Legal News

U.S. Attorney Mess: Is DOJ Hindering the Investigaton?

By Ashby Jones

That’s right; the Energizer Bunny is back! Some interesting news today out of D.C. in regard to the U.S. attorney mess, the story that gave and gave so unselfishly during 2007. The latest: Scott Bloch, the head of the Office of Special Counsel, the agency spearheading the inquiry into the eight U.S. attorney firings, is claiming that the Justice Department has impeded his investigation. Here’s the story from the AP.

In a letter sent to Attorney General Michael Mukasey last week, Bloch claims the DOJ’s inspector general and office of legal counsel asked him to step aside until internal investigations are finished. Thing is, Bloch wrote, that could take months, pushing his own investigation “into the very last months of the administration when there is little hope of any corrective measures or discipline possible.”

Bloch also complains that his attempts to meet with White House Counsel Fred Fielding to discuss the investigation have been rebuffed. The White House did not immediately return phone and e-mail messages to the AP on Tuesday.

Bloch also complains about the investigation into the performance of Rachel Paulose, who recently stepped down as U.S. attorney for Minnesota amid complaints about her management style. Bloch’s agency had referred allegations about Paulose to the inspector general’s office, but the office told him by telephone in October that it had “asked around” and wasn’t planning to do anything. In the letter, Bloch asks Mukasey: “Are you requesting that I report to the president that you refuse to investigate disclosures of wrongdoing made by a career federal prosecutor, an employee of your agency?”

In an e-mail, Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr said, “We are reviewing the letter and will respond to Mr. Bloch as appropriate.”

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on January 29, 2008 (boomark / email).