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법무부 자원 및 프로그램 접근 확대에 관한 언어 접근 계획 발표Read the Press Release
워싱턴 – 법무부는 오늘 모든 사람이 그들이 사용하는 언어와 관계없이 부서의 프로그램, 활동 및 서비스에 접근하고 완전히 참여할 수 있도록 하기 위해 부서 차원의 업데이트된 언어 접근 계획을 발표했습니다. 언어 접근 계획은 영어 능력이 제한적인 지역 사회의 요구 사항을 이해하고, 번역 및 통역 서비스를 개선하며 또한 그러한 서비스의 질적 보증을 촉진하고 대중이 사용 가능한 도구의 범위 확대 등을 포함하는 언어 접근 계획을 모든 부서들이 강화할 수 있는 지침을 제공합니다.
“언어 장벽이 정부 서비스 이용에 방해가 되어서는 안 됩니다. 이 업데이트된 언어 접근 계획은 모든 사람들이 범죄를 신고하고, 중요한 자원에 접근하며, 필요할 때 법무부의 도움을 요청할 수 있도록 하는 중요한 단계입니다,” 라고 메릭 비. 갈랜드 법무장관은 말했습니다.
“확대된 언어 접근은 법치주의를 수호하며, 국가의 안전을 유지하고, 또한 민권을 보호하려는 법무부의 사명을 더욱 강화합니다. 법무부가 언어 장벽을 격고있는 개인을 포함한 모든 미국인에게 더 나은 서비스를 제공하기 위해 우리의 언어 자원 및 정책을 현대화하고, 간소화 하고,개선하기 위해 진행하고 있는 작업이 자랑스럽습니다,”라고 리사 오. 모나코 법무차관을 말했습니다.
“미국에 있는 모든 사람은 정부가 제공하는 서비스 및 프로그램에 유의미한 접근을 할 권리가 있습니다. 이 업데이트된 정책은 많은 지역 사회가 그들 자신의 권리를 이해하고, 범죄를 신고하며 또한 법무부 자원에 완전하고 동등한 접근을 할 수 없도록 하는 언어 장벽을 제거하려는 법무부의 의지를 반영합니다,”라고 바니타 굽타 법무 부차관은 말했습니다.
업데이트된 언어 접근 계획은 법무부 민권부가 다른 연방 기관과 협력하여 유의미한 언어 접근을 보장하고 그에 따른 언어 접근 계획 및 정책을 수정 및 업데이트하는 노력을 개선하도록 지시한 갈랜드 법무장관의 2022년 11월자 연방 기관장, 민권부장, 법률 고문을 위한 언어 접근에 관한 연방 정부의 의지 강화에 관한 통지문에 따라 발표되었습니다. 그것은 또한 연방 기관이 제한된 영어 구사 능력을 가진 사람들이 그들의 서비스에 유의미한 접근을 할 수 있도록 하는 시스템을 개발하고 시행할 것을 요구하는 행정명령 13166, 영어 능력이 제한된 사람을 위한 서비스 접근 개선에 관한 명령 (2000년 8월 16일)의 23주년 기념이기도 합니다.
사법제도 접근 관리국이 부서의 언어 접근 실무 그룹 및 민권부과 협력하여 부서의 업데이트된 계획의 개발을 주도했습니다. 이 작업은 사법제도 접근 관리국 (ATJ)과 실무 그룹의 폭넓은 지도력의 일환으로, 언어 접근 자원을 확대하고, 언어 접근 문제에 대한 인식을 개선하며 DOJ 내 및 연방 정부 전반에 걸친 다른 부서에 해당 교육 및 기술 지원을 제공합니다.
“사법제도 접근이란 곧 언어 접근을 뜻합니다. 언어 접근 계획의 업데이트된 정책을 통해, 부서의 모든 프로그램 및 활동의 중심 구성 요소로서 언어 접근을 확대할 것을 재확인합니다,”라고 레이첼 로시 ATJ 국장은 말했습니다.
