Former Justice official pleads guilty in Abramoff probe.

This week, Robert Coughlin, a former DOJ official, was accused of having a “criminal conflict of interest” with jailed lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Today, Coughlin admitted in federal court “that he accepted meals, concert tickets and luxury eats at sporting events from a lobbyist,” facing “up to 10 months in prison under a plea deal with the government.” “The lobbyist was not named but Coughlin was lobbied during the period in question by Kevin Ring, a member of Abramoff’s lobbying team who also is under investigation,” the AP notes.