Ex-Judge Rogers Brown Vouches for Eastman’s Character, Acumen

Retired D.C. Circuit Judge Janice Rogers Brown called upon to defend John Eastman, characterized the conservative legal scholar as a meticulous researcher, thoroughly prepared with an in-depth knowledge of chosen topics.

Brown, who also served as a California Supreme Court justice who now is a fellow at University of California Berkeley Law School, was the final of five character witnesses to testify on Eastman’s behalf at his California State Bar Court trial on ethical and legal violations.

The former jurist told the court that she’s generally found Eastman’s arguments “interesting, well researched, well supported” and that has an “incredible the breadth of his knowledge on a the number of issues that he’s very, very well versed on. It’s broad as well as deep.”

“I don’t always agree with him but he always has support for the argument he is making,” Brown said.

Eastman, in trouble for advice he gave former President Donald Trump about contesting the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, has argued he was advising a client and the bar is attempting to punish him for taking unpopular positions on behalf of their clients. He testified his remarks on Jan. 6 ahead of the raid on the US Capitol didn’t rise to imminent harm.

Brown was asked on direct examination by the defense whether—if the bar proved its case that Eastman’s conduct involves moral turpitude, was dishonest, or advanced meritless positions—that such conduct would it likely recur.

“I just can’t imagine that would happen,” Brown said testifying virtually. “This is someone who has dedicated his entire professional life to the preservation of the constitutional order. So, I can’t imagine that that’s something that would ever occur again, if the bar finds that indeed it occurred this time.”

Thomas Clerk

Another defense character witness, Wendy Stone Long, who like Eastman clerked for US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, told Judge Yvette Roland that that she’s known Eastman for 36 years.

Eastman is a “a great scholar, a great academic, a student of the constitution and was a truth speaker,” said Long, a two-time Republican US Senate candidate from New York.

Eastman believed in academic process and challenging ideas, said Long, who also worked with Eastman at Kirkland & Ellis LLP.

“He is a person of great honor, great intellect,” she said on direct testimony. “I think that his honesty and integrity have never been suspect, never challenged. He’s been accepted by all of us in the legal community as being someone who conducts himself according to the highest ethics of professionalism at our law firm, in the Federalist Society, and in our clerk community, and he’s greatly respected, and a person of high moral character.”

“I know him to be a person who would never engage in dishonesty, corruption or moral turpitude,” Long said. “It’s just completely contrary to everything I know about this person.”

State Rests

The state bar has rested its case against the former Chapman University law school professor and dean.

He is charged with 11 counts of violating moral turpitude, ethics rules, and state law regulating lawyer conduct related to memos he wrote to Trump campaign officials and remarks leading to Jan. 6. Eastman argues election irregularities that cost Donald Trump the White House. The bar seeks to lift his license to practice in the state .

The one-time law dean testified earlier this week that he’d urged Vice President Mike Pence to delay counting the electoral votes on Jan 6. 2021, in order to allow state legislatures the time to assess claims of illegality and determine whether slates of electorals for Joe Biden accurately reflected who won the election.

Eastman’s efforts to overturn the officially accepted outcome of the 2020 US presidential election has also resulted in his being indicted by a Georgia state prosecutor together with Trump and 17 others.

Three of his co-defendants there have pleaded guilty including onetime Trump attorney Sidney Powell on Thursday, and lawyer Kenneth Chesebro on Friday. Eastman has pleaded not guilty.

Conservative Educator

Another character witness for Eastman on Friday was William B. Allen, who served as chairman of the US Commission on Civil Rights with Eastman as his special assistant. The professor emeritus at Michigan State University likewise praised Eastman’s integrity.

“It would stun me if he would be found culpable, but I cannot imagine that my opinion can be changed,” said Allen, who was Eastman’s PhD supervisor and mentor at Harvey Mudd College, part of Claremont Colleges.

Roland has set Nov. 3 as the final trial date. From there, she has 90 days at the close of oral arguments to issue an opinion that can be appealed to the State Bar Court Hearing Department. The California Supreme Court, which oversee attorney discipline and admission.

The Office of Chief Trial Counsel represents the bar. Miller Law Associates APC represents Eastman.

The case is In Re Eastman, Cal. State Bar, No. SBC-23-O-30029, hearing 10/20/23.