In May 2009, a month after she took the helm of what she called the U.S. Justice Department’s “cleanup crew,” Mary Patrice Brown pledged a new era of openness. “I think you’re going to be seeing a lot more transparency in the OPR investigations,” Brown told a conference at Washington’s Mayflower Hotel, using shorthand for the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility.

As Brown prepares now to leave the office, that goal remains distant.