Kevin V. Ryan

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Kevin V. Ryan

Born	Alberta, Canada
Education	Bachelor of Arts History, Dartmouth College. Juris Doctor from the University of San Francisco School of Law.
Occupation	Criminal Justice Director
Employers	City of San Francisco

Kevin V. Ryan is a former United States Attorney for the Northern District of California. He was fired from the US Justice Department in 2007 because of job performance and for punching his boss in a violent rage. Ryan was one of the attorneys whose name was mentioned in connection to the Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy. Ryan was recently hired by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom to be his criminal justice advisor to address San Francisco’s rising homicide rates.^[1]^[2]

His nomination to serve as US Attorney for the Northern District of California was at the recommendation of Joseph P. Russoniello, a previous holder of the same office. President George W. Bush nominated Ryan on May 15, 2002 and confirmed by the United States Senate in July 2002. Ryan is part of the ongoing controversy over the firing of nine U.S. Attorneys by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Ryan announced his resignation in January 2007. Critics have charged the Bush administration with forcing out a number of U.S. attorneys for political motives.^[3] ^[4] ^[5] In contrast to the other eight fired attorneys, Ryan appears to have received strongly negative performance evaluations during his tenure, and was known for his intense political loyalty to the Bush administration.^[6] The Bush administration has not provided a public statement as to whether Ryan was going to be fired, was forced to resign, or was under any review for failure to perform his duties.

Omitted in major newsmedia was the fact that US District Court Judge Marilyn Hall Patel threatned to go to Congress regarding the mismanagement etc. of Kevin V Ryan. Assistant US Attorney George Bevan wrote a letter of complaint about Ryan to the US Department of Justice. Bevan is also a US Marine veteran

Caroly Kwenson, another US Military veteran, also complained about Ryan's abuse and mismanagement. These career employee and other cases are unprecedented scandals in the entire history of the US Justice Department.

Federal prosecutors formerly working under Ryan describe his management style as "neutering the authority of supervisors" and non-supportive of the pursuit of white collar crime.^[7] ^[8] Ryan obtained the conviction of one lawyer for a drug offense^[9], but did not pursue lawyers regarding white collar crimes of spoliation or fraud before a Court of law.

1 Education and background
2 U.S. Attorney career and dismissal
3 References
4 External references

[edit] Education and background

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Ryan was born in Alberta Canada, to the son of an Irish immigrant, and would later marry into a well-off San Francisco Family, become a prosecutor for the State, a judge, and later a U.S. Attorney.

He was raised in San Francisco by his parents. He graduated from Saint Ignatius College Preparatory, earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Dartmouth College, and received his Juris Doctor from the University of San Francisco School of Law.

Ryan began his controversial legal career in California as a prosecutor with the Alameda County District Attorney's Office. While in the District Attorney's Office, he handled a variety of cases including homicides and violent gang prosecutions.

In 1996, while serving as a member of the Violent Gang Suppression Unit, Mr. Ryan was appointed by Governor Pete Wilson to serve as a Judge on the San Francisco Municipal Court. It is alleged that in 1998 and 1999, Ryan was involved in a legal controversy regarding the trial of a US Navy sailor, Steven Nary, and acted inappropriately in connection to the case, and his election to the newly consolidated Superior Court of California.

Ryan had sought out a position as a federal judge, however, opposition--little publicized--prevented Ryan's nomination to the federal bench. His application was subsequently withdrawn when President Bush nominated him to be the United States Attorney for the Northern District of California.

[edit] U.S. Attorney career and dismissal

See also: Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy

Dismissal of U.S. Attorneys Controversy ( v • d • e )
Articles Main issues Timeline Summary of attorneys Documents Congressional hearings List of Dismissed Attorneys Complete list of related articles
Administration Officials Involved Fred F. Fielding, White House Counsel William K. Kelley, Deputy White House Counsel William Moschella, Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Brett Tolman, U.S. Attorney, District of Utah, former counsel to Senate Judiciary Committee Involved Administration Officials that Resigned Alberto Gonzales, United States Attorney General, former White House Counsel Kyle Sampson, Chief of Staff to the Attorney General Michael A. Battle, Director of the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys Michael Elston, Chief of Staff to the Deputy Attorney General Monica Goodling, Justice Department's liaison to the White House William W. Mercer, U.S. Attorney, Acting Associate Attorney General (retains position as U.S. Attorney in Montana) Sara Taylor, Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Political Affairs Paul McNulty, Deputy Attorney General Harriet Miers, former White House Counsel (resigned prior to publicity surrounding the controversy, effective January 31, 2007) Karl Rove, Deputy White House Chief of Staff Bradley Schlozman, Director Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys; former Acting Assistant Attorney General for, and later Pricipal Deputy Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division; former interim U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri
U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary Patrick Leahy, Chair (D) Arlen Specter, Ranking member, former Chair (R) Chuck Schumer, Chair: Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts (D)
U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary John Conyers, Chair (D) Lamar Smith, Ranking member (R) Linda Sánchez, Chair: Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law (D)

The Los Angeles Times reported on March 22, 2007, that Ryan was a "loyal Bush supporter" and that the Justice Department fired him primarily out of concern that his poor performance could cause a public relations problem. The Times reported that Ryan's problems in office were "well documented in legal newspapers" but that "Justice officials wanted to keep Ryan on, even as they plotted the firings of other U.S. attorneys."^[6] Publically released emails between Justice Department officials suggest that they reluctantly added him to the list of attourneys to be fired due to a Federal judge's threat to obtain and potentially release copies of his "blistering" negative evaluations.^[6]

[edit] References

San Francisco Bay Guardian : Article : Letters ... editors, feels strongly that in naming Kevin Ryan to head the Mayor's Office of ... Lou Dubose and the late Molly Ivins described Ryan as "the anomaly in the Al ... www.sfbg.com/entry.php?entry_id=5383&catid=4 - 30k

In February 2005, then Deputy Attorney General Jim Comey recommended to Kyle Sampson that Ryan be terminated. The next month, however, Sampson would characterize Ryan's performance as excellent in an email to Harriet Meirs, who had inquired about U.S. Attorneys.