WASHINGTON - The federal prosecutor who won convictions in the government's first and only terrorism trial after the Sept. 11 attacks has filed a lawsuit against Attorney General John Ashcroft accusing the Justice Department of "gross mismanagement" in the war on terrorism.

The highly unusual complaint was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington by Richard Convertino, the lead prosecutor in the conviction of three members of an alleged terrorism sleeper cell in Detroit.

WHISTLEBLOWER TARGETS JOHN ASHCROFT In his lawsuit, Convertino said the Justice Department has exaggerated its success in fighting terrorism. He said heavy-handed officials at Justice Department headquarters in Washington have hindered prosecutors in the field.

Convertino is facing an internal Justice Department investigation for failing to turn over a document to the defense until long after the trial had ended.

Convertino claims the Justice Department is retaliating against him because he has attacked its efforts in the war on terrorism and cooperated with the Senate Finance Committee, led by Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, a vocal critic of the department.

In his lawsuit, Convertino said the Justice Department has exaggerated its success in fighting terrorism. He said heavy-handed officials at Justice Department headquarters in Washington have hindered prosecutors in the field.

In the case he handled in Detroit, which Ashcroft has frequently praised as a success in the war on terrorism, Convertino said the government failed to provide the needed federal law enforcement manpower to help review documents, interview witnesses and prepare for trial.

Convertino claims he worked the case for months with the help of only one FBI special agent.

Convertino said he repeatedly asked for additional help.

In the suit, Convertino alleges there was a "lack of support and cooperation, lack of effective assistance, lack of resources and intradepartmental infighting" in terrorism cases.

"These concerns directly related to the ability of the United States to effectively utilize the criminal justice system as a component in the `war on terrorism,' " the lawsuit said.

The suit alleges that a senior official in the Justice Department's terrorism and violent crimes section told Convertino that positive news reports concerning the department's success against terrorism efforts were overblown.

"The press gives us more credit than we deserve," the lawsuit quotes the official as telling Convertino.

Justice Department spokesman Mark Corallo said Tuesday the case was being reviewed but wouldn't comment further.

Convertino's allegations come as the high-profile case in Detroit appears to be in danger of unraveling.

U.S. District Judge Gerald Rosen said Tuesday that he was seriously considering granting a new trial for the three men convicted.

Even before Tuesday's disclosures, the case was in jeopardy over allegations against Convertino.

A letter from a jailhouse inmate alleged that the government's star witness, Youssef Hmimssa, had lied. That letter was turned over to defense lawyers only last year, well after the trial had concluded in June.

Convertino's lawyer maintained the letter - penned by a Detroit drug dealer - wouldn't have affected the trial's outcome.

In his suit, Convertino alleges that his superiors in Detroit and Washington retaliated against him after he testified before the Senate Finance Committee. He had been subpoenaed to appear. Convertino and his boss, Keith Corbett, were removed from the Detroit case in September after Convertino appeared before Grassley's committee.

The Justice Department also launched an investigation against him after that testimony. The details of that probe were leaked to the media, which Convertino claims violated his constitutional rights under the First Amendment and the Privacy Act. The prosecutor also said in the lawsuit that Justice Department officials tried to discredit him by leaking the name of one of his confidential informants.

That leak put the informant at risk, forcing him to flee the United States.

The leak "interfered with the ability of the United States to obtain information from the (confidential informant) about current and future terrorist activities" the suit said.

Convertino, 42, a federal prosecutor since 1990, is being represented by the Washington-based National Whistleblower Center, which has represented numerous FBI agents with grievances against the Justice Department.

Convertino's lawyer, Stephen Kohn, on Tuesday accused Justice Department officials of engaging in "constitutional vandalism."

Recently, Convertino was reassigned to the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control in Washington, a standing committee chaired by Grassley.

In the Detroit case, Convertino won convictions in June against two men for document fraud and conspiracy to provide material support for terrorism. One other was found guilty of document fraud but acquitted of terror charges. The fourth defendant was acquitted on all counts.

© 2004 Knight-Ridder

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