re: #141 Targetpractice

Between this and the PBS breakdown of the testimony, it’s pretty obvious there was enough there to warrant a trial. But McCulloch also knew if he put this on trial, he’d have to actually grill those investigators and possibly have to cross-examine Wilson on stand, which would mean putting himself on the side against the police. So he ran the grand jury as a kangaroo court, with all the evidence presented sans challenge, the jury given conflicting instructions on whether to charge or not, and emphasis put on the contradictions in testimony rather than the agreement that something very wrong had gone on that afternoon.

I understand why McCulloch acted as he did (though of course I don’t condone it). What I don’t get is why Jay Nixon didn’t appoint an independent special prosecutor. He must have known that McCulloch couldn’t approach the case objectively, or at the very least that there was an obvious conflict of interest that would taint the case if McCulloch remained as prosecutor. So what was his motivation for not doing what would obviously have been the right thing?