I mean, you don't really expect the orange one's US Attorney to prosecute people in his department or himself, right? So how do we get to a court-appointed prosecutor?

Thank God for cell phone cameras. Of course, those get impounded, too.

'50's and '60's against protesters. Claim they were doing things they weren't and lock them up. No cell phones at that time to help out. It wouldn't matter how many witnesses you had. They would just claim the witnesses were wrong. It really used to get bad for some protesters once the cops got you in the station. Security cameras and such just weren't around like today. You might go in looking OK but you might come out not feeling too well.

If so, isn't that ammunition which can be used in lawsuits against those officers?

Hopefully this is the case and they will have to face those they falsely accused in court.

but there would need to be lawyers ready to do it (I expect many protestors don't have the money to pay a lawyer so the pro-bono ones from various orgs would need represent them).

in the local news here in L.A. that grand juries are refusing to indict many of the protestors being charged! Don't recall where I saw it but will post a link if I run across it again because it made me proud to be an Angeleno.

E.g., - https://www.democraticunderground.com/100220509035

The LA Times had an article - https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-07-23/protester-charges-essayli

lie, that is, because they know the person they lie about will have to pay for a lawyer, take time off of work, maybe lose their job, worry about getting convicted anyway, etc.

And cops joke about it - they can use the system to punish anyone, guilty or not. And they will not get any blowback, either. They respond with cop jargon and "by the book" - "I feared for my life", etc.

The solution is to make the lying cop pay out of their own pocket. And put their names on the Brady (?) list - the list that stops them from getting re- hired as cops.

sworn and signed?

that would make false statements subject to perjury if someone has the balls to file the charge.