Texas Lawyer Article on AG John Bradley Finding New Home in Palau (& Responses)
Controversial Former DA Finds Job Far Away From Texas
John Council, Texas Lawyer
June 3, 2015
John Bradley
Two years ago after losing a bitter re-election campaign for Williamson County district attorney, controversial lawyer John Bradley considered just picking up and moving away to a tropical island.
It's the unfulfilled dream of countless disillusioned lawyers to move away from Texas' stifling summer heat and its even hotter politics. But Bradley made it happen by relocating 8,000 miles away to Palau-a tiny group of islands in the South Pacific, where he currently serves as the republic's attorney general.
A former Texas prosecutor, Bradley was defeated for re-election in the 2012 Republican primary by Jana Duty with 55 percent of the vote after she made an issue out of the Michael Morton case.
Morton, was wrongly convicted of capital murder by the Williamson County District Attorney's Office, and Duty campaigned against Bradley by noting that Bradley strongly resisted post-conviction DNA testing in the case-testing that eventually lead to Morton's freedom. [See "Change in Continuity in Appellate Bench, DA Primary Races," Texas Lawyer, June 4, 2012.]
"It was like one of a hundred things I was contemplating," Bradley said of an offshore job. "When you've been doing lawyer stuff for 25 or 30 years, you have to think there has to be something else out there."
After taking stock of his life, which included a paid-for house in Georgetown, three grown children, aging parents who were still able to live alone and a willing wife, Bradley said, there was no better time to make such a big move. And he found his path to the tropics by doing "what every sane person does when they don't know what to do: I went to the Internet."
Bradley said he found a job posting on a national prosecutor's association website for a position in the 15-lawyer Palau Attorney General's Office-an agency that has to import most of its attorneys because the nation of 20,000 residents lacks a law school.
"I thought it was a stupid long shot," Bradley said of applying for the position. Six month later, after getting his resume in front of the right person, Bradley was offered the job. Tommy Remengesau, the president of Palau, liked Bradley so much that he was eventually promoted as the nation's attorney general in October-a contract position that lasts two years.
"We represent the executive branch of Palau in civil matters. We also run all criminal prosecutions for the country," Bradley said. "And I'm learning all about admiralty and marine law, because everything here is about the ocean.''
The job change and slower island life has given Bradley plenty of time for self-reflection, he said.
Bradley's former mentor Ken Anderson, the former Williamson County DA who prosecuted Morton, faced allegations that he hid exculpatory evidence in Morton's case and was eventually found in contempt of court. Anderson eventually gave up his law license, resigned his position as a district court judge and served 10 days in jail over the case. [See "Former DA Gets Jail Time, Will Lose Law License, Have Work Audited," Texas Lawyer, Nov. 18, 2013.]
"Anytime someone that large in your life suffers to that extent … I have a lot of mixed feelings about it. He was important in giving me a lot of opportunities in Georgetown," Bradley said of Anderson. "And my wife and I benefited from our time in Georgetown. However, I can't do anything to change what happened," Bradley said. "It's unfortunate to see the accumulation of things that happened before you got there come to fruition, and they're out of your control."
Bradley no longer makes calls on death penalty cases because Palau has long prohibited that form of punishment, he said. And it's pleasant to work in an environment where such a controversial topic is not an issue, Bradley said.
It's also good to be away from Williamson County, Bradley said, where lawyers and judges have continued to run afoul of the law since he left town.
"I do think that it's good to get some distance from those things. They very much got me to reassess how I approached the law and how I dealt with people," Bradley said. "And this is a wonderful environment to assess yourself and how you want to be for the rest of your life.''
Although beautiful, Palau is a far cry from being another Hawaii. Palau is still not yet a fully developed country, Bradley said. Electricity goes out about once a week, the variety of food is limited on the isolated islands, and "if it doesn't come in the container ship, it doesn't come," he said.
Bradley and his wife currently live in an apartment with a huge balcony that overlooks a tropical jungle and a lagoon. The apartment is paid for by the government. At work, Bradley said, he is helping to develop the rule of law in an emerging country.
