- cross-posted to:
- law@lemmy.world
- usa@lemmy.ml
- cross-posted to:
- law@lemmy.world
- usa@lemmy.ml
This is the indictment that those who were horrified by the events of Jan. 6, 2021, have been waiting for. The catalog of misdeeds that Donald Trump is accused of is extensive, some reflected in other prosecutions over classified documents and hush-money payments or in civil lawsuits.
Archive link: https://archive.ph/SKWzm
If this was “light speed”, how long “should” it have taken? 200 years?
There’s no “should,” there’s just how it is. Watergate took this long just to get to impeachment, and there was no federal criminal investigation into Nixon to go along with it:
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/amp/politics/complete-watergate-timeline-took-longer-realize
Watergate only ended Nixon’s presidential viability because Republicans still had some vague sense of shame at the time. Now they don’t. If you want ironclad criminal charges, the investigation requires time.
If there is no standard pace, how can it be light speed? I think you undermine your point by stating this was really fast. To the layperson it absolutely isn’t. And apparently to lawyers, it takes as long as it takes.
It’s just difficult to find succinct sources that provide that data. Justice Department investigations tend to be years in length even when they don’t involve a former President of the United States.
I think the layperson might confuse all criminal investigations with ones prosecuted by the DOJ when most crimes are actually prosecuted by state officials, not the DOJ. DOJ always moves way slower, always has.
Links below are not hard data, but it is statements from people with experience in the process:
“A Federal investigation can last upwards of 5 years due to most Federal Statute of Limitations prohibiting the Government from charging or indicting someone after that time period. It is not unusual to see an indictment that lists dates of offenses 3-5 years prior to an arrest.”
https://thetampacriminallawyer.com/how-long-can-a-federal-investigation-last/
https://www.la-criminaldefense.com/why-do-federal-criminal-investigations-take-longer-than-state-investigations