SPRINGFIELD — A retired Army lieutenant colonel and top prosecutor in the U.S. attorney’s office in central Illinois has been named acting U.S. attorney.

Douglas J. Quivey began work last week after the resignation in February of John Milhiser, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump.

Quivey was named first assistant U.S. attorney for the 46-county central district in January 2019. From 2014 to 2018, he was assistant federal public defender for the district after nearly a decade in private practice.

In 2010, Quivey retired as a lieutenant colonel after 26 years in the U.S. Army and Army Reserve.

The Charleston native earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Eastern Illinois University and a law degree from the University of Illinois College of Law.

It’s common for an incoming president to name new U.S. attorneys. But two central Illinois congressmen, Republicans Darin LaHood and Rodney Davis, asked President Joe Biden’s administration to keep Milhiser on until his replacement was confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Trump nominated the former Sangamon County state’s attorney in the fall of 2018.

Trump’s choice for U.S. attorney in northern Illinois, John Lausch, was also expected to step down. However, Lausch has the support of Illinois’ two Democratic U.S. senators, Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth. The White House announced last week that Lausch would remain in the post for the immediate future.