"It's a pleasure and privilege to do it," he said.
Losing the election for DA may be the best thing that ever happened to him-a dream job he once wanted to keep for as long as possible.
"I probably would have held on to that," Bradley said. "And I would not have had the ability to look outside of myself.
"And I would have missed a lot of fantastic sunsets," Bradley said.
Read more: http://www.texaslawyer.com/id=1202728275908/Controversial-Former-DA-Finds-Job-Far-Away-From-Texas#ixzz3crIm6zw2
General Advocate
Jun 08, 2015
Pity any criminal defendant in Palau. By the way, Wikipedia reports that Palau‘s President Tommy Remengesau, who appointed Bradley, himself had to pay a fine of over $156,000 for what he calls "technical" violations of Palau‘s code of ethics.
Jason Truitt
Jun 05, 2015
I‘m just gonna‘ leave this here: https://hccla.org/letter-to-editor-texas-lawyer/
Cory Roth
Jun 04, 2015
This article is sickening. Whoever wrote it, and whoever allowed it to be published has a misguided moral compass. How dare you attempt to portray this "criminal" prosecutor as a redeemed man? Why don‘t you reach out to Allison Jackson to learn just how much John Bradley has changed.
Honorable Kevin R. Madison
Jun 03, 2015
As a former assistant district attorney it is disgraceful conduct for any prosecutor to oppose any testing (DNA) that could free an innocent man and help find and prosecute the real monster who beat two women to death. Absolutely unbelievable that he still has no remorse for trying to protect himself and his former boss. Real prosecutors seek justice, not political reelection. Shame on Mr. Bradley and Ken Anderson. They will answer to a higher power one day on their judg,net day.
David B. Pittard
Jun 03, 2015
A better assessment of Mr. Bradley and the active part he played in Mr. Morton‘s suffering is found at chron.com/news/falkenberg/article/Disgraced-ousted-prosecutor-wants-another-state-3979249.php. There he is quoted as expressing sorrow for the suffering of his mentor, Ken Anderson, whose disgraceful acts allowed a murderer to live for 25 years among us while Mr. Morton lived those same years in jail, deprived of his good name and his relationship with his son who believed he had killed his mother, Mr. Morton‘s wife. Both counted on the naivety of the citizens of Williamson County to believe their elected officials could do no wrong. As one sordid example to the contrary follows another, perhaps Williamson County citizens will begin to take responsibility for their role in carelessly electing candidates who pander to their biases.
Mark W. Bennett
Jun 03, 2015
If you didn‘t want to write a puff piece, Palau‘s Chief Public Defender, Allison Jackson, could give you some interesting insights into whether a leopard like John Bradley can change his spots.
mtsattytx
Jun 03, 2015
trash, he still does not get it , its sad how much injustice he is spreading down there
Jason Truitt
Jun 03, 2015
He didn‘t "consider" moving to the tropics, he looked for jobs in Texas and nobody would hire him. Given his open and knowing misconduct that kept at least one innocent man behind bars for years longer than he should have been, trying to put a positive spin on this man‘s life is something that the Texas Bar should not do.
--------------------------------------------------------
Letter to Editor: Texas Lawyer
June 4, 2015 3 Comments
HCCLA submitted the following letter to the editor today after consideration of their “article” on a rehabilitated John Bradley:
Texas Lawyer (via electronic submission)
To the Editors:
Regarding your recent editorial on the changed nature of John Bradley, the members of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association (“HCCLA”) suggest that you consider his most recent actions before attesting to his rehabilitation.
A prosecutor’s duty is to do justice, not to advance inhumane conditions and block favorable evidence. A quick look at Mr. Bradley’s past and current actions reveals a convict-at-any-cost mentality rather than the pursuit of what is just and right.
Michael Morton, an innocent man, languished in jail for several years while Mr. Bradley fought every attempt to have exculpatory evidence tested. Mr. Bradley mocked Mr. Morton and his lawyers for their mere suggestion of innocence. Your own publication addressed Mr. Bradley’s abuses related to the Michael Morton case.
