There’s a lot that’s shocking about the Department of Justice’s latest hire — former Oregon judge, Vance Day. Day has a *history* of questionable behavior that got him the longest suspension (at the time) in the history of the Oregon bar. But, for my money, the most WTF moment (and in the year of our lord 2025, that is saying SOMETHING) is that Day hung a portrait of none other than Adolf Hitler in the courthouse. But there’s so much else to say about Day that tidbit is the closing throwaway in Talking Points Memo’s write-up of the hire.
Day was appointed to the role of senior counsel to the Office of the Deputy Attorney General. But his tenure in Oregon is riddled with controversy.
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One [incident] involved Day allegedly using his status as a judge to try to intimidate the referee at his son’s soccer game; the court found that Day then tried to mislead an inquiry into the incident by suggesting that he had been assaulted.
In another case, Day allegedly concocted a scheme to avoid having to certify gay marriages. Staffers at the court were instructed to tell gay couples that Day was not available on the day that they requested, allowing him to avoid having to perform the marriage.
In another incident, according to court records, Day had developed a friendship with a former Navy SEAL who had pleaded guilty to a felony DUI charge in his court. The court found that Day had allowed the veteran to handle guns with members of his family in two instances, violating the terms of the guilty plea.
Oregon’s supreme court wrote, “He falsely accused another person of assaulting him, and he otherwise acted dishonestly and for his own self-benefit.” They continued, “His misconduct suggested a character that reflected poorly on his fitness to serve as a judge and his ability to exercise sound judgment.”
And of course, there’s the Hitler thing. In 2015, it came to light that Day put up a collage, as described by the court:
That collage included a painted portrait of Adolf Hitler that had been cut from a frame at the end of World War II by a local veteran serving in Germany. In the collage, the portrait was partially covered by World War II-era photographs, letters, and memorabilia from the veteran, and it was surrounded by photographs of American soldiers during the war, medals awarded to the veteran, and other memorabilia.
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Yikes. Day defended the pics as a patriotic celebration of WW2, but I mean, come on. I bet you’ve seen a bunch of American WW2 propaganda, and very little of it contains artful images of Hitler.
Of course the right wing is circling the wagons around Day. The Oregon Conservative Caucus said, “An early target of political lawfare, Vance has been a staunch 1A rights advocate and a wise source of counsel for us in many areas.”
Sigh. Sounds like the perfect guy to assist in running the DOJ.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @[email protected].