Michael Elston
Encyclopedia
Michael Elston is a United States lawyer.
He is currently the Chief Counsel for Appellate & Commercial Litigation in the Office of the General Counsel, United States Postal Service
, in Washington, D.C. From November 2005 to June 2007, he was a political appointee in the administration of President George W. Bush
, serving as the Chief of Staff & Counselor, Office of the Deputy Attorney General, United States Department of Justice
. He was appointed as an Assistant United States Attorney in 1999 by Attorney General Janet Reno
.
where he attended Rockford Auburn High School
graduating in 1987. He was the student of the year in the Rockford Public Schools. He received his undergraduate degree from Drake University
in 1991, where he was president of Theta Chi
and vice president of the student senate. He was a co-winner of the Oreon E. Scott Award, and he was named the 1991 recipient of Theta Chi's Reginald E.F. Colley Trophy. He earned his law degree from the Duke University School of Law
, where he graduated with high honors in 1994. He served as the managing editor of the journal Law & Contemporary Problems.
, the American who fought alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan; and Zacarias Moussaoui
, the convicted al-Qaida operative who alternately claimed and denied a role in the Sept. 11 attacks. He served as co-chief of criminal appeals from 2003 to 2005, when he became Counsel to the U.S. Attorney. From 2005 to 2007, he was Chief of Staff to U.S. Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty
. From October 2005 to October 2006, he also represented the Attorney General as the Justice Department's ex officio member of the United States Sentencing Commission.
In September 2006, the Department of Justice gave Elston its highest award presented to attorneys for contributions and excellence in legal performance—the John Marshall Award -- "for his outstanding legal advice, leadership and excellence related to the appellate work of the Eastern District of Virginia." He is also a recipient of the Liam O'Grady Award for outstanding service to the Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Program in the Eastern District of Virginia and a Certificate of Appreciation from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Elston also worked on early drafts of the Patriot Act. Writing about the Patriot Act in 2005 Elston stated, "Whenever laws are changed to give law enforcement new tools, as occurred with passage of the Patriot Act, there is an accompanying concern about the potential for abuse of those tools. And rightly so. Our country’s strength depends on, and has always depended on, our ability to have fully informed, free and open debates on these issues.... In my experience, the federal law enforcement community is full of hard working, honest people with integrity, who believe passionately in the Bill of Rights. I am confident that we will reach the right balance between what we need to do to keep the country safe and what we need to do to protect our constitutional rights."
Elston is a co-author of the widely cited two-volume treatise "Grand Jury Law & Practice" (Thompson-West 2d ed. 1997), which is updated annualy.
From 2007 to 2009, Elston was a partner with the McGuire Woods law firm in its Tysons Corner and Washington, D.C. offices.
of Pohick Church
, and he served as chair of the church's 66th annual country fair in 2011. He is also a member of the church's chapter of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew.
Elston has been an officer of the George Washington Chapter, Virginia Society, Sons of the American Revolution
(SAR), since December 2008, and he currently serves as treasurer of the chapter. He is the chairman of the state society's Knight Essay Competition for high school students, and he was appointed as one of three trustees of the Knight-Patty Fund in 2011. He has received several SAR awards, including the Meritorious Service Medal (2009).
Elston denied these allegations, and a subsequent report by the Department of Justice Inspector General exonerated him (see below). At the time, however, House Democratic Committee Chair John Conyers, stated the following: "When yet another significant player resigns in the U.S. attorney scandal, it only deepens the mystery of who targeted U.S. attorneys for firing, why they did it, and what exactly is going on in the highest reaches of the Justice Department and who is filling the vacuum of leadership that has developed there." After interviewing the U.S. Attorneys involved, the Department of Justice Inspector General's report regarding the dismissal of the U.S. Attorneys cleared Elston of any wrongdoing, stating "we do not have sufficient evidence to conclude that Elston intended to threaten" any of the dismissed U.S. Attorneys.
He is currently the Chief Counsel for Appellate & Commercial Litigation in the Office of the General Counsel, United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
, in Washington, D.C. From November 2005 to June 2007, he was a political appointee in the administration of President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, serving as the Chief of Staff & Counselor, Office of the Deputy Attorney General, United States Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
. He was appointed as an Assistant United States Attorney in 1999 by Attorney General Janet Reno
Janet Reno
Janet Wood Reno is a former Attorney General of the United States . She was nominated by President Bill Clinton on February 11, 1993, and confirmed on March 11...
.
Personal
Elston grew up in Rockford, IllinoisRockford, Illinois
Rockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Often referred to as "The Forest City", Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2010 U.S. census, the city was home to 152,871 people, the third most populated...
where he attended Rockford Auburn High School
Rockford Auburn High School
Auburn High School is a public high school located in Rockford, Illinois, USA. The school is divided into two campuses: one a campus for freshmen and the other for upperclassmen....
graduating in 1987. He was the student of the year in the Rockford Public Schools. He received his undergraduate degree from Drake University
Drake University
Drake University is a private, co-educational university located in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. The institution offers a number of undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as professional programs in law and pharmacy. Today, Drake is one of the twenty-five oldest law schools in the country....
in 1991, where he was president of Theta Chi
Theta Chi
Theta Chi Fraternity is an international college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856 as the Theta Chi Society, at Norwich University, Norwich, Vermont, U.S., and was the 21st of the 71 North-American Interfraternity Conference men's fraternities.-Founding and early years at Norwich:Theta...
and vice president of the student senate. He was a co-winner of the Oreon E. Scott Award, and he was named the 1991 recipient of Theta Chi's Reginald E.F. Colley Trophy. He earned his law degree from the Duke University School of Law
Duke University School of Law
The Duke University School of Law is the law school and a constituent academic unit of Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States. One of Duke's 10 schools and colleges, the School of Law began as the Trinity College School of Law in 1868. In 1924, following the renaming of Trinity...