민권부는 또한 갈랜드 법무장관의 통지문 및 행정명령 13166 그리고 1964년 민권법 타이틀 VI에 대한 정부 차원에서의 일관되고 조율된 준수를 보증하는 책임에 따라 외부 이해관계자와 협력하여 법무부 및 기타 연방 기관이 그들의 언어 접근 계획을 업데이트하고 수정할 수 있도록 심도 있는 기술적 지원을 제공했습니다. 민권부는 자격을 갖춘 이중언어 직원의 효과적인 사용, 다국어 언어 디지털 콘덴츠 구축 방법, 토착어를 사용하거나 장애가 있는 사람의 고유한 언어 접속 요구 사항 등을 파악하기 위해 전문가와 연방 직원이 참여한 모임에 35개 이상의 연방 기관의 참가를 유도했습니다. 현재, 이 부서는 또한 언어 데이터를 수집하고 다국어 콘텐츠를 www.LEP.gov의 언어 접근 자원 카탈로그에 게시하려는 기관의 노력을 지원하기 위한 새로운 가이드를 추가했습니다.
“이 수정된 언어 접속 계획은 우리 자체 프로그램 및 활동에 있어서의 언어 접속에 대한 법무부의 지속적인 의지를 강조합니다. 모든 이해 관계자가 연방 정부와 업무를 할 때 유의미한 언어 접근 방법을 확실히 알 수 있도록 수정된 기관 언어 접속 계획을 www.LEP.gov에 게시하기를 기대합니다,”라고 크리스틴 클라크 법무부 민사부 차관보는 말했습니다.
이 업데이트된 계획은 여러 언어로 번역되며 법무부의 최근 출시된 언어 선택 도구를 사용하여 법무부 웹사이트에서 보실 수 있습니다.
司法部發布語言無障礙計劃，擴大司法部資源和項目的使用範圍。Read the Press Release
華盛頓特區—司法部今天發布了更新的全部門語言無障礙計劃 (Language Access Plan)，以幫助確保所有個人，無論使用何種語言，都可以使用並充分參與司法部的各種項目、活動和服務。語言無障礙計劃將為司法部各個部門提供專業指導，以增強司法部對英語能力有限社區的理解和需求，改善筆譯和口譯服務，促進這些服務的質量保證，並擴大為公眾服務的工具範圍。
司法部長梅里克·加蘭(Merrick B. Garland) 表示,“語言障礙不應成為人們無法獲得政府服務的原因。 這項更新後的語言無障礙計劃旨在確保每個人都可以舉報犯罪、獲取重要資源以及在需要時向司法部尋求幫助的重要一步。“
“加強我們的語言服務有助於進一步履行司法部維護法治、維護國家安全和保護公民權利的使命。“司法部副部長麗莎.摩納哥(Lisa O. Monaco) 表示，“司法部正在努力實現語言資源和政策的現代化、簡化和改進，以更好地服務於所有美國人，包括面臨語言障礙的個人，對此我深感自豪。”
副司法部長瓦尼塔·古普塔(Vanita Gupta) 表示, “在這個國家，每個人都有權享受有意義的政府服務和計劃。這些更新的政策反映了司法部消除語言障礙的承諾。這些語言障礙可能阻擋了許多社區了解自己的權利或報告犯罪行為，如果這些語言障礙減少，這些社區可以充分且平等地獲取司法部的資源“。
本次更新的語言無障礙計劃和政策呼應了司法部長梅里克·加蘭於2022年11月題為《致聯邦機構負責人、民權辦公室負責人和總法律顧問的關於加強聯邦政府對語言獲取承諾的備忘錄》，並因此指示司法部的民權分部與其他聯邦機構合作，共同改善和確保語言資源的有效擴展。今年也是行政令第13166號《改善英語能力有限人士獲得服務的機會(2000年8月6日)》成立的23週年，該行政令要求聯邦機構開發和實施各種系統，使英語能力有限者也能夠有意義地獲得服務。