We were denied review of the conviction of Cameron Todd Willingham, possibly an innocent victim of the system, by Mr. Bradley’s appointment to the Forensic Science Commission, where his role seemed to have been to immediately and irreparably limit the scope of the Commission’s work. On the cusp of investigating that conviction (based upon illegitimate science and recanting witnesses) Mr. Bradley promptly closed down the investigation and threw the Commission into months of inactivity.
Realizing that your publication is about the changes in John Bradley since he left Williamson County, we ask whether you investigated his current employment. As the lead prosecutor in Palau, Mr. Bradley continues to argue for the harshest punishments possible and defends the inhumane conditions found in Palau’s prisons. In a very recent Writ of Habeas Corpus proceeding, Mr. Bradley argued that the defendant’s claim of solitary confinement under inhumane conditions was frivolous. As the judge attempted to schedule a jail visit for his own benefit, Mr. Bradley argued against attending such a visit, claiming that it would be a waste of [edit] his time and resources. Following the visit, the judge expressed the horror of his discovery in a scathing opinion, repudiating Mr. Bradley’s claims, citing everything from UN Resolutions to Gospels to Thomas Jefferson. (note 1)
We urge you, instead of writing puff pieces without investigating their veracity, to investigate instances of prosecutorial and professional misconduct and a means to address those wrongs. As lawyers, we owe it to the public to make sure that the public servants intended to protect them are following the law.
Sincerely,
JoAnne Musick
President
Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association
joanne@musicklawoffice.com
832-448-1148
--------------------------------------------------------
Disgraced ousted prosecutor wants another state job
By Lisa Falkenberg | October 24, 2012 | Updated: October 25, 2012 3:03pm
The power of the human ego never ceases to amaze me. And sometimes, it terrifies me, too.
Take John Bradley, Houston native and disgraced tough-on-crime district attorney of Williamson County. Republican primary voters recently ousted him after watching him prolong the wrongful incarceration of Michael Morton, who finally walked free a year ago after a quarter-century behind bars.
Bradley likes to distance himself from the case, reminding everyone that he wasn't district attorney when Morton was convicted in 1987 of bludgeoning his wife to death. The prosecutor in the case was Bradley's former boss, Ken Anderson, now a state district judge.
While it's true that Bradley didn't send the innocent man to prison for 25 years, he certainly did everything he could to keep him there. Bradley fought, for nearly seven years, Morton's request for DNA testing of a bloody bandana found at the crime scene. Bradley belittled defense efforts to find a "mystery killer." Bradley wrote letters opposing parole for Morton because, after 23 years, he still hadn't "accepted responsibility" for the crime. Bradley refused to turn over Morton's original case file to his attorneys.
Even after an appeals court finally ordered the bandana tested - and the results led directly to the arrest and indictment of Mark Alan Norwood, a man with a long criminal record who is now awaiting trial for Christine Morton's murder - Bradley continued to fight Morton's exoneration and argue in court briefs that the bandana was somehow tainted.
Looking for a new job
Before he lost the election, Bradley lost his post as head of the state Forensic Science Commission. Gov. Rick Perry's appointment of Bradley to the post was problematic from the start. Bradley took over the commission at the same time he was fighting Morton's attempts to test DNA evidence. The Texas Senate showed Bradley the door after he stymied the commission's investigation of faulty arson evidence in the capital murder case of Cameron Todd Willingham, a Corsicana man whose execution Perry presided over in 2004.
None of this, however, has deterred Bradley, who is pursuing his next challenge: leading the state's Special Prosecution Unit, which prosecutes crimes in juvenile detention facilities and state prisons, and is in charge of civil commitments of sexual predators.
The Texas Tribune's Brandi Grissom reported recently that he was one of three candidates interviewed for the post.
Bradley didn't return my call for comment, and he told Grissom he wouldn't discuss his plans. But it would seem that Bradley not only wants us to forget his sins against truth and justice in this state, he wants us to reward him with another influential position requiring a strong moral compass. How's that for prosecutorial accountability?
