President Obama has yet to name the next United States attorney for the District of Columbia, but from what I know he will not be choosing the best man for the job.
Channing Phillips, now the acting U.S. attorney, was not even on the list that went to the White House. Phillips is a dedicated public servant and proven prosecutor. He has the respect of the line prosecutors. And the police. He’s served in the chief deputy’s role for more than a decade. He has worked for Democrats and Republicans. He’s a local lawyer, born and schooled in D.C. His father, Channing Sr., is a legendary civil rights champion.
Why is Phillips not at least on the list of prospective top prosecutors sent the president’s way?
There is but one conclusion that we can draw from the current process of choosing our chief prosecutor: It’s time to let the District — rather than the president — pick its local prosecutor. Preferably, we would elect that person. The current system is an affront to self-determination and local control.
The District of Columbia is the only place in the continental United States where the prosecution of local crimes is handled by the federal prosecutor.
If you are charged with transporting nuclear weapons into the District, a federal grand jury will indict you and a federal prosecutor will try to convict you in federal court. This would be true in Chicago or Baltimore and elsewhere.
But if you walk out of a downtown restaurant a bit tipsy, and a cop stops you for easing through a yellow light, and you fail to pass a breath test, and he takes you to jail, a federal prosecutor will decide whether to charge you and take you to court. In any other city or town, a local district attorney would make that call.
Which is why the way we choose the United States attorney is so important.
In other states, U.S. senators suggest names to the White House. The president chooses from the list. Before Bill Clinton became president, the president bypassed D.C. locals and made a pick. Clinton bestowed senatorial privilege on our congressional delegate, Eleanor Holmes Norton. She set up a commission that would review applicants; it submits names to her, and she sends one to the president.
Sounds swell, but this time the commission sent three names to Norton, including a clinker, and left off the best man: Phillips. Why send Mike Bromwich? He’s a lawyer in private practice whose recent interaction with locals was to monitor the D.C. police for the Justice Department from 1998 to 2008. He and his firm drew millions for keeping their heel on the cops. What an affront!
And Phillips, who by service and smarts should be up for the job, never made the cut for a Norton interview. Ron Machen, a former prosecutor, seems to be the presumptive favorite. He might turn out to be a fine prosecutor. But not having Phillips on the job is a net loss for the city.
E-mail Harry Jaffe at [email protected].