此次更新由司法救助辦公室牽頭（Office for Access to Justice），與語言無障部門和民權司合作，制定了該部的最新計劃。這項工作是司法救助辦公室（ATJ）和工作組更廣泛地領導司法部努力擴大語言無障礙資源、提高對語言無障礙問題的認識，以及向司法部內其他辦公室和整個聯邦政府提供培訓和技術援助的一部分。這項工作是司法救助(ATJ) 的一部分，該工作組更廣泛地領導司法部擴大語言獲取資源、提高對語言使用問題的認識以及向司法部內其他辦公室和整個聯邦政府提供培訓和技術援助的一部分。
“訴諸司法意味著語言無障礙，“ 司法救助辦公室主任雷切爾-羅西（Rachel Rossi）表示。 “通過本《語言無障礙計劃》中的最新政策，我們再次承諾將擴大語言無障礙作為司法部所有計劃和活動的核心組成部分”。
為響應司法部長梅里克·加蘭備忘錄中提出的計劃，民權司除了負責確保各機構能否就行政命令13166號和1964年《民權法》第六章及其實施條例規定下有關提供實質性語言協助的職責，還提供了深入的技術援助，並與外部利益相關者合作，以協助司法部和其他聯邦機構更新和修訂其語言資源訪問計劃。民權司召集了35多個聯邦機構，並邀請專家和聯邦工作人員參與，以確定如何有效利用合格的雙語工作人員、如何構建多語種數字內容，以及講土著語言或有殘疾的個人對語言資源獲取的獨特需求。如今，民權司還增加了一份新指南，以支持各機構收集語言數據並在其網站www.LEP.gov 的語言資源訪問資源目錄中上發布多語種內容。
司法部民權司助理司法部長克里斯汀-克拉克（Kristen Clarke）表示， “更新後的《語言無障礙計劃》強調了司法部在自身計劃和活動中對語言使用的持續承諾。我們非常期待在www.LEP.gov 上發布修訂後的機構語言無障礙計劃，以幫助確保所有利益相關者了解如何在與聯邦政府合作時獲得有意義的語言無障礙服務。“
更新後的計劃將被翻譯成多種語言，並將使用該部門最近推出的語言選擇工具在該部門的網站上提供。
司法部发布语言无障碍计划，扩大司法部资源和项目的使用范围。Read the Press Release
华盛顿特区——司法部今天发布了更新的全部门语言无障碍计划 (Language Access Plan)，以帮助确保所有个人，无论使用何种语言，都可以使用并充分参与司法部的各种项目、活动和服务。 语言无障碍计划将为司法部各个部门提供专业指导，以增强司法部对英语能力有限社区的理解和需求，改善笔译和口译服务，促进这些服务的质量保证，并扩大为公众服务的工具范围。
司法部长梅里克·加兰 (Merrick B. Garland) 表示,“语言障碍不应成为人们无法获得政府服务的原因。 这项更新后的语言无障碍计划旨在确保每个人都可以举报犯罪、获取重要资源以及在需要时向司法部寻求帮助的重要一步。”
“加强我们的语言服务有助于进一步履行司法部维护法治、维护国家安全和保护公民权利的使命。”司法部副部长丽莎.摩纳哥 (Lisa O. Monaco) 表示，“司法部正在努力实现语言资源和政策的现代化、简化和改进，以更好地服务于所有美国人，包括面临语言障碍的个人，对此我深感自豪。”
副司法部长瓦尼塔·古普塔 (Vanita Gupta) 表示, “在这个国家，每个人都有权享受有意义的政府服务和计划。这些更新的政策反映了司法部消除语言障碍的承诺。这些语言障碍可能阻挡了许多社区了解自己的权利或报告犯罪行为，如果这些语言障碍减少，这些社区可以充分且平等地获取司法部的资源”。
本次更新的语言无障碍计划和政策呼应了司法部长梅里克·加兰于2022 年 11 月题为《致联邦机构负责人、民权办公室负责人和总法律顾问的关于加强联邦政府对语言获取承诺的备忘录》，并因此指示司法部的民权分部与其他联邦机构合作，共同改善和确保语言资源的有效扩展。今年也是行政令第13166号《改善英语能力有限人士获得服务的机会 (2000年8月6日)》成立的23周年，该行政令要求联邦机构开发和实施各种系统，使英语能力有限者也能够有意义地获得服务。
