Reply #45: Yes, the Congress can - and so can a federal judge (that's happened twice)

[FreepFryer]

Judge names special prosecutor for Bitsky - 11:35 PM 7/16/03
The ongoing federal civil rights case against former Adams County Undersheriff Kenneth Bitsky took another twist Wednesday when a federal judge in Madison appointed a special prosecutor to try the case.

A UW-Madison law professor said that the only other time in U.S. history this was attempted by a judge was in connection with a Watergate-era case, and that appointment was overturned by a federal appeals court.

U.S. District Judge John Shabaz on Wednesday ordered that former U.S. Attorney John O. Olson, now an attorney in private practice in Lake Geneva, be appointed special prosecutor to replace Assistant U.S. Attorney John Vaudreuil.

The order does not elaborate on his reasons for appointing a special prosecutor, but Shabaz has said that the interests of justice were not served by dismissing a civil rights charge against Bitsky.

From http://www.madison.com/wisconsinstatejournal/local/52956.php

Special Prosecutor:
n. an attorney from outside of the government selected by the Attorney General or Congress to investigate and possibly prosecute a federal government official for wrongdoing in office. The theory behind appointing a special prosecutor is that there is a built-in conflict of interest between the Department of Justice and officials who may have political or governmental connections with that department. The most famous special prosecutor was law professor Archibald Cox, originally chosen to investigate White House (and President Richard Nixon's) involvement in the Watergate scandal. President Nixon demanded that Attorney General Elliot Richardson fire Cox, who was being aggressive in his investigation, and Richardson resigned rather than comply, as did Assistant Attorney General William Ruckelshaus. Deputy Attorney General Robert Bork finally discharged Cox.

From http://dictionary.law.com/default2.asp?selected=1987&bold=%7C%7C%7C%7C