How far will Paul Fishman go in his pursuit of Justice for the Christie Administration's participation in the Bridgegate scandal (and other possible charges)?
Well, it's kind of cliche -- but we'll just have to wait and see. But that doesn't mean we can't attempt to read the tea leaves, left by Fishman's track record.
Here's a brief Bio:
Paul J. Fishman -- From Wikipedia
Paul Fishman, US Attorney:
U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey
[...]
After graduating magna cum laude from Princeton University with a B.A. in 1978, he attended Harvard Law School, where he was Editor of the Harvard Law Review from 1980 to 1981 and Managing Editor from 1981 to 1982. After receiving his J.D. from Harvard in 1982, he served as law clerk to Edward Roy Becker, a judge on the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, from 1982 to 1983.[1]
In 1983, Fishman was admitted to the bar in the state of New Jersey and the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. That same year, he joined the office of the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, serving in that position until 1987. He served as Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division from 1987 to 1989 and as Chief of the Criminal Division from 1989 to 1991. He then served as First Assistant U.S. Attorney from 1991 to 1994 under Michael Chertoff.[1]
Fishman joined the United States Department of Justice under Janet Reno in 1994 as Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General. He was named Associate Deputy Attorney General in 1995, serving until 1997.[1]
[...]
Fishman is a registered Democrat [...]
The guy's certainly qualified --
except for that 'bleeding-heart' Democrat thing ... Oh well, better than the contrary, I suppose.
Let's not hold it against him.
Here's a brief recap of the Fishman track record, etc. (Note: there's even more on his no-nonsense approach, in this very interesting link; it's well-worth the click):
Man behind the Chris Christie probe: U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman leads federal inquiry
by Jason Grant, The Star-Ledger, nj.com -- Jan 23, 2014
New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman has convicted a trio of Wall Street insiders from New York in what has been called one of the largest and longest-running insider trading frauds ever discovered in the United States.
At the same time, he’s corralled $150 million from a health care agency in perhaps the largest settlement for home health care fraud in U.S. history.
[...]
"Paul Fishman is very, very smart, and he considers his prosecutorial decisions very, very carefully and deliberately," said Lawrence Lustberg, a longtime, prominent criminal defense lawyer in New Jersey. "And he is really religious about seeking input from many others in the U.S. Attorney’s Office."
Pausing, Lustberg then said, "When Gov. Christie was the U.S. attorney, his approach was more visceral, and was based on more on his gut reaction of what was right and wrong."
[...]
The guy's obviously 'no lightweight'. But then again look at
whose AG footsteps he's following in. That's one tough act to follow.
Those in the NJ-know, say it will all come down to Fishman's 'fortitude' ... {cough, cough} ...
How Far Will U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman Go In The Christie Case?
by Scott Raab, esquire.com -- March 6, 2014
[...]
Conversations with lawyers working various corners in Governor Christie's neighborhood pivot on Paul Fishman's sack, i.e., his willingness to push hard into RICO conspiracy territory in Fort Lee, and Hobbs Act extortion in the case of the alleged threat to withhold Sandy funds from Hoboken if the town's mayor didn't make nice with a real-estate developer connected to Christie cronies -- the kind of case Chris Christie, U.S. Attorney, would've baked into a feast of indictments.
Not Fishman?
"Paul's going to have to find himself cornered by the facts to pull the trigger," says one lawyer in the scandal. "He's not aggressive. He's conservative. Christie would've indicted in a heartbeat."
[...]
[ Image Source: www.dailytech.com ]
No guts, No glory, Fishman. Here are 7 little words for you remember in your pursuit of NJ-Justice:
"Just Do what Chris Christie would Do."