The state Bar of California announced Thursday it has filed a disciplinary complaint against former Chapman University law school dean John Eastman, accusing him of pushing bogus claims of fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
The complaint alleges Eastman promoted false and misleading claims of election fraud, including at his appearance before a crowd that included many protesters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2020. The complaint seeks to disbar Eastman.
“There is nothing more sacrosanct to our American democracy that free and fair elections and the peaceful transfer of power,” said George Cardona, the bar’s chief trial counsel. “For California attorneys, adherence to the U.S. and California Constitutions is their highest legal duty. The Notice of Disciplinary Charges alleges that Mr. Eastman violated this duty in furtherance of an attempt to usurp the will of the American people and overturn election results for the highest office in the land — an egregious and unprecedented attack on our democracy — for which he must be held accountable.”
Eastman and his attorney, Randall Allen Miller, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Eastman, while working as an attorney for former President Donald Trump, authored two legal memos purporting to validate a plan to block or postpone the certification of President Joe Biden’s election. Eastman argued that Vice President Mike Pence could at least postpone a certification of the votes while Trump supporters worked to replace Biden electors.
The complaint points out that multiple officials, including Trump’s U.S. Attorney William Barr, said publicly that there was no evidence of the widespread election fraud touted by Trump’s supporters. The complaint also notes how many of the lawsuits seeking to overturn the election results were all dumped for lack of any evidence and characterized as speculative.
The complaint also accused Eastman of helping to provoke the crowd gathering before Congress certified the vote Jan. 6.