MICHIGAN Traficant's prosecutor becomes interim U.S. attorney for district

DETROIT (AP) -- An assistant U.S. attorney who gained recognition for prosecuting former U.S. Rep. James A. Traficant Jr. was appointed interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, the U.S. Justice Department announced Wednesday.
Craig S. Morford, a 17-year employee of the Justice Department, is the first assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Morford's appointment begins Monday and will last for 120 days, the department said.
In January, Morford was appointed to spearhead an investigation in Detroit into the nation's first major post-Sept. 11, 2001, terrorism trial. The appointment came amid concerns of the behavior of the lead federal prosecutor in the trial of four Arab men who authorities said were linked to terrorist groups.
Traficant was convicted on racketeering charges in April 2002 and expelled from the House on July 24, 2002. He is serving an eight-year sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Ray Brook, N.Y.
Over the past 10 years, Morford served as lead prosecutor in more than 70 corruption and gambling cases in the Mahoning Valley.
U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Collins announced Aug. 2 that he was stepping down from the position to pursue a career in white-collar defense.