BY DANIEL A. GRECH

 Twelve federal prosecutors and 13 staff members from the U.S. Attorney's office in Miami went to work dressed in black Thursday to protest the Justice Department's predawn raid of the Little Havana home of Elian Gonzalez.

 It was an act of defiance against their boss, U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno, who called for the raid Saturday after negotiations broke down between the government and Elian's Miami relatives.

 ``We dressed in black to tell the Cuban-American community that not everyone is in agreement with the actions taken,'' a protesting federal employee said.

 Many of the protesting employees did not want to be identified, saying they worried about losing their job or credibility among colleagues due to what many termed their ``crisis of conscience.''

 The dissenting federal employees, most but not all of whom are Cuban American, said they felt betrayed by Reno's decision to move forward with the raid after the attorney general had assured them in an April 12 meeting that the Justice Department would not use force to reunite Elian with his father.

 ``There are certain principles you need to stand for no matter what, or risk losing your dignity and honor,'' said another protesting employee

 But professional ethics expert Kenneth Goodman believes the group is at risk of losing something else: their professional credibility.

 ``Activities like this erode the public's trust in the Justice Department,'' said Goodman, co-director of the University of Miami ethics program. ``The public needs to be confident that federal prosecutors are free of biases that affect their judgment, and this engenders doubt that prosecutors are impartial.

 ``If they are going to protest, they could have done so in a way like writing a letter that can be discussed, evaluated and debated,'' Goodman said.

 The protesting federal prosecutors represent about 8 percent of the 152 prosecutors in the Miami office.

 Three federal prosecutors -- Jose Bonau, Ana Maria Martinez and Angel Cortinas -- and seven support staff from the Miami office posed for a Herald photograph, with permission from First Assistant U.S. Attorney Guy Lewis.

                     Copyright 2000 Miami Herald