New U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag expected to bring different priorities to Northern California office

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SAN FRANCISCO -- From an expansive corner office on the 11th floor of the federal building here, Melinda Haag finally is in charge as the Bay Area's top federal law enforcement official. And it is clear there is a new and different kind of sheriff in town.

Just a few weeks into her job as the region's new U.S. attorney, the energetic, 49-year-old lawyer with the blue-chip resume has been making the rounds, sizing up the state of her office, meeting with judges and officials from federal agencies, and basically educating herself on a position for which she's seemingly been groomed for years.

Haag, the Obama administration's nominee, replaces Joe Russoniello, one of the last Republican holdovers from the Bush administration. And the differences are likely to be stark, both from a policy standpoint, where Haag is expected to emphasize more white collar, environmental and civil rights prosecutions, and as a simple matter of demographics -- she is the first woman in 90 years to hold the post in Northern California, and is two decades younger than her Republican predecessor.

And she will now be chiefly responsible for everything from supervising the perjury prosecution of home run king Barry Bonds to protecting Silicon Valley's technology secrets.

"She brings a fresh, young perspective," said Rory Little, a former federal prosecutor and Hastings College of the Law professor. "She'll try things, she'll be an innovator at various levels."

Full story: http://www.mercurynews.com/rss/ci_16059583

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1. Does that include folding up the Barry Bonds case?

Talk about a waste of time.