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WASHINGTON -- Two advocacy groups plan to file an ethics complaint today against Attorney General John Ashcroft, arguing that a recent letter from Ashcroft to the National Rifle Association improperly undermined the position of the government in a court case.

Common Cause and the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence are asking that the Justice Department's inspector general and the Board of Professional Responsibility of the District of Columbia's Court of Appeals open investigations into Ashcroft's statements, according to a copy of the complaint obtained by The Washington Post.

Ashcroft wrote May 17 to the NRA that he "unequivocally" thought the Constitution protected the right of individuals to own guns. In a pending Texas case, the U.S. government has argued the opposite, maintaining that the right to own a gun contained in the Second Amendment is a collective, not individual, right.

"His public expression of this position directly contradicts the United States' stated legal position in pending legislation," said the complaint, signed by Brady Center President Michael Barnes and Common Cause President Scott Harshbarger. "We believe that Attorney General Ashcroft has violated numerous ethical guidelines that govern his conduct toward his client, the United States of America."

Ashcroft said in his letter that he "cannot comment on any pending litigation," but the complaint argues that the rest of his comments have the effect of undermining such litigation.

Justice Department spokeswoman Mindy Tucker said Ashcroft's views on the Second Amendment won't affect the case in Texas because the government still will argue that the defendant, Timothy Joe Emerson, violated federal law by owning a gun while under a restraining order.

Tucker said Ashcroft "believes there's an individual right to own a gun, but there are also reasonable restrictions. The two are not mutually exclusive."

All content © 2001 The Kansas City Star

By Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, July 3, 2001; Page A17

Two advocacy groups plan to file an ethics complaint today against Attorney General John D. Ashcroft, arguing that a recent letter from Ashcroft to the National Rifle Association improperly undermines the government's position in a pending court case.

The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence and Common Cause are asking that the Justice Department's inspector general and the D.C. Court of Appeals' Board of Professional Responsibility open investigations into Ashcroft's statements, according to a copy of the complaint obtained by The Washington Post.

Ashcroft wrote in a May 17 letter to the NRA that he "unequivocally" believes the Constitution protects the right of individuals to own guns. In a Texas case, the U.S. government has argued the opposite, maintaining that the right to own a gun contained in the Second Amendment is a collective, not individual, right.

"His public expression of this position directly contradicts the United States' stated legal position in pending litigation," said the complaint, signed by Brady Center President Michael D. Barnes and Common Cause President Scott Harshbarger. "We believe that Attorney General Ashcroft has violated numerous ethical guidelines that govern his conduct toward his client, the United States of America."

Ashcroft said in his letter that he "cannot comment on any pending litigation," but the complaint argues that the rest of his comments have the effect of undermining such litigation.

Justice Department spokeswoman Mindy Tucker said Ashcroft's views on the Second Amendment will not affect the case in Texas because the government will still argue that the defendant, Timothy Joe Emerson, violated federal law by owning a gun while under a restraining order.

Ashcroft, Tucker said, "believes there's an individual right to own a gun, but there are also reasonable restrictions. The two are not mutually exclusive."

The ethics complaint reflects an escalating attack by gun control advocates on the policies emerging from the Justice Department.

Last week, the Brady Center and other groups derided Ashcroft for slashing the amount of time that records will be kept on instant background checks for gun buyers, from 90 days to one day.

The relatively few court decisions pertaining to the Second Amendment over the last century have generally interpreted gun ownership as a collective right. But in his letter, Ashcroft cited numerous earlier decisions concluding the opposite, joining many legal scholars who have recently argued that the older rulings have greater merit.

The matter could be put to a test in the case of Emerson, a San Angelo, Tex., physician accused of displaying a gun in front of his daughter and wife, who had filed a restraining order against him. The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 forbids anyone under a restraining order from owning a gun.

A federal judge threw out the charges against Emerson last year, ruling that "a textual analysis of the Second Amendment supports an individual right to bear arms." The case is on appeal.

© 2001 The Washington Post Company