Justice Department report tells of underlings who tried to get U.S. attorney fired

10:30 AM PT, Sep 29 2008

In a report on the 2006 firings of U.S. attorneys, the Justice Department inspector general found that former Atty. Gen. Alberto Gonzales was stunningly out of touch and that the White House stonewalled investigators’ requests for documents and testimony that could have shed light on whether the firings were illegal.

Not exactly a news flash in the closing days of the Bush administration.

But two new characters do emerge in the saga: A husband and wife team, it seems, did all they could do to off one of the fired U.S. attorneys, and in some cases may have gone overboard, the report concludes.

The couple, Joan Meyer and Lloyd Meyer, were once assistant U.S. attorneys in the U.S. attorney's office in Grand Rapids, Mich., which was headed by Margaret Chiara, one of the seven U.S. attorneys fired on Dec. 7, 2006.

The two Meyers, according to the report, got high-level posts at the Justice Department around the time the prosecutor purge was being hatched, and according to the report, they offered their two cents on their old boss.

Among other things, they spread “unproven rumors about a sexual relationship” between Chiara and another assistant U.S. attorney in the office, who was a woman, investigators found.

The report described the conduct as “unprofessional” but concludes that Chiara was ultimately dismissed out of concerns about her management of the office and not “inappropriate factors.”

Joan Meyer is now a partner in a major Washington law firm. Lloyd Meyer took early retirement this month.

-- Richard B. Schmitt

Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press