Attorney General Gonzales Announces Kevin O'Connor as Chief of Staff for the Department of Justice

    WASHINGTON, April 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Attorney General
 Alberto R. Gonzales today named Kevin J. O'Connor, U.S. Attorney for the
 District of Connecticut, as his Chief of Staff. In this role, O'Connor will
 assist the Attorney General and senior Department of Justice staff in
 managing and implementing the Department's policy initiatives and
 priorities.
     Mr. O'Connor will officially start April 26, 2007. Chuck Rosenberg will
 return, as planned, to the Eastern District of Virginia where he serves as
 the U.S. Attorney, following six weeks of service as the Department's
 interim Chief of Staff.
     "I extend my sincere gratitude to Chuck Rosenberg who stepped in to
 serve the Department admirably during a challenging transitional period,"
 said Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales. "I am very pleased that Kevin
 has agreed to serve as my Chief of Staff. He is an outstanding lawyer and
 as U.S. Attorney in Connecticut demonstrated that he is a strong manager
 and leader."
     Mr. O'Connor was appointed by President George W. Bush and unanimously
 confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Connecticut's 48th U.S. Attorney in 2002.
 In January 2006, Mr. O'Connor also began serving in the Department's
 headquarters as the Associate Deputy Attorney General to oversee violent
 crime and gang- related policy initiatives for the Department.
     Prior to his appointment as U.S. Attorney, Mr. O'Connor was a partner
 in the law firm of Day, Berry & Howard in Hartford, Conn. Mr. O'Connor also
 served as Corporation Counsel for the Town of West Hartford, Conn. from
 1999 to 2001.
     From 1995 to 1997, Mr. O'Connor served as Staff Attorney and Senior
 Counsel in the Division of Enforcement of the U.S. Securities & Exchange
 Commission in Washington, D.C. From 1993 to 1995, Mr. O'Connor was a
 litigation associate with the law firm of Cahill Gordon & Reindel in New
 York City. From 1992 to 1993, Mr. O'Connor served as a law clerk to the
 Honorable William H. Timbers of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd
 Circuit.
     He is a 1992 graduate, with high honors, from the University of
 Connecticut School of Law and a 1989 graduate, with honors, from the
 University of Notre Dame.
     Mr. O'Connor will remain the U.S. Attorney for the District of
 Connecticut. After four to six months, he and the Attorney General will
 determine whether he continues to hold both positions.
 
 

SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice