Sam Currin, a former judge, federal prosecutor and state Republican Party chairman, was ordered released from prison after serving a fraction of a nearly six-year sentence for money laundering and obstruction.

Senior U.S. District Judge W. Earl Britt made the order Monday. Federal prosecutors recommended in May that Currin, imprisoned since 2007, have his original 70-month sentence cut in half following his testimony against a co-conspirator, David A. Hagen.

Thomas Walker, one of Currin's defense attorneys, argued in court Monday that the fallen federal prosecutor and former state judge should be granted the kind of leniency he often opposed for criminals.

Walker asked the judge to reduce the sentence to 29 months to allow Currin, 60, to be home in Raleigh in time to see his son graduate from law school next year.

"He has suffered greatly," Walker said. "We're begging for the court's mercy."

Britt, who handed down Currin's original sentence and presided over the Hagen trial, went even further, commuting Currin's sentence to time served.

A Republican and close aide of the late U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms, Currin served from 1981 to 1987 as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, a jurisdiction that sweeps from Raleigh to the coast. He was a Superior Court judge from 1987 to 1990 and elected as the state's GOP chairman in 1996, serving until 1999.

At his sentencing in 2007, Currin admitted to laundering $1.3 million on behalf of Hagen, an e-mail spammer who authorities said ran one of the most prolific spamming operations in the world, peddling everything from mortgages to stock picks.

Hagen was convicted in May on three counts of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit mail/wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He faces up to 45 years. (N&O)

U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan wants to keep Republican U.S. Attorney George Holding on, for now, to continue his investigation into former Gov. Mike Easley.

But she submitted names to President Barack Obama for a new person to handle all other, non-Easley-related matters in the Eastern District, reports Barb Barrett.

Among Hagan’s recommendations for the U.S. attorney Eastern District, based in Raleigh, are well-known lawyers Benjamin David, Hampton Dellinger and Thomas Walker, according to a release from Hagan's office.

David is District Attorney for New Hanover and Pender counties. Dellinger, a partner in the law firm of Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson, has experience working with local, state and federal law enforcement. Walker, a partner at Alston and Bird, LLP, concentrates on complex federal and state government investigations and white-collar defense.

A newly elected president traditionally appoints new federal prosecutors from his own party based on recommendations from senators. Any nominee must be confirmed by the Senate.

In her letter to Obama about the situation, Hagan wrote:

“As I have previously discussed with the Office of the White House Counsel, it is my belief that the current U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, George Holding, should be allowed to complete the ongoing investigations of public officials in the state.”

She continued: “During my conversations with the Office of the White House Counsel, there was an interest expressed by the Counsel’s office to potentially appoint a separate individual to begin handling other matters not related to these investigations. Should you decide to do so, the following names are provided for your consideration.”

Holding has been investigating Easley’s ties to campaign donors and other prominent North Carolina leaders. Just this week he issued subpoenas seeking records related to the Department of Motor Vehicles under Easley’s watch.

Four names have surfaced for U.S. attorney in Western North Carolina.

As reported in The Charlotte Observer, three former federal prosecutors and a state judge are interested in becoming the U.S. attorney for the Western District based in Charlotte:

Pete Anderson: A criminal defense attorney who has served as a prosecutor with the U.S. Justice Department in Washington and the U.S. attorney's office in Charlotte.

Anne Tompkins: A former state and federal prosecutor who worked on an eight-month special assignment in Iraq to help prosecute Saddam Hussein in 2004.

Thomas Walker: A former state and federal prosecutor who served as special counsel to Attorney General Roy Cooper and is now a partner at Alston & Bird. 

Dennis Winner: A former six-term state senator who is in his second stint as a state Superior Court judge in the Asheville area.

As previously noted, former Congressional candidate and assistant Wake County prosecutor Daniel Johnson of Hickory is also under consideration.

Sen. Kay Hagan will play a key role in the appointment.