Robert T. Kennedy of Tucson retired in 2005 after serving 28 years as an assistant U.S. attorney.

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When I learned of the pending resignation of Alberto Gonzales, my initial reaction was a mixture of both sadness and relief. Sadness that the state of affairs at the once universally respected and revered Department of Justice had deteriorated so abysmally, but relief that perhaps this noble institution could begin to resurrect its historical role in our system of government as the defender of the rule of law, the Constitution and our civil liberties.

At the time of my appointment as an assistant United States attorney in the fall of 1977, I swore before a federal judge to defend the Constitution and uphold the laws of the United States. Since that time until my recent retirement, I have, like the vast majority of my former colleagues, endeavored to faithfully honor that pledge.

Very few attorneys are held to the high ethical standards demanded of federal prosecutors. As well they should be, taking into consideration the incredibly broad powers they exercise to investigate and prosecute allegations of criminal conduct here and abroad.

Like many of my brethren before and since, I wore the title of assistant U.S. attorney as a badge of honor. It is quite often the best job a lawyer will ever have. For some, their tenure as an assistant U.S. attorney is more than a career, it is a calling.

Unfortunately, the pervasive and seemingly intractable allegations pertaining to Gonzales' professional conduct as attorney general and former White House legal counsel have seriously undermined the public's confidence that he has steadfastly honored that same oath.

For federal prosecutors, the rule of law has always been the touchstone in the performance of their duties. Accordingly, we were often reminded by Gonzales' predecessors that any proposed radical departures from existing law or judicial precedent would require either congressional action or judicial review beforehand. In fact, one of the principal functions of the Department of Justice is to propose changes to existing laws or seek judicial review when significant legal conflicts arise due to changing circumstances.

Yet, it appears that Gonzales has not only sanctioned but actively encouraged radical departures from existing law, whether it concerns provisions of an international treaty intended, in part, to protect our own soldiers from torture, restrictions on electronic surveillance designed to curtail unjustified invasions of privacy or limitations on the indeterminate confinement of individuals without due process of law.

These as well as other significant changes were initiated without any meaningful consultation with Congress, judicial review or public debate. Gonzales' performance has been a depressingly disastrous civics lesson for all the world to see.

The coup de grâce has been the incredibly stupid, vindictive and mean-spirited dismissals of nine very competent and effective U.S. attorneys and Gonzales' disingenuous statements intended to justify the sackings.

During my career, I served under 10 prior attorneys general and a like number of U.S. attorneys in several regions of the country. Some were Democrats, most were Republicans. The majority had been active in party politics beforehand, but they all had a sufficient respect for the rule of law and the good sense to leave partisan politics at the door when they were sworn into office.

However, Alberto Gonzales did not, and that is the sad legacy that we all must now endure.