October 25th 2024.
Congressman Eric Swalwell's attorneys have recently issued a threat to sue Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, claiming that she made defamatory remarks about him while speaking out against his decision to support her removal from office. According to Swalwell's legal team, Price's statements were filled with false and malicious attacks against the congressman, and they have given her an ultimatum to either retract her words or face a lawsuit.
The demand was made in a letter that was sent to Price on October 19th, but it was not made public until Thursday, when Swalwell's office released it. In the letter, Price was given one week to provide evidence to support her claims, which questioned whether Swalwell had something to hide during his time as a prosecutor for the district attorney's office from 2006 to 2012. If she failed to do so, the letter stated that it would confirm that there was no factual basis for her statements, and that they were made with the intent to harm a highly respected public official and former assistant district attorney.
Despite an earlier request for her to retract her words, Price remained silent, which Swalwell's attorneys noted in their letter, saying that her lack of response was "deafening." In response to the threat of a lawsuit, Price's campaign once again criticized Swalwell's focus on the recall effort, urging voters to not support it and to instead focus on defending democracy.
This letter from Swalwell's attorneys is just the latest development in an ongoing feud between the two Democrats. They had a heated exchange on social media back in May, when Swalwell accused Price of being "soft" on crime and told her to focus more on prosecuting and less on tweeting. Price fired back by suggesting that Swalwell only started speaking out about crime when she, a Black woman, was elected as district attorney.
Their clash continued on October 2nd, when Swalwell held a press conference to endorse the recall of Price during the upcoming November 5th election, stating that it was necessary to bring accountability back to the office and ensure the safety of the community. Price responded by posting a lengthy message on her personal Facebook account, accusing Swalwell of aligning himself with the Alameda County Republican Party and participating in undemocratic efforts to overturn the previous election. She also mentioned an ongoing review of 35 cases, which brought to light an alleged practice by Alameda County prosecutors to exclude Jewish and Black citizens from death penalty juries. While she never directly accused Swalwell of being involved in this practice, Price's post raised questions about his support for the recall and whether it was an attempt to protect himself and his former colleagues from being implicated in unethical practices.
In their letter, Swalwell's attorneys expressed their surprise and shock that Price did not retract her statements after being asked to do so by the congressman earlier this month. They took issue with several passages in Price's post, including her insinuation that Swalwell's actions were motivated by a desire to hide something. They also disagreed with her statement about the truth revealing uncomfortable connections, a sentiment that was also expressed by Price's predecessor and former boss, Nancy O'Malley, who has also endorsed the recall. This endorsement is in stark contrast to other longtime local Democrats, such as Rep. Barbara Lee and state Sen. Nancy Skinner, who have spoken out against the recall and called it undemocratic.
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