Phillip Halpern, an Assistant US Attorney for the Southern District of California, has resigned from the Department of Justice after a 36-year career, citing the malpractice of Attorney General William Barr as the primary cause, according to a letter he wrote to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The lead prosecutor in the cases against former Congressmen Randy “Duke” Cunningham and Duncan Hunter, Halpern cited a number of instances in which he and other prosecutors questioned Barr’s statements and actions, starting with Barr’s intentional mischaracterization of the report prepared by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
“Unfortunately, over the last year, Barr’s resentment toward rule-of-law prosecutors became increasingly difficult to ignore, as did his slavish obedience to Donald Trump’s will in his selective meddling with the criminal justice system in the Paul Manafort, Michael Flynn and Roger Stone cases,” Halpern wrote. “In each of these cases, Barr overruled career prosecutors in order to assist the president’s associates and/or friends, who potentially harbor incriminating information. This career bureaucrat seems determined to turn our democracy into an autocracy.”
Halpern says Barr’s support of Trump’s conspiracy theories regarding mail-in voting; his interference in processes like Michael Cohen’s furlough; and the political nature of the Durham investigation as the straws that broke the camel’s back. He noted that Barr’s sychophancy to Trump has degraded the integrity and respect for the office of the Attorney General to the point that federal judges are the only backstop for justice.
Halpern also questioned Barr’s willingness to deploy paramilitary DoJ units to attack protestors from Washington, DC to Portland, Oregon.
“Confirming his scorn for honest apolitical prosecutors, Barr refers to some as “headhunters” who pursue “ill-conceived charges against prominent political figures.” It does not appear to be a coincidence that all of these prominent political figures happen to be friends of the president.”