此次更新由司法救助办公室牵头（Office for Access to Justice），与语言无障部门和民权司合作，制定了该部的最新计划。这项工作是司法救助办公室（ATJ）和工作组更广泛地领导司法部努力扩大语言无障碍资源、提高对语言无障碍问题的认识，以及向司法部内其他办公室和整个联邦政府提供培训和技术援助的一部分。这项工作是司法救助 (ATJ) 的一部分，该工作组更广泛地领导司法部扩大语言获取资源、提高对语言使用问题的认识以及向司法部内其他办公室和整个联邦政府提供培训和技术援助的一部分。
“诉诸司法意味着语言无障碍，” 司法救助办公室主任雷切尔-罗西（Rachel Rossi）表示。“通过本《语言无障碍计划》中的最新政策，我们再次承诺将扩大语言无障碍作为司法部所有计划和活动的核心组成部分"。
为响应司法部长梅里克·加兰备忘录中提出的计划，民权司除了负责确保各机构能否就行政命令13166号和1964年《民权法》第六章及其实施条例规定下有关提供实质性语言协助的职责，还提供了深入的技术援助，并与外部利益相关者合作，以协助司法部和其他联邦机构更新和修订其语言资源访问计划。民权司召集了35多个联邦机构，并邀请专家和联邦工作人员参与，以确定如何有效利用合格的双语工作人员、如何构建多语种数字内容，以及讲土著语言或有残疾的个人对语言资源获取的独特需求。如今，民权司还增加了一份新指南，以支持各机构收集语言数据并在其网站 www.LEP.gov的语言资源访问资源目录中上发布多语种内容。
司法部民权司助理司法部长克里斯汀-克拉克（Kristen Clarke）表示， “更新后的《语言无障碍计划》强调了司法部在自身计划和活动中对语言使用的持续承诺。我们非常期待在 www.LEP.gov 上发布修订后的机构语言无障碍计划，以帮助确保所有利益相关者了解如何在与联邦政府合作时获得有意义的语言无障碍服务。”
更新后的计划将被翻译成多种语言，并将使用该部门最近推出的语言选择工具在该部门的网站上提供。
تصدر وزارة العدل خطة الوصول إلى اللغة لتوسيع نطاق الوصول إلى موارد وبرامج الوزارةRead the Press Release
أصدرت وزارة العدل اليوم خطة محدثة للوصول إلى اللغة على صعيد الوزارة للمساعدة في ضمان وصول جميع الأفراد، بغض النظر عن اللغة المستخدمة، إلى برامج وأنشطة وخدمات الوزارة وأن يكونوا قادرين على المشاركة فيها بشكل كامل. توفر خطة الوصول إلى اللغة إرشادات لمكاتب الوزارة لمساعدتهم على تعزيز تخطيط الوصول إلى اللغة، والذي يتضمن فهم احتياجات المجتمعات ذات الكفاءة المحدودة في اللغة الإنجليزية وتحسين خدمات الترجمة والترجمة الشفوية الفورية وتعزيز ضمان جودة تلك الخدمات وتوسيع نطاق الأدوات المتاحة لخدمة الجمهور.
قال وزير العدل ميريك بي. جارلاند: "يجب ألا تقف حواجز اللغة في طريق الوصول إلى الخدمات الحكومية". "تعد خطة الوصول إلى اللغة المحدثة هذه خطوة مهمة نحو ضمان تمكّن الجميع من الإبلاغ عن الجرائم والوصول إلى الموارد المهمة وطلب المساعدة من وزارة العدل عندما يحتاجون إليها."