, where he graduated with high honors in 1994. He served as the managing editor of the journal Law & Contemporary Problems.
Career
The Rockford Register Star in March 2007 profiled Elston's earlier career. It states he clerked for the Honorable Pasco M. Bowman of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit from 1994 to 1996. From 1997 to 1999 he worked as an attorney on the staff of Shughart Thomson & Kilroy firm in Kansas City, Mo. While there, he argued and won a case involving prisoner rights before all 11 judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. In 1999, he was named Assistant U.S. attorney in the Northern District of Illinois in Rockford where he served until 2002. From there he moved to the Eastern District of Virginia; there he worked on the prosecutions of John Walker LindhJohn Walker Lindh
John Phillip Walker Lindh is a United States citizen who was captured as an enemy combatant during the United States' 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. He is now serving a 20-year prison sentence in connection with his participation in Afghanistan's Taliban army...
, the American who fought alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan; and Zacarias Moussaoui
Zacarias Moussaoui
Zacarias Moussaoui is a French citizen who was convicted of conspiring to kill citizens of the US as part of the September 11 attacks...
, the convicted al-Qaida operative who alternately claimed and denied a role in the Sept. 11 attacks. He served as co-chief of criminal appeals from 2003 to 2005, when he became Counsel to the U.S. Attorney. From 2005 to 2007, he was Chief of Staff to U.S. Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty
Paul McNulty
Paul J. McNulty is the former Deputy Attorney General of the United States, having previously served as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. He held the position until July 26, 2007....
. From October 2005 to October 2006, he also represented the Attorney General as the Justice Department's ex officio member of the United States Sentencing Commission.
In September 2006, the Department of Justice gave Elston its highest award presented to attorneys for contributions and excellence in legal performance—the John Marshall Award -- "for his outstanding legal advice, leadership and excellence related to the appellate work of the Eastern District of Virginia." He is also a recipient of the Liam O'Grady Award for outstanding service to the Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Program in the Eastern District of Virginia and a Certificate of Appreciation from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Elston also worked on early drafts of the Patriot Act. Writing about the Patriot Act in 2005 Elston stated, "Whenever laws are changed to give law enforcement new tools, as occurred with passage of the Patriot Act, there is an accompanying concern about the potential for abuse of those tools. And rightly so. Our country’s strength depends on, and has always depended on, our ability to have fully informed, free and open debates on these issues.... In my experience, the federal law enforcement community is full of hard working, honest people with integrity, who believe passionately in the Bill of Rights. I am confident that we will reach the right balance between what we need to do to keep the country safe and what we need to do to protect our constitutional rights."
Elston is a co-author of the widely cited two-volume treatise "Grand Jury Law & Practice" (Thompson-West 2d ed. 1997), which is updated annualy.
From 2007 to 2009, Elston was a partner with the McGuire Woods law firm in its Tysons Corner and Washington, D.C. offices.
Community Activities
Elston is the Junior Warden and a member of the VestryVestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
of Pohick Church
Pohick Church
Pohick Church is an Episcopal church in the community of Pohick near Lorton in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States.-History:Originally founded around 1695 as Occoquan Church, in the Anglican Truro Parish of Virginia, it was later renamed Pohick Church in 1732 after relocating near Pohick Creek,...
, and he served as chair of the church's 66th annual country fair in 2011. He is also a member of the church's chapter of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew.
Elston has been an officer of the George Washington Chapter, Virginia Society, Sons of the American Revolution
Sons of the American Revolution
The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution is a Louisville, Kentucky-based fraternal organization in the United States...
(SAR), since December 2008, and he currently serves as treasurer of the chapter. He is the chairman of the state society's Knight Essay Competition for high school students, and he was appointed as one of three trustees of the Knight-Patty Fund in 2011. He has received several SAR awards, including the Meritorious Service Medal (2009).
Controversy
While serving as Chief of Staff to the Deputy Attorney General, Elston was involved in the dismissal of eight U.S. attorneys, and was accused of threatening three of the fired U.S. attorneys to keep quiet about their ousters.Elston denied these allegations, and a subsequent report by the Department of Justice Inspector General exonerated him (see below). At the time, however, House Democratic Committee Chair John Conyers, stated the following: "When yet another significant player resigns in the U.S. attorney scandal, it only deepens the mystery of who targeted U.S. attorneys for firing, why they did it, and what exactly is going on in the highest reaches of the Justice Department and who is filling the vacuum of leadership that has developed there." After interviewing the U.S. Attorneys involved, the Department of Justice Inspector General's report regarding the dismissal of the U.S. Attorneys cleared Elston of any wrongdoing, stating "we do not have sufficient evidence to conclude that Elston intended to threaten" any of the dismissed U.S. Attorneys.
External links
- Dan Eggen and Amy Goldstein Justice Official to Quit, Elston Had Role in Prosecutor Firings The Washington Post, ,June 15, 2007.
- Duke Law School, Alumni Views Comments by Elston on the Patriot Act