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Postscript: Reflections on the Responses

By KC Johnson

Some thoughts on the responses of Durham, Durham officials, and DNA Security: 1.) Civil lawsuits are no substitute for a federal criminal inquiry. This was a case in which at least five people?Mike Nifong, Mark Gottlieb, Tara Levicy, Linwood Wilson, and Dr. Brian Meehan?appeared to conspire to use the tools of the state to manufacture evidence for a crime that never occurred. It?s difficult to imagine a more serious abuse of a local government?s authority. Yet the Department of Justice rejected the request of AG Roy Cooper for a joint federal/state criminal investigation into the matter, and it appears that the state lacks the power to launch an investigation on its own. It?s possible, of course, that the civil lawsuit will yield depositions and, ultimately, testimony that will expose the full extent of misconduct that occurred in this case...continue to full post

Full post as published by Durham-in-Wonderland on January 21, 2008 (boomark / email).