قالت نائبة وزير العدل ليزا أو موناكو: "يعزز الوصول الواسع للغة مهمة وزارة العدل في المزيد من دعم سيادة القانون والحفاظ على أمن بلدنا وحماية الحقوق المدنية. أنا فخورة بالعمل الذي تقوم به الوزارة لتحديث وتبسيط وتحسين مواردنا وسياساتنا اللغوية لخدمة جميع الأمريكيين بشكل أفضل، بما في ذلك الأفراد الذين يواجهون حواجز لغوية."
قالت المساعدة المشاركة لوزير العدل فانيتا جوبتا: "يستحق كل شخص في هذا البلد وصولا فعالا إلى الخدمات والبرامج الحكومية. تعكس هذه السياسات المحدثة التزام وزارة العدل بإزالة الحواجز اللغوية التي تمنع العديد من المجتمعات من فهم حقوقها أو الإبلاغ عن الجرائم أو الوصول الكامل والمتساوي إلى موارد الوزارة."
تم إصدار خطة الوصول إلى اللغة المحدثة وفقا لإصدار وزير العدل جارلاند في نوفمبر/تشرين الثاني 2022 لمذكرة لرؤساء الوكالات الفيدرالية ورؤساء مكاتب الحقوق المدنية والمستشارين العامين فيما يتعلق بتعزيز التزام الحكومة الفيدرالية للوصول إلى اللغة، والتي وجهت قسم الحقوق المدنية بوزارة العدل للعمل مع الوكالات الفيدرالية لتحسين الجهود لضمان وصول هادف للّغة ومراجعة وتحديث خطط وسياسات الوصول إلى اللغة وفقا لذلك. كما أنه يصادف الذكرى السنوية الثالثة والعشرين للأمر التنفيذي رقم 13166، تحسين الوصول إلى الخدمات للأشخاص ذوي الكفاءة المحدودة في اللغة الإنجليزية (16 أغسطس/آب 2000)، الأمر الذي يلزم الوكالات الفيدرالية تطوير وتنفيذ أنظمة تمكن الأشخاص ذوي الكفاءة المحدودة في اللغة الإنجليزية من الوصول إلى خدماتهم بشكل هادف.
قاد مكتب الوصول إلى العدالة عملية تطوير الخطة المحدثة للإدارة بالعمل مع الفريق العامل المعني بإتاحة اللغات ومع شعبة الحقوق المدنية التابعين للوزارة. هذا العمل هو جزء من مكتب الوصول إلى العدالة ويمثل القيادة الأوسع لمجموعة العمل لجهود الوزارة لتوسيع موارد الوصول إلى اللغة وتحسين الوعي بقضايا الوصول إلى اللغة وتوفير التدريب والمساعدة الفنية للمكاتب الأخرى داخل وزارة العدل وعبر الحكومة الفيدرالية.
قالت راشيل روسي، مديرة مكتب الوصول إلى العدالة: "الوصول إلى العدالة يعني الوصول إلى اللغة. من خلال السياسات المحدثة في خطة الوصول إلى اللغة هذه، نجدد الالتزام بتوسيع نطاق الوصول إلى اللغة كمكون مركزي لجميع برامج وأنشطة الوزارة."
كذلك، قدم قسم الحقوق المدنية، وفقا لمذكرة وزير العدل جارلاند ومسؤولية القسم بضمان الامتثال المنتظم والمنسق على مستوى الحكومة التزاما للأمر التنفيذي 13166 والباب السادس من قانون الحقوق المدنية لعام 1964، مساعدة فنية متعمقة، كما شارك قسم الحدود المدنية مع جهات خارجية من أصحاب المصلحة لمساعدة الوزارة والوكالات الفيدرالية الأخرى في تحديث ومراجعة خطط الوصول إلى اللغة الخاصة بهم. جمع القسم أكثر من 35 وكالة فيدرالية معا لجلسات شارك فيها الخبراء والموظفون الفيدراليون لتحديد الاستخدام الفعال للموظفين المؤهلين ثنائيي اللغة وكيفية بناء محتوى رقمي متعدد اللغات والاحتياجات المميزة للوصول إلى اللغة للأشخاص الذين يتحدثون لغات بلادهم الأصلية أو الذين لديهم إعاقة. اليوم، يضيف القسم أيضا دليلا جديدا لدعم جهود الوكالة لجمع بيانات اللغة ونشر محتوى متعدد اللغات إلى كتالوج موارد الوصول إلى اللغة على www.LEP.gov.
