Q & Trey: The DOJ and Rebuilding Public Trust

0:00Welcome to another Thursdays with Mary Langston and episodic appearances by Trey. Please try to hide your disappointment to your best to conceal your disappointment. Actually, I'm disappointed. In fact, I'm so disappointed. I may not even go through with it. That's that's my boss telling me that I am to go through with it no matter what. Well, Mary Langston will not be joining us this week in her absence to the extent that anything can feel that absence. But in her absence, we will revisit a few of your fault-provoking questions and there are too many to choose from. But nonetheless, in the interest of time, we've chosen a few. You've asked about the inner workings of our judicial and legislative systems. You have asked about what is the left of my golf game. And there are moments when you just simply want to answer to my favorite question of all, which is why. Regardless of the topic, why?

1:26So let's get started. Hope you have a great week and we'll be back with more questions next week. So this question is from Brad and he writes, how do we restore the Department of Justice as an institution of public trust rather than a tool of public revenge? Or am I just too naive to believe we can expect better? Well, Brad, if you're naive, then we should all be naive. That's what the justice system is supposed to be a system we can trust in respect. And one that is also worthy of being trusted and respected. Those are actually different things. I don't really know when or how things got off the rails. I remember back when being a prosecutor was a noble calling for many of us. It was the highest of all callings, at least in legal profession, prosecute the guilty, clear the not guilty, do it with fairness. I've spent a lot of time thinking about how to reestablish fairness as a virtue. It's really easy to be fair to our friends, but how do you practice fairness even with your opponents?

2:35You know, most states actually elect their chief prosecutors, but even having said that, we should ask ourselves if we were to elect our national attorney general, which we're not going to. But if we were to, what would we vote for? I mean, what do we want to hear from that woman or man? I mean, we can rule out progressive prosecutors. I don't have any interest. I mean, we actually already have them. They're called criminal defense attorneys. But if we're honest with ourselves, what would we be looking for if we got to vote on our attorney general? Like they do in what 42 out of the 50 states don't hold me to that, but the overwhelming majority of them, the people vote. I think in one state, maybe the Supreme Court picks it. I think maybe the general assembly picks it. Maybe in other states, the governor may pick the AG with Senate confirmation, which is how the feds do it.

3:36But for the 50 laboratories known as states, the overwhelming majority elect their own chief prosecutor statewide. But let's say we did that nationally. What kind of platform would you want to hear? I mean, what qualities would we prioritize? For me, it would be fairness because fairness to me is beauty. Was that all thing? I can't. I don't remember the different little nursery rhymes or stories. There were one about a lady, I think, with long hair that ate some orange and there were on components, escort people around her. Is that? Is that one of them? I think there's a combination of a couple. Okay, whatever. But there was one where she said mirror mirror on the wall, who's the fairest one of all snow white. Okay, all right, that's what I was thinking was Rapunzel. Rapunzel. So fairness is beauty. You can be fair and still be a very, very tough prosecutor. I don't know how we get back there, Brad. I just know the foundation of our Republic depends on it. But I don't know how we get back to valuing fairness. Here's what I would ask myself. If we got to vote on the attorney general. What would we want to hear those candidates say?

4:58In New York, they elected a DA who promised to prosecute almost no one except Donald Trump and Latisha James literally was elected to attorney general in New York, promising to target an individual. That is wrong. And it would be just as wrong for someone to run in a red state, promising to target a Democrat. That is not what our justice system is about. How do we get back to prioritizing fairness as a virtue? I guess it's going to have to percolate up. We're going to have to do it in our own lives and then demanded of our leaders. Well, answer more of your questions when we come back. Our final question is a book related question. So those who haven't finished the book, this might be a spoiler. It comes from the book. The book is going to look up red. I hope so. But it comes from Carol. And she writes, yes, the color of death. Well, I mean, just because our road, it doesn't mean I read it.

6:03We know the truth. We know you wrote every bit of it. That's actually sort of a line from Fletch. Remember the airport saying yes. And those that haven't seen that movie, you should check it out. I would have never known about it if it weren't for tray. Don't you love it? John Rackliffe and I can quote every single line from that. Don't you don't you love it when he goes to check in at the airport? And he says, who am I sitting by? And they call the ladies name, but he's fighting it and it says you you bought a ticket. He said, well, I didn't mean I want her sitting by me. That's it. That's what that reminds me of. Just because I wrote the book, I mean, I've read it. But yes, I know every word of it. So with that, what are Carol's questions? Well, like I said, this is a spoiler. So those that haven't finished it, maybe take a pause, but only your March. Right. But only your earmuffs or whatever you choose to do. But Carol has this question. Actually, there's a couple of questions. So here we go.

