Dismissing the Black Panthers and the Professionals at Justice

Hans von Spakovsky / May 20, 2010

We now have the second casualty of the Obama Administration from the New Black Panther voter intimidation case. Christian Adams, one of the career trial lawyers who worked on the case, submitted a letter of resignation on Friday, May 14 (effective June 4) apparently in disgust over “the events surrounding the dismissal” of the lawsuit, including testimony earlier that day by the Assistant Attorney General of Civil Rights, political appointee Thomas Perez, before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.  The first casualty was Chris Coates, the long-time career lawyer who led the trial team when he was the Chief of the Voting Section of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. Coates was transferred to South Carolina and relieved of his position as Chief despite his award-winning job performance and his decades-long enforcement of the Voting Rights Act on behalf of racial and ethnic minorities throughout the country. (more…)