Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Nominated As Federal Prosecutor

LOS ANGELES (CBS/AP) — President Obama has nominated a Los Angeles deputy mayor as the next U.S. attorney for the Central District of California.

The president named Eileen Maura Decker his choice Wednesday for the district that includes Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire.

Decker is a former federal prosecutor who has been deputy mayor for homeland security and public safety since 2009.

Obama says that Decker has distinguished herself throughout her career.

Decker was the head of the Los Angeles U.S. attorney's national security division before going to work for the city.

"The President could not have made a better choice," Mayor Eric Garcetti said in a statement. "Our office will miss her work and I will personally miss her, but I am glad that her new position keeps her in the business of keeping L.A. safe."

She has also worked as law clerk for a federal judge and started her legal career in private practice.

She earned her undergraduate and law degrees from New York University.

Her nomination must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

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