Eight U.S. attorneys were fired in December 2006. They are:

Carol Lam, the U.S. attorney in San Diego, who successfully prosecuted former Republican Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, now in federal prison. Her last day in office was Feb. 15.

Bud Cummins, the U.S. attorney in Little Rock, Ark., resigned Dec. 20 and was replaced by former Karl Rove assistant Timothy Griffin.

Paul Charlton, the U.S. attorney in Arizona, announced Dec. 19 that he was resigning at the end of January.

John McKay, the U.S. attorney in Seattle, said he was ordered by the Justice Department on Dec. 7 to resign.

Kevin Ryan, the U.S. attorney in San Francisco, announced his resignation Jan. 16. Ryan was overseeing investigations into steroids use by major league baseball players and the backdating of stock options by Apple Inc., and other firms.

Daniel Bogden, the U.S. attorney for Nevada, announced Jan. 18 he will resign effective Feb. 28.

David Iglesias, the U.S. attorney for New Mexico. An assistant announced Iglesias' resignation Dec. 19.

Margaret Chiara, the U.S. attorney in Grand Rapids, Mich., announced Feb. 23 she will resign on March 16.

The Bush administration has denied any laws were broken. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has described the firings as an overblown personnel matter.

Critics say the prosecutors were fired for political reasons that sullied the prosecutorial independence of the Justice Department.

The president has the authority to hire and fire U.S. Attorneys, with the consent of the Senate. The attorney general can appoint interim U.S. Attorneys. The interim appointments used to expire after 120 days. However, when the USA PATRIOT Act was reauthorized on March 9, 2006, a provision in the law removed the 120 day limit; an interim appointee could serve indefinitely. The change was inserted at the request of the Justice Department during the conference committee sessions on the bill and it escaped the attention of senators.

The firings are being investigated in Congress. Numerous high-ranking Justice officials, including Gonzales, have testified in the matter.

Senior and former key aides in the Justice Department are also suspected applying political party litmus tests to candidates for the positions -- a violation of federal law.