DOJ’s Newest Brain Drain Fix Is Borrowing Marines For An Immigration Surge That Might Be Coming To A City Near You

At this point, the Justice Department’s staffing crisis has its own expanding series of soap opera subplots, and the newest one is in uniform. According to Bloomberg Law News, a Marine Corps major on Thursday messaged military lawyers about openings for active and reserve officers “of any rank” to serve as special assistant US attorneys in the Southern District of New York, the Central District of California, and the Eastern District of California. The terms are 179 days, starting October 13 or later, and the email was pretty upfront about the job, noting the positions will “support areas with an increase in prosecutions associated with a surge in federal law enforcement efforts.” The email continued, “Responsibilities are expected to be immigration related.”

Well. About that surge… The administration hasn’t confirmed immigration surges in any of those places, or any major cities since the waves of protest in Minneapolis and Chicago earlier this year. So this is very much giving what does the DOJ know about the fall schedule that it hasn’t told the rest of us.

This isn’t DOJ’s first trip to the Pentagon, either. Before landing on emergency jump teams of rotated AUSAs, the department was already plugging holes with military lawyers, a move that (may well violate the law) and hasn’t done much to stop the bleeding. The 179-day term should also look familiar because it’s the same length as the details the Pentagon approved last year when it signed off on sending up to 600 military lawyers to serve as temporary immigration judges.

The staffing problem is well documented at this point — DOJ has lost 21 percent of its attorneys, more than 2,600 lawyers, and every fix so far has been some version of lowering the bar. The department suspended the one-year experience requirement, handed out $25,000 signing bonuses, sent “forward this to a friend” recruiting emails, begged for AUSAs on Twitter, and then imposed case quotas on the prosecutors who stayed.

DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels, asked about all this, said the department “has a variety of Special Assistant US Attorneys who come from many federal agencies to contribute to DOJ’s public safety mission,” and added that it will “continue to hire lawyers from every corner of the country who want to put those who prey on Americans in jail.” Except the memo itself says the roles are in support of the administration’s immigration policies and ICE is absolutely out here making its nut on arresting immigrants without criminal records.

Earlier: DOJ Rolls Out A Case Quota For The Prosecutors It Hasn’t Lost Yet
The DOJ (Dis)Honors Program Is Having Trouble Finding Takers
Pam Bondi’s DOJ Lowers Hiring Standards After Driving Away Lawyers With Actual Experience
‘Emergency Jump Teams’ Are DOJ’s New Plan To Paper Over Its Self-Inflicted Crisis

At this point, the Justice Department’s staffing crisis has its own expanding series of soap opera subplots, and the newest one is in uniform. According to Bloomberg Law News, a Marine Corps major on Thursday messaged military lawyers about openings for active and reserve officers “of any rank” to serve as special assistant US attorneys in the Southern District of New York, the Central District of California, and the Eastern District of California. The terms are 179 days, starting October 13 or later, and the email was pretty upfront about the job, noting the positions will “support areas with an increase in prosecutions associated with a surge in federal law enforcement efforts.” The email continued, “Responsibilities are expected to be immigration related.”

Well. About that surge… The administration hasn’t confirmed immigration surges in any of those places, or any major cities since the waves of protest in Minneapolis and Chicago earlier this year. So this is very much giving what does the DOJ know about the fall schedule that it hasn’t told the rest of us.

This isn’t DOJ’s first trip to the Pentagon, either. Before landing on emergency jump teams of rotated AUSAs, the department was already plugging holes with military lawyers, a move that (may well violate the law) and hasn’t done much to stop the bleeding. The 179-day term should also look familiar because it’s the same length as the details the Pentagon approved last year when it signed off on sending up to 600 military lawyers to serve as temporary immigration judges.

The staffing problem is well documented at this point — DOJ has lost 21 percent of its attorneys, more than 2,600 lawyers, and every fix so far has been some version of lowering the bar. The department suspended the one-year experience requirement, handed out $25,000 signing bonuses, sent “forward this to a friend” recruiting emails, begged for AUSAs on Twitter, and then imposed case quotas on the prosecutors who stayed.

DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels, asked about all this, said the department “has a variety of Special Assistant US Attorneys who come from many federal agencies to contribute to DOJ’s public safety mission,” and added that it will “continue to hire lawyers from every corner of the country who want to put those who prey on Americans in jail.” Except the memo itself says the roles are in support of the administration’s immigration policies and ICE is absolutely out here making its nut on arresting immigrants without criminal records.

Earlier: DOJ Rolls Out A Case Quota For The Prosecutors It Hasn’t Lost Yet
The DOJ (Dis)Honors Program Is Having Trouble Finding Takers
Pam Bondi’s DOJ Lowers Hiring Standards After Driving Away Lawyers With Actual Experience
‘Emergency Jump Teams’ Are DOJ’s New Plan To Paper Over Its Self-Inflicted Crisis