Patrick Fitzgerald, From Terrorists to Corrupt Politicians

The NY Times offers a profile of U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who led the investigation into Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's dealings. Previously, he was an assistant U.S. Attorney in NYC between 1988 and 2001, making "his reputation [here] prosecuting Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman... who plotted to bomb local landmarks... and helping to build a criminal case against Osama bin Laden." This tidbit from a 2005 Newsweek article is also telling: "Growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., in the 1970s, Patrick Fitzgerald was so determined to attend the prestigious Regis High School that even a rejection letter couldn't keep him away. When his carefully prepared application was denied, Fitzgerald dialed up Regis's director of admissions and protested that there must have been some mistake. Sure enough, the school had mixed up his entrance exam with that of another Patrick Fitzgerald of Brooklyn who got lower marks. The right Patrick Fitzgerald entered Regis that fall."