Florida Bar rejects judges’ ethics complaint over DHS lawyer’s social media posts
The report’s call on the organised bar was tested almost immediately. In a letter dated August 28 and reported on September 3, the Florida Bar declined to investigate James Percival, general counsel of the Department of Homeland Security, over posts on his official account naming four sitting federal district judges under the heading “Worst of the Worst, District Judge Edition” — a label DHS otherwise applies to deported immigrants it describes as violent criminals. The complaint had been filed on August 18 by 128 retired federal and state judges together with the Democracy Defenders Fund and Lawyers Defending American Democracy, alleging a violation of the Florida rule barring lawyers from impugning the integrity of judges. Bar counsel replied that the Bar “does not investigate or prosecute sitting officers appointed under the U.S. Constitution while they are in office,” reasoning that doing so could encroach on federal authority. The complaint was closed but may be refiled once Percival leaves office.