Former DC Bar Association presidents call for probe of Attorney General William Barr

WASHINGTON — Twenty-seven past members of the D.C. Bar Association, including four of its past presidents, have signed a letter asking the association to investigate actions taken by U.S. Attorney General William Barr which they say “undermine the rule of law, interfere with the administration of justice, and diminish public confidence in the legal system.”

In a letter dated Wednesday and obtained by Politico, the former association members said Barr violated the organization’s ethics rules involving “dishonesty, deceit and misrepresentation; interference with the impartial administration of justice; conflict of interest; and violation of the lawyer’s oath to support the Constitution.”

Among the letter's signatories were former D.C. Bar Association presidents Melvin White, Marna S. Tucker, Phillip Allen Lacovara and Andrea C. Ferster.

“To protect the ethical standards of our profession, its integrity, and the public’s confidence in the law, we urge the Office of Disciplinary Counsel to undertake a prompt investigation of Mr. Barr’s conduct and impose discipline appropriate to the gravity of his violations,” former associate members said in the 40-page letter.

The letter pointed to Barr's handling of the report submitted by former special counsel Robert Mueller following his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and Barr's decision to order federal agents to use tear gas on peaceful protesters earlier this year in Lafayette Square.

“Mr. Barr’s client is the United States, and not the President,” former association members said in the letter. “Yet, Mr. Barr has consistently made decisions and taken action to serve the personal and political self-interests of President Donald Trump, rather than the interest of the United States.

"These violations of Mr. Barr's ethical duties are not haphazard or by chance. They embody a consistent pattern."

It’s not the first time that attorneys have questioned Barr’s decisions. In May, nearly 2,000 former members of the U.S. Department of Justice called for the attorney general’s resignation over his handling of the case against Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn. Two months earlier, a group of more than 1,100 former DOJ employees called for Barr’s resignation over his handling of the case against Roger Stone, a longtime friend of the president’s.

Cox Media Group