Appeals court rules former prosecutor can continue to pursue leaker

DETROIT (AP) -- An appeals court says a former Detroit federal prosecutor should be given more time to learn the identity of a leaker who told a newspaper about an ethics investigation against him. The court revived a lawsuit last Friday against the U.S. Justice Department by Richard Convertino. He says his privacy was violated when the ethics probe was disclosed to a Detroit Free Press reporter who wrote a 2004 story. Convertino's lawsuit was dismissed last year by a federal judge in Washington. But the appeals court says the case should be frozen while Convertino hunts for the leaker. Free Press reporter David Ashenfelter won't name his source, invoking his right against self-incrimination. But Convertino wants to question others at the newspaper. Free Press lawyer Herschel Fink says he's reviewing the new opinion. Published: Tue, Jun 26, 2012