Government attorneys don't want to release judge's racist emails

Law | Politics

Government attorneys don't want to release judge's racist emails

barack obama

clifford birdinground

crow

judiciary

montana

racism

richard cebull

Posted: Tuesday, December 9, 2014

The flag of the Crow Tribe. Image from Manataka American Indian Council

Attorneys for the federal judiciary are fighting a request to release emails from a former judge who admitted circulating a racist message about President Barack Obama.

An internal investigation uncovered "hundreds" of racist messages -- including some about Native Americans -- in the email account of judge Richard Cebull. But government attorneys say the information is confidential.

Clifford Birdinground, a former chairman of the Crow Tribe of Montana who was convicted of bribery, is trying to obtain the emails in hopes of clearing his name. His attorneys believe Cebull may have been biased against Native American defendants.

Cebull was nominated for a seat on the U.S. District Court in Montana by former president George W. Bush in 2001. He became chief judge of the court in 2008.

A family from the Crow Tribe adopted President Obama during his presidential campaign in 2008. After the racist email became public knowledge, the Crow Legislature passed a resolution that called on Congress to impeach Cebull, who retired in May 2013.

Get the Story:
Attorneys for judiciary say Cebull's emails are confidential (AP 12/9)

An Opinion:
Editorial: Lessons Learned from Judge's Offensive Email (The Connecticut Law Tribune 12/3)