The special prosecutor law should be retained, since it guards against both actual and perceived conflicts of interest in the investigation of allegations against high-ranking executive government officials; however, these provisions have created inequities in the enforcement of criminal laws. Special prosecutor provisions have been used to subject White House officials to exhaustive, costly, and lengthy investigations, when the same allegations against an average citizen would not have been pursued. The restrictions of the present law severely impede the Attorney General's ability to dispose of minor allegations of dubious merit without petitioning the court for a special prosecutor. The coverage of the act is also flawed because it does not include members of the President's family, who surely pose a great risk of conflict of interest, while some officials covered are not in a position to influence a Department of Justice investigation. The Subcommittee recommends that the Attorney General be permitted to apply the written prosecutorial guidelines of the Department of Justice, which govern ordinary criminal cases, in deciding whether the appointment of a special prosecutor is warranted. The title 'special prosecutor' should be changed to 'independent counsel' to remove the pejorative connotation of the investigation. Further, attorneys' fees should be awarded to the subject of an investigation in certain circumstances. A total of 138 references are provided. (Author summary modified)