قالت مساعدة وزير العدل كريستين كلارك التي تترأس قسم الحقوق المدنية بوزارة العدل: "تؤكد خطة الوصول إلى اللغة المنقحة هذه التزام الوزارة المستمر بالوصول إلى اللغة في برامجنا وأنشطتنا. نتطلع إلى نشر جميع خطط الوصول إلى اللغة المنقحة للوكالات على الموقع www.LEP.gov للمساعدة في ضمان مقدرة جميع أصحاب المصلحة على كيفية الحصول على وصول فعّال للغة عند التعامل مع الحكومة الفيدرالية."
ستتم ترجمة الخطة المحدثة إلى عدد من اللغات وستكون متاحة على الموقع الإلكتروني للوزارة باستخدام أداة اختيار اللغة التي أطلقتها
Justice Department Releases Language Access Plan to Expand Access to Department Resources and ProgramsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today released an updated Department-wide Language Access Plan to help ensure that all individuals, regardless of language used, have access to and are able to fully participate in the Department’s programs, activities, and services. The Language Access Plan provides guidance to Department offices to help them bolster language access planning, which includes understanding the needs of communities with limited English proficiency, improving translation and interpretation services, promoting quality assurance of those services, and expanding the range of tools available to serve the public.
“Language barriers should not stand in the way of access to government services,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This updated Language Access Plan is an important step toward ensuring that everyone can report crimes, access important resources, and seek help from the Justice Department when they need it.”
“Expansive language access furthers the Justice Department’s mission to uphold the rule of law, keep our country safe, and protect civil rights,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “I am proud of the work the Department is doing to modernize, streamline, and improve our language resources and policies to better serve all Americans, including individuals who face language barriers.”
“Every person in this country deserves meaningful access to government services and programs,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “These updated policies reflect the Justice Department’s commitment to removing the language barriers that prevent many communities from understanding their rights, reporting crimes, or otherwise having full and equal access to the Department’s resources.”
The updated Language Access Plan is issued pursuant to Attorney General Garland’s November 2022 Memorandum for Heads of Federal Agencies, Heads of Civil Rights Offices, and General Counsels Regarding Strengthening the Federal Government’s Commitment to Language Access, which directed the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division to work with federal agencies to improve efforts to ensure meaningful language access and to revise and update their language access plans and policies accordingly. It also marks the 23rd anniversary of Executive Order 13166, Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency (Aug. 16, 2000), which requires federal agencies to develop and implement systems enabling people with limited English proficiency to meaningfully access their services.
The Office for Access to Justice led development of the Department’s updated plan, working with the Department’s Language Access Working Group and the Civil Rights Division. This work is part of the Office of Access to Justice (ATJ) and the Working Group’s broader leadership of Department efforts to expand language access resources, improve awareness of language access issues, and provide training and technical assistance to other offices within DOJ and across the federal government.
“Access to justice means language access,” said ATJ Director Rachel Rossi. “Through the updated policies in this Language Access Plan, we recommit to expanded language access as a central component of all Department programs and activities.”
The Civil Rights Division, in accordance with Attorney General Garland’s memorandum and its responsibility to ensure consistent and coordinated government-wide compliance with Executive Order 13166 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, also provided in-depth technical assistance and engaged with external stakeholders to assist the Department and other federal agencies update and revise their language access plans. The division brought over 35 federal agencies together for sessions that engaged experts and federal staff to identify effective use of qualified bilingual employees, how to build multilingual digital content, and the unique language access needs of people who speak Indigenous languages or have a disability. Today, the division also adds a new guide to support agency efforts to collect language data and post multilingual content to its catalogue of language access resources on www.LEP.gov.
