A special prosecutor is being appointed to probe the conduct of police and the prosecutor in the case of a man wrongfully convicted of rape, a spokesman with the Michigan Attorney General's Office confirmed Wednesday.

The probe is the latest development stemming from Ken Wyniemko's year-old federal lawsuit, which lays out evidence that suggests witnesses were coached, evidence was buried, conflicting leads were ignored and justice was forsaken for a conviction.

Wyniemko, a former Clinton Township resident and night manager at a bowling alley, was released from prison after DNA evidence cleared him in June 2003. He spent nearly nine years behind bars.

"What was done to me should never happen to anyone," said Wyniemko, 53, who lives with friends in Auburn Hills and drives an SUV a friend gave him with a personalized license plate that says "INOCNT."

Last week, as new evidence mounted in the case, the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office referred the lawsuit to the Michigan Attorney General's Office, which gave the case to the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan.

Randall Thompson, a spokesman for the attorney general, said Wednesday the association was preparing to name a special prosecutor from a local prosecutor's office to "investigate the case to determine if there was any wrongdoing."

Arguing his civil rights were violated, Wyniemko is suing Clinton Township, the detectives who put him behind bars, Thomas Ostin and Bart Marlatt, and their supervisor, Chief Alexander Ernst. The assistant prosecutor, Linda Davis, hasn't been named in the lawsuit, which doesn't seek specific damages.

Davis is now the chief judge in 41-B District Court in Mount Clemens. She declined to comment, as did Wyniemko's Bloomfield Hills attorneys, Thomas Howlett and George Googasian.

Ostin, Marlatt and Ernst, each of whom still work for the Clinton Township Police Department, declined to comment through their Troy attorney, Roger A. Smith.

"The allegations are outrageous, and they actually impugn the prosecutor in the case as much as the police officers, but all of the individuals, including the prosecutor, enjoy impeccable reputations," Smith said.