One of the supposed advantages of living in Wisconsin is that the small size of communities, and supposed open, forthright character of citizens, will prevent the kind of unfair pressure and influence that officials may exert in huge, crowded cities. Perhaps not.
From Dane County, the Wisconsin State Journal reports on allegations against a prosecutor for using his authority to drop criminal charges to influence a defendant to settle an unrelated civil case.
Prosecutor used charges to leverage civil suit, complaint alleges
Here’s a concise description of the situation:
The state agency that regulates lawyers is investigating whether a Dane County prosecutor improperly offered to drop criminal charges against a town of Oregon man in exchange for settling a civil lawsuit against his neighbors.
In a letter late last year, the Office of Lawyer Regulation said it was investigating a complaint by John Dohm against Dane County Assistant District Attorney Paul Humphrey. Dohm alleges that Humphrey improperly took Dohm’s neighbors’ side in the lawsuit, turning their legal dispute over water on their properties into two criminal cases.
The first case, a single charge of disorderly conduct that took three days to try, was dismissed in March when a jury acquitted Dohm after deliberating for less than an hour. The second case, alleging bail jumping, was dismissed a month later.
The prosecution file for the two cases grew to more than 700 pages, and Dohm, owner of several businesses including Start Renting magazine, said he spent $48,000 defending himself.
“What I experienced with Paul Humphrey should not be experienced by any other citizens of our county,” said Dohm, 55. “His abuse of power, his intimidating tactics and his willingness to throw the weight of the district attorney’s office behind an unrelated case is unconscionable.”
Is this the first time prosecutor Humphrey has been accused of misconduct? No, not at all — it’s the third:
Dohm’s complaint is at least the third allegation of misconduct investigated by the lawyer-regulation agency against Humphrey, who has been an assistant district attorney in Dane County for two decades. Humphrey’s controversial and aggressive tactics were the subject of a four-day Wisconsin State Journal series in 2007.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is considering possible discipline against Humphrey in a vehicular homicide case in which he was found to have withheld evidence from a defense attorney and lied to a judge. The defendant in that case also was acquitted.
In rural Whitewater, Wisconsin, and across the state, one hears politicians, officials, and bureaucrats insist that they are public servants, community treasures, and tribunes of the people. They may describe themselves as they wish; the description neither alters their character nor convinces any save the gullible.
If there were a way to transform human nature and disposition so easily, we’d make saints of ordinary men simply by calling them councilmen or Congressmen.
The people most likely to believe in that magical transformation are the officeholders themselves. The rest of us have no reason to adopt that foolish view.