Interim Mauskopf Replacement

A senior Justice Department official in Washington, Benton Campbell, will serve as the interim U.S. attorney in Brooklyn, a Justice Department source said. He will replace Roslynn Mauskopf, who is leaving the post after four years to become a judge on U.S. District Court in Brooklyn. The Senate confirmed her yesterday, after her nomination had stalled for more than a year.

Mr. Campbell, 41, was a member of the Enron Task Force and most recently served as chief of staff to the assistant attorney general for the criminal division, Alice Fisher. Previously, he served for nearly a decade as a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn. He was involved in several high-profile matters there, including the investigation into the 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800. He also prosecuted a capital murder-for-hire case against a gas station owner who was eventually convicted but not sentenced to death.

It is not yet clear whether President Bush will nominate Mr. Campbell or someone else to fill the U.S. attorney position in Brooklyn permanently, which would require Senate confirmation. If the White House decides not to, it is likely that Mr. Campbell will serve as interim U.S. attorney for the rest of the administration. The district court in Brooklyn would, however, need to sign off on him after four months.