George Washington University law professor John Banzhaf has filed complaints against Marilyn Mosby with the Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland. He alleges Mosby and two deputies committed ethics violations, used “fraudulent or misleading tactics,” withheld evidence from the defense and brought charges without probable cause against the Baltimore police officers involved in the April 12, 2015 arrest of Gray, who died of injuries suffered inside a police van.
“My concern is that this will encourage other prosecutors from other large cities to do the same,” Banzhaf told FoxNews.com. “The line she [Mosby] is giving her supporters is that the case was a success and that she has been victimized in just bringing them up on charges. “I think her supporters, which she depends on to be re-elected, support what she did.”
Mosby announced last week all charges against the police officers would be dropped. The bombshell announcement came after three were found not guilty and another’s case declared a mistrial.
In the complaint, Banzhaf alleges that Mosby violated state rules of professional conduct for attorneys. He also alleged that Mosby violated rules of conduct with public statements about the case….
[Banzhaf] threatened to file a complaint against former North Carolina prosecutor Mike Nifong, who was disbarred after his conduct in handling the 2006 Duke lacrosse case, in which three members of the school’s men’s lacrosse team were falsely accused of rape….
Banzhaf says that he sees similarities between Nifong’s conduct and Mosby’s, and that her career may see the same fate.
“Both of them violated rights of the defendants by not providing exculpatory evidence [to the defense],” he said. “Second, both continued cases long after it was determined who may win.”
The law professor says that in some respects, Mosby’s handling of the Freddie Gray trial may have been the more egregious.
“When Nifong first brought forth the case it was solid, and as time went on, it was not,” he said. “With Mosby, the moment she filed the case, it was known that it couldn’t be brought forward.”
Now that a complaint has been filed, an investigation into the claims will be launched by the state and charges could go forward in 90 days unless it’s determined that the allegations are frivolous. The fallout from the dropped charges in the Freddie Gray case has already sent shockwaves through the State’s Attorney’s office.