“This revised Language Access Plan underscores the Department’s continued commitment to language access in our own programs and activities,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We look forward to publishing all revised agency language access plans on www.LEP.gov to help ensure that all stakeholders know how to obtain meaningful language access when engaging with the federal government.”
The updated plan will be translated into a number of languages and will be available on the Department’s website using the Department’s recently launched language selector tool.
Remote video URLIllinois Man Sentenced for Setting Fire to Reproductive Health Services FacilityRead the Press Release
An Illinois man was sentenced today for the arson of the Planned Parenthood Peoria Health Center in Peoria, Illinois.
Tyler W. Massengill, 33, was sentenced to 10 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $1.45 million in restitution. He previously pleaded guilty on Feb. 16 to malicious use of fire and an explosive to damage, and attempt to damage, the Peoria Health Center.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Massengill maliciously set fire to the Peoria Health Center on Jan. 15 because he believed his ex-partner had received an abortion there, and he was angry about it. Massengill believed that, if his actions caused a little delay in a person receiving services at the Peoria Health Center, his conduct may have been worth it. The fire resulted in significant damage to the Peoria Health Center.
“This defendant’s violent conduct severely damaged the Peoria Health Center and obstructed patients’ access to reproductive health services,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to aggressively prosecute such unlawful, destructive acts, and to protect the clinics that provide reproductive health services, as well as their patients and staff.”
“The defendant’s destructive actions in setting fire to the Peoria Health Clinic were reprehensible and limited the ability of women in our community to access important reproductive health services,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Harris for the Central District of Illinois. “We are grateful to our federal and local law enforcement partners for their excellent work on this investigation.”
“Massengill’s actions represent the very real threat posed by extremists in our communities,” said Special Agent in Charge David Nanz of the FBI Springfield Field Office. “Protecting the American people from such extremists remains a top priority for the FBI and our team remains laser-focused on identifying, investigating and disrupting individuals who cross the line from expressing protected speech to violating federal law.”
“Any violent act like this is unacceptable. Worse here, is that this defendant used violence to target health care providers and their patients,” said Director Steven Dettelbach of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) . “I want to commend the ATF investigators, the prosecutors and our partners for taking action to protect the victims of this violent and potentially lethal arson.”
The FBI Springfield Field Office, Peoria Police Department and the ATF investigated the case, with assistance from the Peoria Fire Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald L. Hanna for the Central District of Illinois prosecuted the case with assistance from Trial Attorney Erin Monju of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.
Anyone who has information about incidents of violence, threats and obstruction that target a patient or provider of reproductive health services, or damage and destruction of reproductive health care facilities, should report that information to the FBI at www.tips.fbi.gov. For more information about clinic violence, and the Justice Department’s related enforcement efforts, please visit www.justice.gov/crt/national-task-force-violence-against-reproductive-health-care-providers.
Former San Jose State University Director of Sports Medicine Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights Violations for Unlawful Sexual Touching of Female Student-AthletesRead the Press Release
A former San Jose State University (SJSU) director of sports medicine pleaded guilty today in the Northern District of California for unlawfully touching female student-athletes under the guise of providing medical treatment.
As part of the plea agreement, Scott Shaw admitted that, between 2017 and 2020, he violated the civil rights of four students who played on women’s athletics teams by touching their breasts and buttocks without their consent and without a legitimate medical purpose.
According to documents filed in connection with the plea agreement, from 2008 until August 2020, Shaw served as the director of sports medicine and head athletic trainer at SJSU, a public university that is part of the California State University system and was an employee of the State of California. His duties included treating injuries sustained by student-athletes at SJSU.
During the fall semester of 2017, Shaw treated I.S., a member of the women’s water polo team. On one occasion while treating I.S., Shaw began massaging the back of her shoulder and neck, and then he moved his hands down and touched her breast.
