U.S. panel chides Holder in Panther probe
Commission Chairman Gerald A. Reynolds said in a letter that the department has been “largely non-responsive” to requests for information since questions about the dismissal were first raised in June and had turned over “none of the documents” being sought.
Mr. Reynolds said that after seeking to work with department subordinates to get access to the documents, the commission turned directly to Mr. Holder in August but had still not received any of the requested information, including documents on previous voter intimidation investigations “so we could determine whether the department’s action in the NBPP case constitutes a change in policy and, if so, what the implications of that change might be.”
He said the commission knew the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) had begun an inquiry into the case and that the department had asked to delay any response until that investigation was complete, but he said the commission would be “sensitive to OPR’s internal ethics review as we move forward with our own inquiry.”
“The commission will work to accommodate any legitimate concerns the department may have regarding specific requests for information once the department begins its production,” he said.
The commission voted in early September to investigate the matter, saying it would make an “independent judgment regarding the merits of the NBPP enforcement actions (regardless of how the decisions were made) and the potential impact on future voter-intimidation enforcement by the department.”
The commission wants to know why the Justice Department dismissed a civil complaint accusing members of the New Black Panther Party of disrupting a Philadelphia polling place during last year’s election, saying the department had offered only “weak justifications.”
Matthew A. Miller, Justice Department spokesman, said the department “vigorously enforces voting rights laws,” noting that it had obtained an injunction against the defendant who held a nightstick in front of a polling place during voting hours.
“The department will fully enforce its terms,” he said, noting that the commission previously requested the department examine the case and an inquiry is under way to determine whether further review is warranted.more