Of course, all this might not be as shocking if Bradley had indeed come clean about his mistakes. After all, his experience has certainly left him a valuable lesson to teach other prosecutors. Bradley had already called up Morton's Houston attorney, John Raley, and offered an apology. Bradley told the Tribune he'd been humbled, that he regretted opposing DNA testing in Morton's case, regretted sending letters urging the parole board to keep Morton locked away. He even suggested that, with hindsight, he might have handled the Willingham investigation differently.
But the softer, humbler, more enlightened side of the red meat prosecutor couldn't survive the Republican primary. In a debate, he defended his handling of the case by reverting to the same old arguments, including the bit about the tainted bandana. When Morton's Houston attorney, Raley, grew concerned about Bradley's campaign rhetoric, and wrote the Austin American-Statesman saying so, Bradley wrote a companion piece smoothing over his mistakes and insisting, "the truth is that we made the best decisions we could with the information that was available to us at the time."
It seems Bradley's "best decision" was to limit the information available by refusing to test it. Prosecutors have tough jobs that require them to make tough calls. Testing the bandana wasn't one of them.
Then, old pal Perry intervened in the race with a letter to Republicans, dismissing Bradley's critics as those "who are trying to mislead and distract you away from John's solid record of integrity, professionalism and support of the law."
'Ethics and justice'
If Bradley's record was such, voters of Williamson County wouldn't have ousted their longtime DA. And Michael Morton might have known freedom 2,400 days sooner.
Gina DeBottis, the prosecutor who currently holds the state position Bradley applied for, declined to weigh in on who should succeed her, although she stressed politics should have Wnothing to do with the hiring committee's decision. When I asked her about the qualifications one must have for the job, she responded this way:
"I certainly think that being fair and open and honest with the defense and with the court are extremely important," DeBottis said. "Ethics and justice are the most important things, and they go hand and hand."
lisa.falkenberg@chron.com
http://www.chron.com/news/falkenberg/article/Disgraced-ousted-prosecutor-wants-another-state-3979249.php
John Council, Texas Lawyer
June 3, 2015
John Bradley
Two years ago after losing a bitter re-election campaign for Williamson County district attorney, controversial lawyer John Bradley considered just picking up and moving away to a tropical island.
It's the unfulfilled dream of countless disillusioned lawyers to move away from Texas' stifling summer heat and its even hotter politics. But Bradley made it happen by relocating 8,000 miles away to Palau-a tiny group of islands in the South Pacific, where he currently serves as the republic's attorney general.
A former Texas prosecutor, Bradley was defeated for re-election in the 2012 Republican primary by Jana Duty with 55 percent of the vote after she made an issue out of the Michael Morton case.
Morton, was wrongly convicted of capital murder by the Williamson County District Attorney's Office, and Duty campaigned against Bradley by noting that Bradley strongly resisted post-conviction DNA testing in the case-testing that eventually lead to Morton's freedom. [See "Change in Continuity in Appellate Bench, DA Primary Races," Texas Lawyer, June 4, 2012.]
"It was like one of a hundred things I was contemplating," Bradley said of an offshore job. "When you've been doing lawyer stuff for 25 or 30 years, you have to think there has to be something else out there."
After taking stock of his life, which included a paid-for house in Georgetown, three grown children, aging parents who were still able to live alone and a willing wife, Bradley said, there was no better time to make such a big move. And he found his path to the tropics by doing "what every sane person does when they don't know what to do: I went to the Internet."
Bradley said he found a job posting on a national prosecutor's association website for a position in the 15-lawyer Palau Attorney General's Office-an agency that has to import most of its attorneys because the nation of 20,000 residents lacks a law school.
"I thought it was a stupid long shot," Bradley said of applying for the position. Six month later, after getting his resume in front of the right person, Bradley was offered the job. Tommy Remengesau, the president of Palau, liked Bradley so much that he was eventually promoted as the nation's attorney general in October-a contract position that lasts two years.
