Across the Nation

told that organ donor was a risk

CHICAGO — A woman in her 30s who is one of the four organ transplant patients infected with HIV and hepatitis was not told that the infected donor was high risk, and had previously rejected another donor "because of his lifestyle,” her attorney said.

Attorney Thomas Demetrio filed a petition Thursday in Cook County Circuit Court on behalf of the woman, asking officials to keep a hospital and an organ procurement center from destroying or altering any records involving the donation.

The patient, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, received a kidney transplant at the University of Chicago Medical Center on Jan. 9, Demetrio said.

Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network in Elmhurst and the University of Chicago both knew the kidney donor was high-risk and did not inform the patient, Demetrio said.

New Attorney General Michael Mukasey showing signs of independence from White House

WASHINGTON — Just a week into the job, Attorney General Michael Mukasey has shown he knows how to stroke political detractors. The Justice Department has reopened an inquiry into the government’s warrantless wiretapping program that had been shut down by the administration. And by picking a Chicago judge to be his top deputy, Mukasey gained some support from one of his harshest Senate critics.

Suddenly, the urgency of passing contempt citations against President Bush’s confidants has waned. Even those who voted against Mukasey could be heard speaking of blank slates and good news so far.

Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who presided over the confirmation hearings but ultimately voted no, said he personally wished Mukasey well.