Federal Prosecutorial Ethics

Arkansas businessman, John Stacks, is about to stand trial in federal court. Mr. Stacks is attacking the charges and the conduct of the government agents. Prosecutors don’t like what he’s been saying and asked a judge to squelch their target’s ‘false allegations.’


From the Arkansas Democrat‐​Gazette [Sept. 4]:

Prosecutors sought an order preventing Stacks, his attorneys or any witnesses on his behalf from airing the “false and/​or misleading” allegations in front of jurors. They cited a video “re‐​enactment” he posted online of agents executing a search warrant at his business, along with allegations he has aired in a lawsuit over the raid. “At the time that the lawsuit was filed, Stacks knew that a grand jury investigation was under way,” the government’s motion notes.…


In July, [Judge] Holmes ordered prosecutors to supply a “bill of particulars” providing more detail about the criminal accusations against Stacks than what was stated in the indictment. This was in response to Stacks’ claim that he couldn’t figure out exactly what he was accused of doing wrong, and that when he asked for details, prosecutors handed over 80,000 un‐​navigable pages of documents.

The Constitution guarantees free speech. It also says the accused has the right to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him. Two constitutional violations and the trial has not even started yet.


I have hosted two policy forums about federal prosecutorial abuses the past few months. We may need to host such events even more regularly.