A "Shock" to the System in Stevens Case

The charges against Ted Stevens were shocking in their own right--that the Senate's senior Republican who was a key appropriator of federal money had accepted bribes in the form of housing repairs. Then came his conviction in federal court and his razor-thin loss to Democrat Mark Begich last November.

But the most shocking turn came today, when a US judge threw out the guilty verdict and ordered an investigation into whether federal prosecutors "shocking" conduct was illegal. "In nearly 25 years on the bench, I've never seen anything approaching the mishandling, the misconduct, I've seen in this case," US District Judge Emmet Sullivan said in Washington.

The judge tapped Washington lawyer Henry Schuelke to be a special prosecutor to investigate possible obstruction of justice in the case by William Welch II and Brenda Morris, the top two lawyers in the Justice Department's public integrity section. Four other members of the team also may face charges.

At issue was the apparent decision by the prosecution to withhold information that showed the government's chief witness in the case, Bill Allen, gave conflicting evidence to officials about the amount of money a renovation on Stevens' house cost. Allen's oil-services company, Veco Corp., handled the work on the house in Girdwood, town near Anchorage.

The prosecutors' actions were disclosed last week by Anthony Holder, the new attorney general. Today, a Justice lawyer said the department "deeply" regretted what had occurred.

It's worthy to remember who was in charge of the Justice Department during the Stevens prosecution--the Bush administration. The Stevens prosecution was the highest-level public corruption case brought by the Bush Justice Department, which had been roundly blasted for hiring government lawyers for political reasons. So a Republican Justice Department goes after the most senior and most powerful Republican in the Senate. And it all ends badly when a Democratic Justice Department blows the whistle.

Stevens today said he was thankful. "Until recently, my faith in the judicial system was unwavering," the 85-year-old Alaskan said in court.

It's probably likely that Steven's faith in the political system won't get much of a lift. Despite calls from Governor Sarah Palin and other Republicans for Begich to step aside and agree to compete against Stevens in a special election, the new senator says he won't go.

By J. Jennings Moss