Ted Cruz on Eithan Haim case: "Political prosecution of whistleblowers" undermines integrity of DOJ

Senator Ted Cruz sent a letter to U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani expressing his concern that the federal government may be using the judicial system to carry out a political persecution against Dr. Eithan Haim (indicted for allegedly leaking documents revealing sex reassignment procedures performed on minors at Texas Children's Hospital).

Hamdani is prosecuting the lawsuit against the surgeon. Haim was charged with four felonies for allegedly violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Specifically, he is being blamed for obtaining and leaking, without authorization, personally identifiable information of pediatric patients from the hospital system.

In the four-page letter, Cruz stated that Haim is a whistleblower, and that the court system has turned the case into a "selective" prosecution:

"Political prosecution of whistleblowers not only undermines the integrity of the Department of Justice, but also sets a dangerous precedent for intimidating others from exposing wrongdoing. It has no place in our system of justice."

"A politically-driven persecution"

In the letter, Cruz wrote that the Department of Justice's (DOJ) investigation of Haim "appears to bear the markings of a politically-driven persecution":

"These glaring disparities reveal a judicial system that is not merely blind, but rather selectively harsh, targeting those with opposing views while allowing others to flout the law with effective impunity. It is for this reason that I am concerned about the prosecution of Dr. Haim, a respected member of the medical community who has devoted his career to saving lives. Now, because he acted to expose the barbaric and illegal practice of minor gender transition surgery, Dr. Haim faces the prospect of federal prison, substantial fines and the loss of his medical license."

Cruz asked the prosecutor to disclose information on all felony HIPAA violation cases that have been filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas in the past two years, and also asked him to answer several questions. Hamdani has until July 11 to respond.