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Missing Document in U.S. Attorney Probe
Where, oh where, did that document go?
Paul Charlton, the ousted U.S. attorney from Arizona, followed the rules. He reported an inappropriate contact last fall about an investigation into Arizona Republican Rep. Rick Renzi from the lawmaker’s own chief of staff as is required by Justice Department rules.
But that document is nowhere to be found among the thousands of pages of records turned over by the Justice Department to the House and Senate Judiciary committees investigating whether Charlton and seven other prosecutors were fired to silence public corruption investigations like the one into Renzi.
A House Judiciary Committee aide said that the document is “missing” and they plan to ask the Justice Department to find it and find it fast.
The aide noted that this makes the fourth example where a congressional lawmaker or staff have inappropriately attempted to inquire about an on-going investigation.
The House aide noted that the lawmaker was put on the Justice Department’s hit list for U.S. attorneys shortly after the phone call from Renzi’s staffer and a public announcement that an inquiry had been opened.
Charlton was one of seven prosecutors to be fired on Dec. 7. Another prosecutor was fired earlier in the year.
The Justice Department did not immediately return calls about the missing document or the probe.
Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., is incensed at the new disclosure.
Schumer said it raises “new and serious questions” about Charlton’s dismissal—namely was Charlton fired because of the Renzi probe?
Schumer sent Attorney General Alberto Gonzales a letter today requesting that the department reveal all contacts related to the Renzi investigation with the White House, Renzi’s office or other parties so so that congressional investigators can ascertain whether improper political motivations played a role in Charlton’s dismissal.
Renzi’s chief of staff called Charlton’s office to discuss media reports of a pending indictment related to Renzi’s role in a 2005 land deal just weeks before the before the historic November 2006 election that out Democrats back in control of Congress, according to media reports.
The full text of Senator Schumer’s letter is reproduced below:
April 25, 2007
The Honorable Alberto Gonzales
United States Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C.20530
Dear Attorney General Gonzales:
I read this morning, with grave concern, media reports describing previously undisclosed contacts between the office of Congressman Renzi and dismissed Arizona United States Attorney Paul Charlton. In particular, the Associated Press reports that Mr. Renzi’s chief of staff has acknowledged that he called Mr. Charlton’s office shortly after learning that Mr. Charlton had opened an investigation into Mr. Renzi’s conduct in a 2005 land exchange. Based on preliminary reports, at least, these contacts could potentially be construed as designed to inappropriately affect the timing of charging decisions in a politically sensitive investigation around the time of the November election.
Moreover, in another troubling story, the Wall Street Journal today reports that as midterm elections approached last November, federal investigators in Arizona faced unexpected obstacles in getting needed Justice Department approvals to advance a corruption investigation of Mr. Renzi.
Taken together, today’s reports raise new and serious questions about whether improper political motivations were involved in your decision to force Mr. Charlton to resign just a few weeks after the election. To date, there has not been a compelling case made that Mr. Charlton deserved to be dismissed based on his performance as the chief federal prosecutor in Arizona.
I am troubled by the possibility that the practice of having U.S. attorneys coordinate with the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section in cases involving lawmakers, which is intended to be a check on politicization, may have been used in this instance for the contrary purpose of influencing a case for political reasons.
Given the sensitivity of this matter and the declining public confidence in your handling of the U.S. Attorney firings, please provide answers to the following questions no later than the close of business on Friday:
Please explain why the alleged contacts between Representative Renzi’s office and Mr. Charlton’s, which appear to have been reported to the Department, have not been previously disclosed.
Please describe with particularity any and all contacts that occurred between anyone in Representative Renzi’s office and the Justice Department.
Please describe with particularity any and all contacts that occurred between anyone at the White House and the Justice Department about any investigation involving Representative Renzi.
Please describe with particularity any and all contacts that occurred between any third party (including lobbyists, party officials, or other outsiders) and the Justice Department about any investigation involving Representative Renzi.
I thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Sincerely, Charles E. Schumer United States Senator
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