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Gansler Vows 'All-Out Assault' on Bay Polluters
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Gansler also paid tribute to Curran, whom he described as a "wonderful person" of uncommon popularity. "Nobody can serve 48 years in public service and be beloved as he is," Gansler told Curran.
Curran, who praised Gansler, said that he is not sure what he will do next but that he has been approached about leading the Injured Workers' Insurance Fund, a quasi-state agency whose director stepped down last week. "As one door shuts, another one opens," Curran said.
With its staff of 420 lawyers, the attorney general's office acts as the legal counsel to many institutions of state government. It also represents the government in all cases in state and federal appellate courts. In addition, it has the power to prosecute a range of criminal activity, including white-collar crimes, health-care fraud and multi-jurisdictional crimes.
Gansler has promised to take an "activist approach" to the job. In addition to standard fare such as consumer protection and antitrust matters, he said in an interview that he plans to push legislators to enact a racketeering law that would give state prosecutors powers similar to those that federal prosecutors have used to fight gangs.
He said he will also establish an antigang task force that could work with local state's attorneys on those cases, which generally involve multiple defendants and are resource-intensive.
On the environment, Gansler singled out coal-burning power plants, saying that they tend to be in less-affluent areas and are responsible for respiratory ailments that disproportionately affect African Americans.
In an approach that underscores his pledge to use the power of his office in innovative ways, Gansler said the prevalence of those ailments should be viewed as a civil rights issue, one that could presumably be addressed in court.
Gansler, whose election has also been seen as emblematic of the diffusion of political power once centralized in Baltimore, said he will move one division of the office, fewer than 20 lawyers, to a location not yet selected in the Washington suburbs.
