Stan Twardy, one of more than 500 黑料吃瓜网 lawyers who recently signed a statement backing judicial independence, says democracy depends on due process and respect for the courts.
鈥淭he concept is that no one, even those in power, is above the law,鈥� Twardy told 黑料吃瓜网鈥檚 "Morning Edition."
The comes amid what organizers describe as on judges, law firms, and attorneys, and it defends judicial independence, due process and the right to legal representation for their clients.
Twardy is a former U.S. Attorney for 黑料吃瓜网 and former chief of staff to Gov. Lowell Weicker. He's now a corporate litigator and former managing partner at the law firm Day Pitney.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
On the meaning of 'rule of law'
The rule of law really encompasses the position that all persons, institutions, entities are accountable to laws, and that those laws are publicly promulgated, equally enforced, and independently adjudicated.
It had its origins in the Magna Carta in 1215, in which King John of England made a pact with the people of England. And basically, it established fundamental principles of law, individual rights, that even the king is subject to the law.
Our founding fathers, after the revolution, seized upon this, and I might quote from the Fifth Amendment. The Fifth Amendment really has a number of principles in it. One of those is that no person should be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.
These are the principles that have established our country and kept us going for the last 270, almost 275 years.
Why rule of law should matter to all Americans
Every American should care because it impacts everybody. And really, the bedrock of our democracy is the concept of due process, which is that people have a right to be heard.
That, I think, is really the thing here. It's part of our checks and balances in the system of government we have. It's there to protect the individuals, to protect the citizens.
Our founding fathers, I think, did a great job all those years ago looking at what was important. And we've been so fortunate in this country 鈥� that those who have been in power have honored the rule of law.
On threats to judges and lawyers
We've had threats in the of impeachment. We've had themselves for their safety. Judges who have ruled contrary to how a person thinks have been threatened, with physical harm. And we've actually seen that on occasion, unfortunately. And so that is the thing that is very troublesome.
Concerns about the current moment
I think that what concerns me the most is that too many people don't have a feel of the importance of the rule of law. That without that rule of law, they could be subject to their rights being taken away from them, you know, life, liberty, and property being taken away from them.
Notwithstanding what the Constitution says, the Fifth Amendment says that there should be without there being an independent judiciary that can call it as it sees it. Which is so important.
Everybody in the public is at risk.
How public service shaped his perspective
I think it's shaped by seeing how much power is there, and how it can be abused if people aren't sensitive to the principles of the rule of law.
Never was I associated with anybody who abused that power, but experiencing the power that exists in the executive branch as a prosecutor, in the Department of Justice, and what one can do to others just by bringing charges against them.
When I was U.S. Attorney, Ray Donovan, who was the secretary of labor for Ronald Reagan, was indicted in state court. And I'll never forget this. I was on a TV show and at the end of my interview, the anchor said to me: 鈥楽o, Stan, I want to play this clip of Ray Donovan and his comments after he was acquitted by the jury.鈥�
And in that statement, Secretary Donovan said, "yes, I was acquitted, but where do I go to get my reputation back?" And that was something that really has stuck with me, as somebody who had the power to charge someone, just the charge by itself brings reputational risks.
That's something that still resonates in my mind, that I will never forget sitting there in a TV studio and watching this clip of Secretary Donovan and going, "boy, do I have power, and boy, do I have to be careful in what I do and be sensitive to what I do."
What lawmakers and the public should take away
I think that lawmakers need to recognize their role in the system of government, that the legislative branch is a part of the checks and balances on the executive branch.And I think people need to know that they have to support the rule of law. And they might disagree with how a judge rules, but the judge has to be respected in what he or she does.
I think that it's really that people need to be sensitive to that rule of law again, because if there is not a rule of law, there is no protection for people.
We've seen that in places like Russia, where there is autocracy. And a disrespect for the rule of law would endanger those freedoms that we have.
