If there were a Doomsday clock for the Rule of Law in America, it would be several seconds closer to midnight after the events surrounding the dismissal of the indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams last week. For those Americans who agree with Abraham Lincoln that “reverence for the law…[should become] the political religion of the nation” and that we must “sacrifice unceasingly upon its altars,” last week’s dismissal — without prejudice — feels like a kick to the junk.

To be certain, this is not a partisan issue, nor is it limited to politically motivated prosecution decisions by the federal government.

Last year, I reminded readers that Just before the 2020 election, I wrote that “we are entering a period of politicization of prosecution unparalleled in our lifetimes.” Sadly, that prediction continues to be proven true.

From the post-George Floyd failed prosecution of Kyle Rittenhouse in Wisconsin, to the wasteful and largely failed prosecutions by Attorney General Phil Weiser stemming from the Elijah McLain death in Aurora, Coloradans have witnessed the poison of politics injected into prosecution and rule of law decisions by Republicans and Democrats from the national to state level. Remember that the failed McLain cases were only initiated by Gov. Jared Polis after a change.org petition accumulated millions of non-Coloradans.

While it may seem intellectually inconsistent, elected prosecutors have every reason to be better insulated from making prosecution decisions based on politics. Elected local and state prosecutors answer to the voters and nobody else. They are empowered to be free of making decisions based on anything other than their ethical obligation to prosecute only those they have a good faith basis to believe are guilty of the charges they bring, and their belief in the reasonable likelihood of their success at trial.

They are limited by an allegiance to the rule of law — not the oft-repeated punchline offered by fake law enforcers like Weiser — but a sincere commitment to unbiased use of governmental authority. The cases those prosecutors prioritize, and the plea bargains they offer should reflect the values of their community. That’s it. Justice and public safety flow from those practices. No person can compel them to bring or dismiss charges in any case.

And yet, modern local (elected) prosecutors from coast to coast have demonstrated a willingness to substitute partisan bias for the dispassionate, principled use of the government’s monopoly power on enforcing the criminal code. New York AG Letitia James, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, and Fulton County (Ga.) DA Fani Willis have each tortured their laws to pursue Donald Trump in unique ways that they have never pursued — and will never again pursue — against any other person. Each of them had pledged to do exactly that during their campaigns — which should have disqualified them from earning any votes, regardless of party.

Appointed prosecutors of late have demonstrated no greater aversion to basing charging decisions on partisan gain than their locally elected counterparts. U.S. attorneys, although confirmed by the U.S. Senate, do not enjoy anywhere near the autonomy of a DA. They are employees, capable of being removed at the whim of the same political power that appointed them. U.S. attorneys are regularly required to consult with Mother Justice back in DC for myriad decisions, from high-profile cases, seeking capital punishment and plea guidelines, to when and how to talk with the public. They owe their authority and their continued employment to another upstream political appointee (the U.S. Attorney General) and ultimately to the president.

When political pressure is brought to bear on U.S. attorneys, there is no end to the damage they can do to the rule of law and the corruption of the pursuit of justice.

I am not referring to Jack Smith’s ahistoric and wild attempt to prosecute Trump for the events of Jan. 6. I am referring to the order from new AG Pam Bondi to dismiss the corruption charges against New York City Mayor Adams. It was a case that by all accounts was solid but tainted by the actions of the prior prosecutor, who resigned to run for mayor — against Adams — and then touted his prosecution of Adams in his campaign kickoff. Disgusting.

Yet, it is not a reason to dismiss an otherwise righteous prosecution of a corrupt politician. The situation is worse than you think. The argument defending the order is that the dismissal is to be traded for Adams’ cooperation in Trump’s deportation efforts. The dismissal sought is one “without prejudice,” meaning it could be brought again. The subtle threat is that if Adams refuses to dance to Trump’s tune on immigration/deportation, he faces a renewed effort to convict and incarcerate him. Say it out loud to appreciate how ridiculous it is: a corrupt politician will be allowed to avoid accountability for his criminal conduct, only as long as he does the president’s bidding.

If, as Trump’s team believes, the case was always unjust and political in nature —dismiss it “with prejudice,” so it can never be raised again. The current effort looks a lot like political extortion. If you doubt that, answer this question: Why would the case ever need to be brought again?

Our criminal justice system — the best and least efficient on the planet — has an exposed Achilles’ heel. Its moral credibility — and thus the integrity of the outcomes it generates — rests entirely on the character, competence and principles of the men and women, judges and prosecutors, who fill its ranks.

When those qualities are lacking or compromised, the result is not damage to a single case. It is a toxic stench that wafts over the entire system, breeding public suspicion — even contempt — for the “justice” it produces.

We must reject it wherever we find it. Weiser, Trump, Bragg, Willis — all of them. The rule of law commands it. We deserve better.

George Brauchler is the 23rd Judicial District attorney and former district attorney for the 18th Judicial District. He has served as an Owens Early Criminal Justice Fellow at the Common Sense Institute. Follow him on Twitter (X): @GeorgeBrauchler.