U.S. attorneys ready to ‘vigorously defend’ Rep. Nancy Mace in court
COLUMBIA, S.C. - Congressional attorneys responded to an open letter threatening legal action against U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace after a man named during her speech on the U.S. House floor accused her of making “baseless” statements against him.
Mace gave a speech on the House floor on Feb. 25 about multiple scenarios involving four men. One of those men is her ex-fiancé Patrick Bryant, whom the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division confirmed is under investigation.
The Bland Richter Law Firm sent Mace an open letter on behalf of Brian Musgrave, one of the other three men Mace named during her speech, on Feb. 28. The letter states Mace upended Musgrave’s life when she accused him “falsely” of being a rapist, a predator and a sex trafficker.
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“These men aren’t just criminals, they’re predators,” Mace said in her address.
The letter demanded Mace either apologize for making false statements or produce evidence of Musgrave being involved. Eric Bland, an attorney with the Bland Richter Law Firm, says they received a response Thursday.
House of Representative’s General Counsel Matthew Berry says Mace’s statements are protected by the Speech or Debate Clause of the U.S. Constitution, something that was questioned in Musgrave’s initial letter.
“Your letter erroneously questions the applicability of the Speech or Debate Clause to Congresswoman Mace’s remarks on the theory that they did not ‘advanc[e] any legislative initiatives’ but rather ‘were merely … to push a personal narrative,’” Berry says. “Not only is this assertion factually inaccurate, but it is also inconsistent with Supreme Court precedent applying the Speech or Debate Clause. As a factual matter, Congresswoman Mace specifically mentioned twelve pieces of legislation related to the issues raised in her speech, all of which she personally introduced in the last 14 months.”
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As to Musgrave’s demand that evidence be turned over proving his involvement, Berry says Mace has shared evidence with SLED and any request for that evidence should be directed to them.
Berry says that if legal action were to be taken against Mace for her floor statements, government attorneys will “vigorously defend her in court.”
“We all are paying for her lawyer at this time,” Bland says. “Unfortunately, Congresswoman Mace has chosen not to apologize and not to do a retraction.”
Bland says further options are being explored.
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