Wichita ? Before Dr. George Tiller goes to trial for allegedly violating a state law on late-term abortions, two former Kansas attorneys general will be in court to defend their actions – one accused of being overzealous and the other of letting his mistress sway him.

The case against Tiller, one of the nation’s few late-term abortion providers, has spanned three state attorneys general and consumed abortion politics in Kansas. Two former attorneys general – Paul Morrison, an abortion-rights Democrat, and Phill Kline, an anti-abortion Republican – are among those expected to testify at a pretrial hearing that begins Monday.

Morrison charged Tiller in June 2007 with 19 counts of breaking a 1998 state law requiring that a second, independent Kansas physician sign off on most late-term abortions. If convicted, the Wichita doctor could face a year in the county jail or a fine of $2,500 for each misdemeanor charge.

The case originated with Morrison’s predecessor, Kline, who had obtained edited medical records from Tiller’s clinic. Morrison’s case was based on a review of that evidence and financial records that he obtained, according to the current attorney general, Steve Six.

Six inherited the case after Morrison resigned amid a scandal over his affair with a woman who had worked for both him and Kline.

Tiller’s defense attorneys want the case tossed or the evidence suppressed, claiming Kline’s office repeatedly lied in its attempt to prosecute Tiller and that his conduct was so outrageous that no change in the administration of the attorney general’s office could remove the taint. They also claim that Morrison’s mistress, while working for Kline, had urged her lover to file charges against Tiller.

“The hearing will provide a rare opportunity for the public to hear these politicians be questioned under oath about the abuses of power committed as they pursued their own political goals,” said defense attorney Dan Monnat.

Morrison was Johnson County’s district attorney for 18 years before switching to the Democratic Party to challenge Kline for attorney general in 2006. After Morrison won, Republicans picked Kline to take over as county prosecutor.

Six said last month that while he does not approve of Kline’s handling of the investigation, that doesn’t mean the charges should be dismissed. He also argued in court documents that Morrison filed the case after conducting his own investigation.

Morrison did not return a message left for comment at his private law office, and Kline declined to comment for this story.

In an earlier interview, Kline defended his investigation, saying every judge who has seen the Tiller evidence has found probable cause that a crime was committed.

Brian Burgess, a former spokesman for Kline in the Johnson County district attorney’s office, contends the prosecution’s case was the result of Kline’s work, not Morrison’s, and that evidence Morrison gathered is now actually being used by the defense.