"We represent the executive branch of Palau in civil matters. We also run all criminal prosecutions for the country," Bradley said. "And I'm learning all about admiralty and marine law, because everything here is about the ocean.''
The job change and slower island life has given Bradley plenty of time for self-reflection, he said.
Bradley's former mentor Ken Anderson, the former Williamson County DA who prosecuted Morton, faced allegations that he hid exculpatory evidence in Morton's case and was eventually found in contempt of court. Anderson eventually gave up his law license, resigned his position as a district court judge and served 10 days in jail over the case. [See "Former DA Gets Jail Time, Will Lose Law License, Have Work Audited," Texas Lawyer, Nov. 18, 2013.]
"Anytime someone that large in your life suffers to that extent … I have a lot of mixed feelings about it. He was important in giving me a lot of opportunities in Georgetown," Bradley said of Anderson. "And my wife and I benefited from our time in Georgetown. However, I can't do anything to change what happened," Bradley said. "It's unfortunate to see the accumulation of things that happened before you got there come to fruition, and they're out of your control."
Bradley no longer makes calls on death penalty cases because Palau has long prohibited that form of punishment, he said. And it's pleasant to work in an environment where such a controversial topic is not an issue, Bradley said.
It's also good to be away from Williamson County, Bradley said, where lawyers and judges have continued to run afoul of the law since he left town.
"I do think that it's good to get some distance from those things. They very much got me to reassess how I approached the law and how I dealt with people," Bradley said. "And this is a wonderful environment to assess yourself and how you want to be for the rest of your life.''
Although beautiful, Palau is a far cry from being another Hawaii. Palau is still not yet a fully developed country, Bradley said. Electricity goes out about once a week, the variety of food is limited on the isolated islands, and "if it doesn't come in the container ship, it doesn't come," he said.
Bradley and his wife currently live in an apartment with a huge balcony that overlooks a tropical jungle and a lagoon. The apartment is paid for by the government. At work, Bradley said, he is helping to develop the rule of law in an emerging country.
"It's a pleasure and privilege to do it," he said.
Losing the election for DA may be the best thing that ever happened to him-a dream job he once wanted to keep for as long as possible.
"I probably would have held on to that," Bradley said. "And I would not have had the ability to look outside of myself.
"And I would have missed a lot of fantastic sunsets," Bradley said.
Read more: http://www.texaslawyer.com/id=1202728275908/Controversial-Former-DA-Finds-Job-Far-Away-From-Texas#ixzz3crIm6zw2
General Advocate
Jun 08, 2015
Pity any criminal defendant in Palau. By the way, Wikipedia reports that Palau‘s President Tommy Remengesau, who appointed Bradley, himself had to pay a fine of over $156,000 for what he calls "technical" violations of Palau‘s code of ethics.
Jason Truitt
Jun 05, 2015
I‘m just gonna‘ leave this here: https://hccla.org/letter-to-editor-texas-lawyer/
Cory Roth
Jun 04, 2015
This article is sickening. Whoever wrote it, and whoever allowed it to be published has a misguided moral compass. How dare you attempt to portray this "criminal" prosecutor as a redeemed man? Why don‘t you reach out to Allison Jackson to learn just how much John Bradley has changed.
Honorable Kevin R. Madison
Jun 03, 2015
As a former assistant district attorney it is disgraceful conduct for any prosecutor to oppose any testing (DNA) that could free an innocent man and help find and prosecute the real monster who beat two women to death. Absolutely unbelievable that he still has no remorse for trying to protect himself and his former boss. Real prosecutors seek justice, not political reelection. Shame on Mr. Bradley and Ken Anderson. They will answer to a higher power one day on their judg,net day.
