DEA's addiction to a lying informant!

Sometimes it seems that the U.S. Department of Justice is dedicated to undermining the trust of the American people in our system of justice.

USATODAY has reported that after DEA promised to never again use a serial perjurer as an informant -- whose testimony is crucial to establishing facts in any case he is involved in -- they have started using him again. Andrew Chambers, Jr. was used by DEA Administrator Michelle Leonhart when she was just a case agent in St. Louis, Missouri, early in her career, and later when she was promoted to be a managing agent in California.

What obligation do federal prosecutors have to assure that their witnesses are telling the truth? When you read the official U.S. Attorneys Manual on this point, yous slowly realize that it doesn't seem to be at all clear. All they are required to do is to turn over to the defendant material that might impeach the testimony of their witnesses, but it is not exactly clear when or just how far this is supposed to go. In other words, maybe, at some point, the fact that the informant who set up the accused is a liar, might be disclosed to the defense.

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