7:07The first one is who was the woman in the graveyard at the beginning? Question two. Would you want to take them in order or you expect me to remember them? We can take them in order. All right. Go with that one first. Okay. Who was the woman in the graveyard at the beginning? Yes. She was the wife and grandmother of two dead men. And I put her in the book to highlight how no one ever gets over the loss of a loved one. Even when time marches on grief six around, it never leaves. And also highlight the bond between prosecutors and crime victims. But I still care very much about the people that are left behind. And that's why her name is Bethany Barnett in the book. There's a relationship, a bond forged in tears and pain and anguish. And it lasts a lifetime.

8:07I picked the name Bethany because I like it. And this in the Bible. I picked the name Barnett because the man that replaced me as solicitor. His last name is Barnett, although it spelled differently. And one of my favorite elected officials of all time is our former mayor, Bill Barnett. But it has also spelled differently. So that is who the woman in the graveyard was. Well, thank you. And then here's part two. What happened to the wife and daughter? Well, that's a tricky one. I'll answer it this way. In book one, it certainly appears that the daughter Jackie died of sudden infant death syndrome. I think most listeners know my dad was a pediatrician. So I grew up hearing lots of really happy stories about children. But a few really sad ones too.

9:08Like SIDS, Colm's wife Ali appears and I will emphasize the word appears to have taken her own life because she wanted to be with their daughter on the other side. You know, that's a controversial thing to write about suicide. I got lots of thoughts on it. I think I actually put in the book. The philosophy is just a socially acceptable form of long suicide. I have a different definition of suicide from most people. But this would fit everyone's definition to take your own life. Actually, I read a book called Death in the Kings Horseman. There's a tradition in an African country where someone will go with a loved one on the other side. So they're not alone. So when someone dies, someone also volunteers to lose their life. So they will go on to whatever is on the other side together. And I mean, the way I kind of headed in my head. Now, I've never lost a child. I've never lost a spouse. But I've been around plenty of people that have.

10:25I mean, I guess Ali's thinking was she was a spiritual person like my wife is a spiritual person like you are Mary likes him. I guess the thinking is if what I believe from a religious standpoint is correct. I'll be reunited with my daughter on the other side. If what I believe from a spiritual standpoint is not correct, then at a minimum, I won't have to pain anymore of having lost a child. I emphasize book one because books two and three. That whole story gets a whole lot more complicated. I guess we have to wait on that. Oh goodness. Okay. Well, the last question from Carol is who are the two guys that hated comb? Well, there lots of people that don't like combed troops, they're all the prosecutor. This year, I've done like him, the dirty business owner, Bo Landry doesn't like him. I think Carol's probably asking about chapter one. It certainly leads light to men commit the crime of murdering the defense attorney Frank Hastings.

11:41But what you learn at the end of the book, so their names are nox and JD and I like everyone else would assume that they were two men. But what you realize at the end of the book is that JD is not a man. JD is a woman. JD and nox are out to get comb because he prosecuted someone that they cared about and people are irrational about what their loved ones do sometimes. I have lived that myself. I have the overwhelming majority of family members of crime victims are wonderful and supportive. But then there's the other one percent. They don't believe their victim family member. They don't think that their loved one did anything wrong and they take out their hostility on the prosecutor. So if you're talking about the two characters in chapter one, JD and nox, like everyone else who's read the book, you would assume those are two men. It is only at the very end.

12:47Literally like the last couple of sentences where JD says to Bell what a pretty name. And then she says my name is JD, but my friends call me Jane. And that is the only evidence in the entire book as to the gender of JD. But JD is a woman. So I hope that helps. There are lots of moving parts in that book and there's some head fakes. You ain't seen nothing yet. There are so many twists and turns yet to unfold. I know them. I shared them with my wife, driving back from Tim Scott's birthday party. And I don't think her jaw has come off the floor since then. I think she is wondering how in the world the man she married is capable of thinking of things like that. But he is. And when they married for 36 years, so it's probably a little too late for her to do anything about it.

13:50Well, we will wait and thank you, Carol, for those questions and thanks for answering them all. That's all we have for today. I think I got him right. You read the book. Then I get him right. I think so. Yeah. I mean, there are a lot of people that don't like calm. So I mean, I'm just guessing it's the first two. I think so too. That's how I read it as well. But hey, Carol, if we didn't get it right, let us know. Yeah, do let us know, but let us know gently because I'm. Digitly gracefully people ask me all the time how much of this book is real. I had a great relationship with every sheriff that I ever worked with. So. And I never had a corrupt judge. I mean, I had judges I disagreed with, but I never, ever had a corrupt judge like Martin Weber. So no, it's fiction. It's fiction. It's it's it's clearly a work of fiction. It is. Well, that sounds great, Tray. And thank you guys for sending us your questions. Keep them coming. All right. We'll see you all next week. Bye bye.

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