David B. Pittard
Jun 03, 2015
A better assessment of Mr. Bradley and the active part he played in Mr. Morton‘s suffering is found at chron.com/news/falkenberg/article/Disgraced-ousted-prosecutor-wants-another-state-3979249.php. There he is quoted as expressing sorrow for the suffering of his mentor, Ken Anderson, whose disgraceful acts allowed a murderer to live for 25 years among us while Mr. Morton lived those same years in jail, deprived of his good name and his relationship with his son who believed he had killed his mother, Mr. Morton‘s wife. Both counted on the naivety of the citizens of Williamson County to believe their elected officials could do no wrong. As one sordid example to the contrary follows another, perhaps Williamson County citizens will begin to take responsibility for their role in carelessly electing candidates who pander to their biases.
Mark W. Bennett
Jun 03, 2015
If you didn‘t want to write a puff piece, Palau‘s Chief Public Defender, Allison Jackson, could give you some interesting insights into whether a leopard like John Bradley can change his spots.
mtsattytx
Jun 03, 2015
trash, he still does not get it , its sad how much injustice he is spreading down there
Jason Truitt
Jun 03, 2015
He didn‘t "consider" moving to the tropics, he looked for jobs in Texas and nobody would hire him. Given his open and knowing misconduct that kept at least one innocent man behind bars for years longer than he should have been, trying to put a positive spin on this man‘s life is something that the Texas Bar should not do.
--------------------------------------------------------
Letter to Editor: Texas Lawyer
June 4, 2015 3 Comments
HCCLA submitted the following letter to the editor today after consideration of their “article” on a rehabilitated John Bradley:
Texas Lawyer (via electronic submission)
To the Editors:
Regarding your recent editorial on the changed nature of John Bradley, the members of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association (“HCCLA”) suggest that you consider his most recent actions before attesting to his rehabilitation.
A prosecutor’s duty is to do justice, not to advance inhumane conditions and block favorable evidence. A quick look at Mr. Bradley’s past and current actions reveals a convict-at-any-cost mentality rather than the pursuit of what is just and right.
Michael Morton, an innocent man, languished in jail for several years while Mr. Bradley fought every attempt to have exculpatory evidence tested. Mr. Bradley mocked Mr. Morton and his lawyers for their mere suggestion of innocence. Your own publication addressed Mr. Bradley’s abuses related to the Michael Morton case.
We were denied review of the conviction of Cameron Todd Willingham, possibly an innocent victim of the system, by Mr. Bradley’s appointment to the Forensic Science Commission, where his role seemed to have been to immediately and irreparably limit the scope of the Commission’s work. On the cusp of investigating that conviction (based upon illegitimate science and recanting witnesses) Mr. Bradley promptly closed down the investigation and threw the Commission into months of inactivity.
Realizing that your publication is about the changes in John Bradley since he left Williamson County, we ask whether you investigated his current employment. As the lead prosecutor in Palau, Mr. Bradley continues to argue for the harshest punishments possible and defends the inhumane conditions found in Palau’s prisons. In a very recent Writ of Habeas Corpus proceeding, Mr. Bradley argued that the defendant’s claim of solitary confinement under inhumane conditions was frivolous. As the judge attempted to schedule a jail visit for his own benefit, Mr. Bradley argued against attending such a visit, claiming that it would be a waste of [edit] his time and resources. Following the visit, the judge expressed the horror of his discovery in a scathing opinion, repudiating Mr. Bradley’s claims, citing everything from UN Resolutions to Gospels to Thomas Jefferson. (note 1)
We urge you, instead of writing puff pieces without investigating their veracity, to investigate instances of prosecutorial and professional misconduct and a means to address those wrongs. As lawyers, we owe it to the public to make sure that the public servants intended to protect them are following the law.
Sincerely,
JoAnne Musick
President
Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association
joanne@musicklawoffice.com
832-448-1148
--------------------------------------------------------
Disgraced ousted prosecutor wants another state job
By Lisa Falkenberg | October 24, 2012 | Updated: October 25, 2012 3:03pm
The power of the human ego never ceases to amaze me. And sometimes, it terrifies me, too.
Take John Bradley, Houston native and disgraced tough-on-crime district attorney of Williamson County. Republican primary voters recently ousted him after watching him prolong the wrongful incarceration of Michael Morton, who finally walked free a year ago after a quarter-century behind bars.
