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Mass. Probation Fires Top Lawyer

BOSTON (AP) -- The top lawyer at the state Probation Department has been fired by the agency's acting commissioner for allegedly leaking information to the department's disgraced former head.

Acting Commissioner Ronald Corbett Jr. said in a confidential order dated May 9 and obtained by The Boston Globe that Christopher Bulger "violated his professional duty" by repeatedly briefing Corbett's predecessor, John O'Brien Jr. about the investigation into his conduct.

Corbett called for Bulger's dismissal for reasons including "inefficiency, incompetence" and "negligence in the performance of duties."

Bulger is the son of former Massachusetts Senate President William Bulger.

O'Brien resigned during an investigation into a hiring scandal.

Bulger's lawyer called his client's dismissal "absolutely outrageous."

Paul Ware Jr., who conducted an independent investigation into the department, said yesterday that Bulger's firing was well justified.

(© Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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