THE SAD SAGA CONTINUES ...

(For earlier installments, click here and here.)

New York Times
March 6, 2007

Former Prosecutor Says Departure Was Pressured
By ERIC LICHTBLAU 

WASHINGTON, March 5 — The former federal prosecutor in Maryland said Monday that he was forced out in early 2005 because of political pressure stemming from public corruption investigations involving associates of the state’s governor, a Republican.

“There was direct pressure not to pursue these investigations,” said the former prosecutor, Thomas M. DiBiagio. “The practical impact was to intimidate my office and shut down the investigations.”

Mr. DiBiagio, a controversial figure who clashed with a number of Maryland politicians, had never publicly discussed the reasons behind his departure. But he agreed to an interview with The New York Times because he said he was concerned about what he saw as similarities with the recent firings of eight United States attorneys.

As in those cases, there are conflicting accounts of the circumstances that led to Mr. DiBiagio’s ouster. The Justice Department disputes his version.

His office had been looking into whether associates of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. had improperly funneled money from gambling interests to promote legalized slot machines in Maryland. Mr. DiBiagio said that several prominent Maryland Republicans had pressed him to back away from the inquiries and that one conversation had so troubled him that he reported it to an F.B.I. official as a threat.

But he said that the Justice Department had offered little support and that that made it “impossible for me to stay.”

Several current and former officials in the Baltimore office said Mr. DiBiagio voiced concerns in 2004 that the corruption inquiries were jeopardizing his career, a view that they shared.

[To read the whole article, click here.]

Another article in today's NYT reports:

One of the dismissed United States attorneys who are expected to testify is David C. Iglesias, who was removed as the top federal prosecutor in New Mexico. Mr. Iglesias is expected to describe in detail the phone calls he received last year from Senator Pete V. Domenici, Republican of New Mexico, and an unidentified Republican lawmaker, Congressional aides said.

Mr. Iglesias has said the calls were intended to press him into bringing indictments that would embarrass Democrats before the November 2006 elections. The case centered on an investigation of a kickback scheme related to a construction project involving a former Democratic official. Mr. Domenici has acknowledged making a call to the prosecutor but has said he did not press Mr. Iglesias.

Mr. Domenici is one of the three Republican members of the state’s Congressional delegation. One of the other lawmakers, Representative Steve Pearce, has said he did not contact Mr. Iglesias. The remaining Republican, Representative Heather A. Wilson, told The Washington Post on Monday that she had spoken with Mr. Iglesias but said she had not pressured him.

Also on Monday, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington asked the Senate Committee on Ethics whether Mr. Domenici violated Senate rules when he contacted Mr. Iglesias. The group noted that Mr. Domenici made the call shortly before the November elections, in which control of the House came down to a handful of competitive races.

Carol C. Lam, who was removed as United States attorney in San Diego, said in testimony prepared for her appearance in the House that “in most of our cases, we were given little or no information about the reason for the request for our resignations.” Ms. Lam said in her written testimony that she would not speculate on the reasons.

Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, who has led the Senate investigation into the removals, said the ousted prosecutors wanted to talk about their experiences. “We have spent decades trying to insulate U.S. attorneys from the political process,” Mr. Schumer said, “and it looks more and more like all that has been undone in the last few years.”

[To see the whole article, click here.]