Law Faculty Backs Nixon's Selection Of Richardson

Members of the Faculty of Law reacted favorably to President Nixon's appointment of Elliot L. Richardson '41 to the post of Attorney General Monday, but many of them said yesterday that a person outside the administration should head the Watergate investigation.

"I think he is the best person Nixon had in the administration to be Attorney General," James Vorenberg '49, professor of Law, said yesterday. "It's certainly more natural for him to be Attorney General than Secretary of Defense."

Distinguished Lawyer

Laurence H. Tribe '62, professor of Law, yesterday called Richardson "a distinguished lawyer." However, he added that no one appointed by the President should be connected with the investigation of the Watergate bugging scandal.

Vorenberg said that Richardson should not head the investigation because "he would be seen as part of Nixon's cabinet." "Running the Justice Department is a big enough job to handle without Watergate," he added.

Although most of the professors were in favor of selecting a special prosecutor from outside the government to head the investigation, they disagreed over who should make the appointment.

Special Committee

"If Richardson chooses the prosecutor, the investigation will be doomed from the start," Tribe said. He added that he was strongly in favor of a special Congressional committee to select the investigation members.

Paul A. Freund, Loeb University Professor, Frank I. Michalman, professor of Law, and Vorenberg all agreed that Richardson should appoint the head investigator.