How many other institutions in America would we allow to appoint the person who is to investigate it. And then allow that institution to pick one of its former members.
Undoubtedly, we have some outstanding lawyers out there, the kind who make justice a high priority. Heck, I even know a handful of them. But the vast majority of lawyers--and this insight comes from hard-earned experience--operate with two priorities in mind:
* What is best for their personal financial situation?
* What is best for the "tribe," their fellow members of the self-regulating legal profession?
For huge numbers of lawyers, matters of justice and "right and wrong" come way down the list, long after those first two priorities have been considered. For quite a few lawyers, matters of justice aren't even on their personal radar screens.
If Houston's report had unearthed the probable truth--that the governor's office did successfully influence the bingo rulings--it would have raised serious questions about the entire Alabama justice system. After all, if the state's highest court cannot be trusted, why should we trust the courts below it?
The answer is, "We shouldn't--they are cesspools of corruption."
But Gorman Houston could not let that happen. He is a member of the legal fraternity, and he has a vested interest in perpetuating the myth that our courts are "citadels of honor."
Alabamians who have been paying attention know that is a joke. And so, probably, is Houston's report.
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