Vile criminal defense lawyers equate Andy and Joe with Hitler
Their protest trivializes the Holocaust

In all of recorded history, there has been but one Hitler, a madman whose goal was the total eradication of an entire people down to the last infant. No one, not Pol Pot, Genghis Khan or even Joseph Stalin can compare. Only one man ever, has orchestrated such a systematic elimination of human beings. To equate anyone else with Hitler is to spit on the graves of the millions he crushed.  There are scarcely words to describe what such an equation means to the living survivors and their descendants, and yet on Monday, a few radical Arizona criminal defense attorneys, who dubiously claim membership in the human race, organized a rally in front of Maricopa County Superior Court comparing County Attorney Andrew Thomas and Sheriff Joe Arpaio to Hitler.

When people resort to violence and vileness, you know they have run out of ideas. The more they do so, the more they indicate a lack of intelligence and/or judgment. Apparently, these defense attorneys must have been born on a day when both were in short supply. When someone plays the Nazi card, you know they have no substantive argument.

In addition to displaying pictures like the one above that places Hitler next to Sheriff Arpaio, several protesters held large white signs actually equating Arpaio and Thomas with Hitler. They were the usual suspects, a mob of far left angry, radical left-wing attorneys upset that Thomas doesn’t cave in to them on illegal immigration, the death penalty, and other pet left wing causes.

Although it looked as if there were at least 200 protestors, that was deceptive. Most criminal defense attorneys spend half their day downtown at Superior Court, which recesses at 12:00 noon for lunch, exactly when the protest started. Not only were numerous criminal defense attorneys already down there by default, but many standing in the crowd seemed to be court employees, defendants and other litigants who stuck around to enjoy the show.

The protest was organized by criminal attorney Jim Belanger, who represents the Home Builder’s Association which profits off illegal immigrant labor, something Thomas and Arpaio have fought against in the interests of protecting American jobs, a fact he neglected to mention even once in his speech. We are struck by the title, criminal attorney. Does this mean an attorney who represents criminals, or an attorney who is a criminal? You have to admit that there is a bit of ambiguity in the term.

From an op-ed in the Arizona Republic

Recently, this editorial page has leveled allegations of bad faith on practically a daily basis against Sheriff Joe Arpaio and me for our efforts to combat public corruption.

While I will not comment on specific criminal cases and prosecutions, it would be improper to remain silent in the face of this relentless public assault on the integrity of county law-enforcement agencies.

On one thing all can agree: Events in Maricopa County of late have been extraordinary. But for reasons I’ll explain, they are momentous because of disturbing facts these critics have chosen to ignore or downplay.

It is surprising that in this season of faith, this newspaper shows so little faith in our system of justice. This system works.

Our constitutional government has many checks and balances to protect the rights of individuals yet provide for law and order. The Bill of Rights affords numerous important protections to those accused of a crime. For hundreds of years, these have ensured fair trials presided over by our judiciary.

Neither police nor prosecutors have the final say on whether a person is guilty of a crime. A jury of citizens does. Indeed, only after the county grand jury or the elected prosecutor finds probable cause to believe a crime has been committed can an individual be formally charged with a crime.

And yet, given the current climate of accusations, the following must be stressed: This same standard of probable cause applies to everyone alike. It cannot matter if the accused is a politician, judge or celebrity. Otherwise, we usher in a legal caste system whereby certain people enjoy special privileges or immunity from criminal prosecution because of their profession or status. That is un-American and most certainly is not the law.

For my own part, I went to great lengths to show fairness in handling criminal matters involving Maricopa County officials. I sought to hand these investigations and prosecutions to outside prosecutor’s offices and special prosecutors. I even asked the U.S. Department of Justice for assistance. All was to no avail. Ultimately, I was left with the duty to enforce the law when I concluded crimes had been committed.

Frankly, it’s not easy to prosecute politicians, judges and others who, unlike typical criminal defendants, have a constituency, access to the media and other such resources. But the alternative is worse, and apparently is what some prefer. The concerted efforts behind the scenes and in this newspaper to spur power brokers to protect favored defendants and shortcut the judicial system are wrong.

Maricopa County law-enforcement agencies are tackling deeply entrenched corruption at great personal and professional cost. While we do not ask for accolades, we must defend ourselves from repeated public attacks. These attacks, quite unlike our own actions, genuinely threaten the foundation of our government.

Over the past year, we in America’s fourth-most-populous county have seen our democracy tested in unique ways. We cannot allow the precedent to be set that when politicians are investigated or charged with a crime, they can enlist their colleagues, subordinate government employees, and connections in the judiciary and media to intimidate and thwart police and prosecutors.

If these events in Maricopa County are permitted to stand, soon such tactics will be followed everywhere, every time a politician is accused of a crime. Eventually, it will no longer be possible to prosecute politicians in the United States. Our nation will be permanently corrupted. And one of the main, shining distinctions that American citizenship provides – equal justice for all – will disappear. It is my somber duty to prevent this from happening. For this I gain nothing but the knowledge I’ve done my job.

Some may lack faith that our government can withstand such strains. I believe it can, and must.

Andrew Thomas is the Maricopa County attorney.