Friday, July 27, 2007

"John Doe" defense proposal

A self-identified "federal government lawyer" who blogs as "Atilla" here shares my pessimism over the quibble room in the revivified "John Doe" protection provision, and offers the following proposal for countervailing the mischief it will enable:

"Today, I came up with what I think is the best way to handle this situation, given that the language is clearly not going to become any better than it is now.
"It's time to put together an organization that will have a relationship with seasoned litigators willing to work pro bono on behalf of John Does. This organization would be like FIRE, the Center for Individual Rights, and others that I can come up with if I try.
"Having an organization like this will mean that John Does can come forward without fear of having to bankrupt themselves in defending a suit brought by the likes of CAIR just to get to the point where they're entitled to immunity under what's likely to become the law. A ready supply of defense counsel will also force CAIR to watch its step in bringing these actions. The United States has a tremendous interest in encouraging citizens to come forward with information about potential terrorist acts, and it's extremely important to offset the disincentives created by the legislative compromise on immunity.
"I think this is a pretty good idea, but it's not a job for me. I'm going to email a few people to see if I can stir up some interest in it."

This is indeed a pretty good idea -- in fact, it's an excellent one, and it should be spread throughout the Counterjihad corner of the blogosphere.

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