President Barack Obama has nominated a congressional staffer to be Alabama's first Black U.S. attorney.

Obama nominated Kenyen Brown to fill the U.S. attorney's post in Alabama's Southern District, which is headquartered in Mobile.

Brown has worked in Washington for the last decade and currently serves as director of advice and education for the House Ethics Committee. He previously worked as an assistant U.S. attorney in Mobile.

A panel organized by Democratic U.S. Rep. Artur Davis of Birmingham had originally recommended Mobile attorney Vicki Davis for the post, but the congressman says the Obama administration wanted to broaden the search.

Brown's nomination is subject to approval by the U.S. Senate.

Brown is a University of Alabama graduate who got his law degree from the University of Tennessee.