A central question in the congressional investigation of the firings of eight U.S. attorneys is whether Carol C. Lam in San Diego was dismissed, and Debra Wong Yang in Los Angeles eased out, to try to derail corruption probes of prominent California Republicans.
Whatever officials in Washington might have intended, Yang and Lam's departures had no effect on the investigations, which continue unabated, sources close to the inquiries said this week. And several present and former federal prosecutors said it would be extremely difficult -- though not impossible -- to quash an investigation for political reasons.
"Most criminal prosecutors are an independent sort with a strong sense of pursuing truth and justice," said William W. Carter, a Los Angeles federal prosecutor for 14 years before moving to the firm Musick, Peeler & Garrett in November. "They would be repulsed, and rebel, against any political order. There would be an uproar."
Although the nation's 93 U.S. attorneys are political appointees, their offices are staffed with career prosecutors who are tasked with pursuing justice without regard for any political agenda.
Those prosecutors -- assistant U.S. attorneys -- often come from top-flight law schools and see the job as a noble calling. Many of them could make much more money in private practice.
Calling a prosecutor off a case -- particularly if the motive were transparently political -- would cause an uproar, said Loyola Law School professor and former federal prosecutor Laurie L. Levenson. "You'd have to suspend reality to think you could get away with it," she said.
The U.S. attorney's office in San Diego is moving forward on the expanding investigation that netted Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Rancho Santa Fe), the sources said. And prosecutors in Los Angeles continue to examine Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Redlands) over various dealings with lobbyists and contractors during the time he was chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee.
Neither Lam nor Yang had direct involvement in the corruption investigations, the sources said. According to one source close to the Lewis inquiry, Yang never asked to be briefed by her prosecutors, nor did she give them any input. "It was just nothing ... which was good."
The sources close to the probes requested anonymity because a Justice Department policy bars public comment on ongoing investigations.
