Jennifer Rubin, who has previously covered the New Black Panther voter intimidation case herehere, and here, writes in to provide this update on the case:


As the New Black Panthers scandal begins to unfold, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights today launched an attack at the DOJ stonewallers. The letter below to the assistant attorney general for civil rights Thomas Perez follows the eye-opening testimony from former Justice trial attorney Christian Adams, who for the first time in public gave us the blow by blow story of the dismissal of the voter intimidation case against the New Black Panther Party and two individual defendants (and a severe roll back in the injunction sought against another defendant). The letter recites Adams testimony that this was part of a pattern of hostility within the Justice Department to bringing cases that didn't follow the "traditional" civil rights pattern ( i.e. white defendants, minority victims) and deputy assistant general Julie Fernandes's statements that Justice wouldn't be pursuing cases against black defendants. The letter reminds Perez that he testified under oath that he was unaware of this sentiment. The Commission also recites Adams's testimony that the Obama Justice Department was not going to enforce Section 8 of the Civil Rights Act which requires states to clean up their voting rolls to prevent fraud. The letter is interesting not only for the explosiveness of the charges but the level of detail the Commission has now obtained to subsstantiate the allegation that Obama's Justice Department isn't applying the civil rights laws fairly and equally. To top things off, the Commission now demands that the former trial team leader in the New Black Panthers case, Chris Coates, be allowed to testify. What will Perez and his boss Eric Holder do? I suspect nothing until election day. In January they may have no choice if Congress flips control.

Here's a copy of the letter: