NEW - SDNY US Atty Berman *IS* stepping down

[elleng]

1. Acting New York U.S. attorney, Audrey Strauss, once defeated Roy Cohn, investigated Iran-contra.

'Audrey Strauss, deputy U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, who just in the past year took over the office’s investigations into President Trump’s business and campaign finances, will now serve as the top prosecutor following the sudden firing of U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman.

“By operation of law, the Deputy United States Attorney, Audrey Strauss, will become the Acting United States Attorney, and I anticipate that she will serve in that capacity until a permanent successor is in place,” Attorney General William P. Barr wrote in a letter Saturday informing Berman of his termination.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) said in a statement that he had “confidence” that Strauss “will continue running SDNY in a professional and ethical manner.”

“Ms. Strauss is widely viewed as a highly competent, highly capable Deputy U.S. Attorney with the knowledge and experience to hit the ground running,” Graham said.

Strauss came out of retirement in early 2018 to work for Berman as senior counsel. A year later, the office’s deputy U.S. attorney stepped down, and she was promoted, putting her in charge of the office’s probes tied to Trump.

In a Financial Times profile of her after she became second-in-command, Strauss is described as reserved but warm and highly respected by her peers. Mary Jo White, who led the Southern District, said of Strauss: “She’s not a table-thumper — she’s just one of the most extraordinary people and lawyers around.”'>>>

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/acting-new-york-us-attorney-once-defeated-roy-cohn-investigated-iran-contra/2020/06/20/82378274-b332-11ea-8758-bfd1d045525a_story.html