Bradley likes to distance himself from the case, reminding everyone that he wasn't district attorney when Morton was convicted in 1987 of bludgeoning his wife to death. The prosecutor in the case was Bradley's former boss, Ken Anderson, now a state district judge.
While it's true that Bradley didn't send the innocent man to prison for 25 years, he certainly did everything he could to keep him there. Bradley fought, for nearly seven years, Morton's request for DNA testing of a bloody bandana found at the crime scene. Bradley belittled defense efforts to find a "mystery killer." Bradley wrote letters opposing parole for Morton because, after 23 years, he still hadn't "accepted responsibility" for the crime. Bradley refused to turn over Morton's original case file to his attorneys.
Even after an appeals court finally ordered the bandana tested - and the results led directly to the arrest and indictment of Mark Alan Norwood, a man with a long criminal record who is now awaiting trial for Christine Morton's murder - Bradley continued to fight Morton's exoneration and argue in court briefs that the bandana was somehow tainted.
Looking for a new job
Before he lost the election, Bradley lost his post as head of the state Forensic Science Commission. Gov. Rick Perry's appointment of Bradley to the post was problematic from the start. Bradley took over the commission at the same time he was fighting Morton's attempts to test DNA evidence. The Texas Senate showed Bradley the door after he stymied the commission's investigation of faulty arson evidence in the capital murder case of Cameron Todd Willingham, a Corsicana man whose execution Perry presided over in 2004.
None of this, however, has deterred Bradley, who is pursuing his next challenge: leading the state's Special Prosecution Unit, which prosecutes crimes in juvenile detention facilities and state prisons, and is in charge of civil commitments of sexual predators.
The Texas Tribune's Brandi Grissom reported recently that he was one of three candidates interviewed for the post.
Bradley didn't return my call for comment, and he told Grissom he wouldn't discuss his plans. But it would seem that Bradley not only wants us to forget his sins against truth and justice in this state, he wants us to reward him with another influential position requiring a strong moral compass. How's that for prosecutorial accountability?
Of course, all this might not be as shocking if Bradley had indeed come clean about his mistakes. After all, his experience has certainly left him a valuable lesson to teach other prosecutors. Bradley had already called up Morton's Houston attorney, John Raley, and offered an apology. Bradley told the Tribune he'd been humbled, that he regretted opposing DNA testing in Morton's case, regretted sending letters urging the parole board to keep Morton locked away. He even suggested that, with hindsight, he might have handled the Willingham investigation differently.
But the softer, humbler, more enlightened side of the red meat prosecutor couldn't survive the Republican primary. In a debate, he defended his handling of the case by reverting to the same old arguments, including the bit about the tainted bandana. When Morton's Houston attorney, Raley, grew concerned about Bradley's campaign rhetoric, and wrote the Austin American-Statesman saying so, Bradley wrote a companion piece smoothing over his mistakes and insisting, "the truth is that we made the best decisions we could with the information that was available to us at the time."
It seems Bradley's "best decision" was to limit the information available by refusing to test it. Prosecutors have tough jobs that require them to make tough calls. Testing the bandana wasn't one of them.
Then, old pal Perry intervened in the race with a letter to Republicans, dismissing Bradley's critics as those "who are trying to mislead and distract you away from John's solid record of integrity, professionalism and support of the law."
'Ethics and justice'
If Bradley's record was such, voters of Williamson County wouldn't have ousted their longtime DA. And Michael Morton might have known freedom 2,400 days sooner.
Gina DeBottis, the prosecutor who currently holds the state position Bradley applied for, declined to weigh in on who should succeed her, although she stressed politics should have Wnothing to do with the hiring committee's decision. When I asked her about the qualifications one must have for the job, she responded this way:
"I certainly think that being fair and open and honest with the defense and with the court are extremely important," DeBottis said. "Ethics and justice are the most important things, and they go hand and hand."
lisa.falkenberg@chron.com
http://www.chron.com/news/falkenberg/article/Disgraced-ousted-prosecutor-wants-another-state-3979249.php