And then whine about being a target themselves.

Attorneys for Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm and the investigators who conducted the John Doe probes into Gov. Scott Walker’s campaigns say the Wisconsin Supreme Court is jeopardizing their right to a fair trial.

Chisholm, two other prosecutors and three investigators in his office are being sued in federal court by Cindy Archer, a former Walker aide. In the lawsuit, filed in July, Archer alleges that Chisholm and the five others “carried out a campaign of harassment and intimidation” and violated her constitutional rights during their investigation.

In the latest memorandum filed Monday, attorneys for Chisholm and the other defendants argue that the state Supreme Court’s recent decisions regarding evidence from the John Doe investigations are preventing them from defending themselves in court.

Even if you support the John Doe process, which I don’t, the entire purpose of the process is to keep the collected evidence secret to prevent damaging the folks being investigated until they are charged with a crime. If the court releases all of the collected evidence for the civil suit, those records become subject to discovery and public disclosure – thus invalidating the Doe process that collected the information.

Remember that if Chisholm had chosen to investigate with the normal process, those records would be readily available to him. The fact that he chose a secret investigation has its consequences.

You have to read this entire story in the National Review.

For the family of “Rachel” (not her real name), the ordeal began before dawn — with the same loud, insistent knocking. Still in her pajamas, Rachel answered the door and saw uniformed police, poised to enter her home. When Rachel asked to wake her children herself, the officer insisted on walking into their rooms. The kids woke to an armed officer, standing near their beds.

The entire family was herded into one room, and there they watched as the police carried off their personal possessions, including items that had nothing to do with the subject of the search warrant — even her daughter’s computer. And, yes, there were the warnings.

Don’t call your lawyer. Don’t talk to anyone about this. Don’t tell your friends.

The kids watched — alarmed — as the school bus drove by, with the students inside watching the spectacle of uniformed police surrounding the house, carrying out the family’s belongings. Yet they were told they couldn’t tell anyone at school. They, too, had to remain silent.

Bear in mind that these tactics, which are usually reserved for violent criminals, were used against people for allegedly doing things like sending emails about political issues on government time. The tactics were clearly used to intimidate and scare people. And it worked. Chisholm successfully silenced a wide swath of conservative activists during the election cycle.

We can’t change the past. Hopefully we can hold some of the people responsible for abusing the citizens with the power of their offices accountable. What we can do is make sure this doesn’t happen again by throwing the John Doe process into the trash can of well-intentioned, but bad policies. There’s no reason that Wisconsin can’t seek justice through a normal grand jury process like every other state.

Good.

U.S. District Judge Rudolph Randa issued a preliminary injunction, telling Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm and the state Government Accountability Board they may not enforce a controversial section of Wisconsin campaign finance law.

The ruling was a win for conservatives who say Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, a Democrat, and the GAB have used Wisconsin election laws to stop them from participating in state campaigns.

In issuing the injunction, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Randa said his urgent action was required.

“In light of the important constitutional issues at stake, the Court agrees that CRG’s proposal is the appropriate procedure to follow under such unusual circumstances,” hewrote. “The general election is only three weeks away. Any further delay threatens to negate the effectiveness of CRG’s requested relief.”