United States Attorney Leura G. Canary Middle District of Alabama

MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA—

The following is a statement from United States Attorney Leura G. Canary:

“Around September 2007, two articles were published in the local and national media concerning John W. Goff claiming I had a conflict of interest in any matter involving Mr. Goff. After I became aware of these articles, I concluded that these articles may have created the appearance that I have a conflict of interest with regard to Mr. Goff, although in fact no conflict exists. In an abundance of caution, on October 19, 2007, I contacted the appropriate officials at the Department of Justice in Washington and recused myself from any matter related to Mr. Goff.

“On November 16, 2007, Thomas T. Gallion, III, and Donald R. Jones, Jr., attorneys for John W. Goff, wrote a letter to United States Attorney General Michael Mukasey and others and copied it to me. The letter called for the recusal of me and my office from any matter related to Mr. Goff and was released to the media, prompting press calls today to our office. As I stated above, I voluntarily recused myself to avoid even the appearance of a conflict on October 19, 2007, several weeks before Messrs. Gallion’s and Jones’s correspondence.

“It is my firm belief that no actual conflict of interest exists. Moreover, it is my position that the allegations of conflict described in Messrs. Gallion’s and Jones’s letter pertaining to me and my family are misleading and/or false. “It is of the utmost importance to me as United States Attorney that the people in the Middle District of Alabama and throughout the State have confidence in the manner in which matters are handled by me and by the office I serve. I want to insure that no one has a basis upon which to question the integrity of any investigation undertaken by this office. I am confident these measures adequately address any concerns the public may have.”