IRS official: "I'm totally innocent, but I want immunity!"

**Posted by Phineas

Remember Lois Lerner? She’s one of the IRS officials (currently on ~~vacation~~ paid suspension) at the center of the IRS scandal* involving the targeting of Tea Party and other conservative groups for “special attention” when they applied for 501(c) status, attention that amounted to suppressing their First Amendment rights and unequal treatment under the law.

Lerner appeared before the House Oversight Committee, claimed she did nothing wrong, and then invoked her Fifth Amendment rights. House Republicans claimed she waived those rights by making an opening assertion of innocence, and the committee voted to subpoena her.

Now she’s demanding immunity:

Embattled IRS official Lois Lerner will not testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee unless she’s given immunity from prosecution, her lawyer told POLITICO Tuesday.

“They can obtain her testimony tomorrow by doing it the easy way … immunity,” William W. Taylor III said in a phone interview. “That’s the way to resolve all of this.”

Her lawyer says they can win the waiver issue in any court, which begs the question then of why she needs immunity to testify.

Of course, invoking the Fifth Amendment is not proof of guilt. It can also be a shield against rogue prosecutions, the kind we’ve seen in the Duke rape case and (it increasingly seems) the Zimmerman murder trial.

But… Come on. Lerner and the IRS already admitted misbehavior by opening this whole can of worms with the initial apology, and then she took the Fifth and demanded immunity.

As smoke indicates fire, guilty behavior is a sign of guilt? Seems to me she knows she has a reason to want immunity, and it isn’t fear of wrongful prosecution.

But Lerner, for all her arrogance, is only a mid-level target; we want the people above her, the ones who actually came up with this scheme. I say grant her immunity on condition she tells everything.

I bet then we’ll see a lot more wanting the same deal.

*(On top of all their other scandals, lately.)

(Crossposted at Public Secrets)

LibertyAtStake says:

July 3, 2013 at 1:44 pm

If she can deliver the White House, give her immunity. It’s up to the prosecutor (Issa) to make this connection before striking the deal. Then she can live out the rest of her life knowing she’s a corrupt pawn.

foxmuldar says:

July 3, 2013 at 2:44 pm

Even if given immunity I expect her to lie or hide some of the truth. Does she want to risk falling down the steps at home or some other accident like we saw with Britebart? Anything is possible under this Obama regime.

Sefton says:

July 3, 2013 at 5:55 pm

@ #1
I agree. Her immunity should depend on how far this goes and who she can finger.
Downside for her, as foxmuldar hinted, she got in bed with the Chicago syndicate. She might be the next Vince Foster.

Drew the Infidel says:

July 3, 2013 at 6:17 pm

She should get what is called use immunity, meaning the committee can compel her testimony but anything she says can be used against those she fingers, but not her. It will soon develop into a race to the courthouse, otherwise known as a circular firing squad.

Since she will have been granted immunity her testimony must include truthful answers to all questions presented her.

sniperpitbull says:

July 4, 2013 at 8:24 am

Given the fact that in prior years and jobs, Ms. Lerner was a highly placed political appointee in the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) plus her high level IRS position, I’m sure that since she is seeking immunity in exchange for telling all that she knows; no doubt there will be a few of Our Esteemed Solons who will be putting mustard and relish on their hot dogs at the family 4th of July cookout with shaky hands today.

And let’s not forget those White House Staffers who , no doubt will be in possession of shaky hands as well in anticipation of Ms. Lerner’s testimony.

Happy Birthday America!And “Thank you” Sister for your great work on behalf of us little people!

Carlos says:

July 7, 2013 at 11:37 pm

If the House takes her offer of testimony-for-immunity, they are bigger fools than even I thought. Once she made her initial statement to the panel, she abdicated any right to take the Fifth.

Law 101. Maybe Mr. Issa should study about that some more, or maybe he slept through that class that day…or maybe he should put Mr. Gowdy in charge, since Gowdy seems to know a little bit more about the law than does Mr. Issa.