‘Without merit’: Conservative group turns tables after ethics complaint against DOJ’s Ed Martin
A bar official might have violated his own ethics standards by “selectively” initiating disciplinary action against a senior Justice Department official, a conservative group alleged on Friday.
Ed Martin, the current Department of Justice (DOJ) Pardon Attorney, is facing disciplinary charges over a letter he sent while serving as interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. The letter warned Georgetown University’s law school that its office would not hire its students due to the school’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices.
The Center to Advance Security in America (CASA) filed its own bar complaint Friday urging an “immediate investigation into [District of Columbia Bar Disciplinary Counsel Hamilton P. “Phil” Fox III] for his selective targeting of Ed Martin seemingly for Martin’s work in carrying out the objectives and goals of the President of the United States for whom he works.”
“When bar complaints take the form of partisan witch hunts, the public can hardly feel assured that justice is being sought in a fair and nonpartisan fashion,” it states. “Fox’s selective partisan initiation of disciplinary proceedings is without merit and undermines the very spirit of the law.”
The complaint cites Fox’s history of donations to Democratic campaigns, including $2,300 to former President Barack Obama’s campaign in 2008 and $6,000 to other candidates from 1992 to 2003.
Martin faces a maximum penalty of disbarment for the charges that include using “coercion to punish or suppress a disfavored viewpoint” while “acting in his official capacity,” according to Fox’s complaint.
Martin remains Pardon Attorney but stepped back from his dual role as Weaponization Working Group in February. Trump position him to the positions after his nomination to lead the D.C. District Attorney’s office failed to gain enough support in the Senate.
Martin told the DCNF in May 2025 that he also wanted to look into bar associations for targeting conservative attorneys.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche slammed the bar after the investigation into Martin became public on March 10.
“The DC Bar is such a blatantly Democrat-run political organization,” he wrote on X. “Thank God I’m not a member, and trust me, I never will be.”
DC Bar did not respond to requests for comment from the DCNF.
The DOJ proposed a new rule in March intended to stop the “weaponization” of bar complaints against its attorneys, which would give the attorney general the right to review ethics allegations against DOJ attorneys first and request state bars “suspend any parallel investigations until the completion of the Department’s review.”
“Fox, who has made various Democrat political contributions in the past, filed a complaint against Mr. Martin seeking to punish Martin for merely carrying out the objectives and goals of President Trump as is his responsibility as a federal official, which signals to all federal lawyers that this could happen to them too,” CASA Director James Fitzpatrick said in a statement to the DCNF. “CASA has requested an immediate investigation and careful review of Fox’s conduct and if evidence of violations exist, we expect the full range of consequences to be considered.”
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