Macomb prosecutor’s inquiry of governor questioned
Inquiry request called for by ethics scholars
A trio of legal ethics professors have asked the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission to investigate whether Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido’s allegations against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s regarding COVID-19 nursing homes deaths violate his duties and are a conflict of interest under rules governing attorneys.
They cite comments Lucido made about Democrat Whitmer’s potential criminal liability last year when he was a Republican state senator and has continued making comments since becoming prosecutor Jan. 1.
Those statements may violate Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct for attorneys, standards of his office and the county Ethics Ordinance, the three assert. The opinion is set forth in a 17page complaint about whether the investigation “will be driven by his own bias in the matter, and his desire to vindicate his own prior allegations.”
They suggest Lucido is “using his newly elected office to pursue a politically-motivated investigation against the governor of Michigan to advance his own political interests.”
“It appears that Mr. Lucido has a personal, political axe to grind regarding Govenor Whitmer,” they wrote. “We have grave concerns about Mr. Lucido’s behavior with respect to the standards governing the legal profession, the prosecutor’s office, and the rule of law.
“He has used his office as Macomb County prosecutor to escalate a partisan policy dispute the began as a state senator with his political adversary, Governor Whitmer.”
Lucido did not respond to a request for comment.