  D.  Brian   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1978-­‐1981     William  W.  Carter   Special  Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1990-­‐1992   Assistant  United  States  Attorney1994-­‐2006   Chief,  Public  Corruption  and  Government  Fraud  Section   1994-­‐2006     Daniel  G.  Clement   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1977-­‐1983     Patricia  L.  Collins   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1982-­‐1988      

Andrew  S.  Cowan   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1999-­‐2006   Trial  Lawyer   United  States  Department  of  Justice,  Antitrust  Division   1994-­‐1999     Barbara  Curry   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1990-­‐1999     Bert  H.  Deixler   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1978-­‐1981     Robert  E.  Dugdale   Assistant  United  States  Attorney,  1997-­‐2016   Chief  Assistant  United  States  Attorney  for  Trials,  Integrity,  and  Professionalism   Chief,  Criminal  Division   Chief,  Violent  and  Organized  Crime  Section   Deputy  Chief,  Terrorism  and  Organized  Crime  Section   Deputy  Chief,  General  Crimes  Sectio   1997-­‐2016     Jeffrey  C.  Eglash   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Chief,  Public  Corruption  and  Government  Fraud  Section   1987-­‐1999     Jerome  Hugh  Friedberg   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1995-­‐2000     Grant  Gelberg   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2013-­‐2015   Special  Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2011-­‐2013     Elyssa  Getreu   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2003-­‐2008     Anthony  Michael  Glassman   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1966-­‐1968  

  Stefanie  Isser  Goldblatt   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2001-­‐2005   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Southern  District  of  New  York   1999-­‐2001     Marc  R.  Greenberg   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1990-­‐2001     Carla  Anderson  Hills   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1958-­‐1961   Assistant  Attorney  General,  Department  of  Justice   1974-­‐1975     Jeffrey  B.  Isaacs   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Deputy  Chief,  Major  Frauds  Section   1990-­‐2005     Harriet  Beegun  Leva   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1983-­‐1988     Laurie  L.  Levenson   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1981-­‐1989     John  Libby   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1989-­‐1995     Gary  S.  Lincenberg   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1987-­‐1993     Ellyn  Marcus  Lindsay   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1987-­‐2015   Trial  Attorney   Department  of  Justice  Criminal  Division   1985-­‐1987    

Rebecca  Lonergan   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Deputy  Chief,  Government  Fraud  Section   Deputy  Chief,  Public  Corruption  and  Civil  Rights  Section     Duane  R.  Lyons   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Chief,  Criminal  Complaints   1991-­‐2001     Teresa  Mack   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1996-­‐2004     Erica  Kelly  Martin   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1994-­‐2000     Damien  J.  Martinez   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2001-­‐200     Jeremy  D.  Matz   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2000-­‐2013     James  McGinnis   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1986-­‐1988   Assistant  United  States  Attorney,  Eastern  District  of  California   1984-­‐1985     Patrick  W.  McLaughlin   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1991-­‐2012     Jeff  Modisett   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Deputy  Chief,  Public  Corruption  &  Government  Fraud  Section   1982-­‐1988     Peter  Morris   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1988-­‐2001    

Michael  D.  Nasatir   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1967-­‐1969     Jean  M.  Nelson   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Deputy  Chief,  Major  Narcotics  Section   1995-­‐2006     Thomas  J.  Nolan   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Chief,  Fraud  and  Special  Prosecutions  Section   1978-­‐1979     Asha  Muldro  Olivas   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2008-­‐2015     Hector  C.  Perez   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1977-­‐1981     Daniel  N.  Shallman   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1999-­‐2007     Janna  Beth  Sidley   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1998-­‐2002     Matthew  E.  Sloan   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2002-­‐2007   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   District  of    Columbia   1998-­‐2002     James  W.  Spertus   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1996-­‐2004  

Tammy  Spertus   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1998-­‐2010   Special  Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1996-­‐1998   Trial  Attorney,  Department  of  Justice  Criminal  Division   1993-­‐1996     Stefan  D.  Stein   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Deputy  Chief,  Public  Corruption  &  Government  Fraud  Section   1988-­‐1996     Michael  J.  Stern   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1999-­‐2014   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Eastern  District  of  Michigan   1989-­‐1999     Christopher  Tayback   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1991-­‐1997     Thomas  J.  Umberg   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   1987-­‐1990   Deputy  Director,  White  House  Office  of  National  Drug  Control  Policy   1997-­‐2000   Colonel  (ret.),  United  States  Army   1977-­‐2010     Matthew  Umhofer   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2002-­‐2007     Eric  D.  Vandevelde   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Deputy  Chief,  Cyber  &  Intellectual  Property  Section   2007-­‐2014     David  K.  Willingham   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   Deputy  Chief,  Major  Frauds  Section   2001-­‐2007    

Wendy  T.  Wu   Assistant  United  States  Attorney   2008-­‐2015