During the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years, Shaw treated J.M., a member of the women’s water polo team. While doing so on one occasion, Shaw applied pressure to both sides of her neck and worked his hands down to her chest, and then he touched her breast, including her areola, under her clothing with his bare hand. On another occasion while treating J.M.’s back, Shaw touched her buttocks under her clothing with his bare hand.
During the spring semester of 2019, Shaw treated A.L., a member of the women’s water polo team. Shaw treated A.L. to address an injury to her shoulder, and while treating A.L.’s injury, he touched her breast under her clothing with his bare hand.
During the 2019-2020 academic year, Shaw treated K.B., a member of the women’s soccer team, on two occasions. On one occasion, K.B. sought treatment for back pain, and, while examining her spine, Shaw touched her breasts, and then he touched her buttocks. On another occasion, K.B. sought assistance in applying electrotherapy patches known as “stim pads” to treat her back pain, and Shaw touched her buttocks under her clothing with his bare hands while placing the stim pads.
According to documents filed in connection with the plea agreement, Shaw admitted that he engaged in all of the conduct described above on SJSU’s campus in San Jose, California, and in his capacity as a SJSU athletic trainer, and the student-athletes only allowed him to have physical contact with them because of his status as a SJSU Athletic Trainer. Shaw also admitted that he touched each of the student-athletes as described above without any legitimate diagnostic or treatment purpose, and without seeking or securing their consent in advance. Shaw further admitted that his conduct was not the result of mistake, carelessness, or accident.
“Scott Shaw abused his position of trust and authority as a public university official to sexually assault female student-athletes who entrusted him with their medical care,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “No student-athlete should ever be subject to sexual harassment at the hands of their sports medicine director, coach or any other official at a college or university. This egregious conduct violates federal law, and the Justice Department will aggressively prosecute individuals who exploit their positions of authority to sexually abuse our community members. We stand with the survivors and thank them for their courage and willingness to support the government’s prosecution of this defendant.”
“Shaw now has acknowledged his guilt and has admitted the conduct that resulted in the charges that were filed against him,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Robbins for the Northern District of California. “We hope his guilty plea and conviction bring some level of solace to his victims, and we now look to sentencing which will be a major step toward bringing this matter to a conclusion.”
“The defendant in this case used his position as an athletic trainer to commit acts of abuse against multiple female athletes who came to him for care,” said Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “Today’s guilty plea shows that the FBI will not tolerate violations of civil rights under the guise of legitimate medical treatment.”
Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 14. Shaw faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison for each count, a maximum of one year of supervised release for each count and a fine of up to $100,000 on each count.
The FBI San Francisco Field Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Pitman for the Northern District of California, and Trial Attorney MarLa Duncan and Attorney Advisor Sarah Howard of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case.
El Departamento de Justicia lanza un Plan de Acceso al Lenguaje para ampliar el acceso a los recursos y programas del DepartamentoRead the Press Release
El Departamento de Justicia lanzó hoy un Plan de Acceso al Lenguaje actualizado para todo el Departamento que ayuda a garantizar que todas las personas, independientemente del idioma que hablen, tengan acceso y puedan participar plenamente en los programas, actividades y servicios del Departamento. El Plan de Acceso al Lenguaje brinda orientación a las oficinas del Departamento para ayudarlas a reforzar la planificación del acceso al lenguaje, lo que incluye comprender las necesidades de las comunidades con dominio limitado del inglés, mejorar los servicios de traducción e interpretación, promover el control de calidad de esos servicios y ampliar la variedad de herramientas disponibles para servir al público.
“Las barreras del lenguaje no deben obstaculizar el acceso a los servicios del gobierno”, expresó el Fiscal General Merrick B. Garland. “Este Plan de Acceso al Lenguaje actualizado es un paso importante para garantizar que todas las personas puedan denunciar delitos, acceder a recursos importantes y buscar ayuda del Departamento de Justicia cuando la necesiten”.
“El acceso expansivo al lenguaje promueve la misión del Departamento de Justicia de defender el estado de derecho, mantener a nuestro país seguro y proteger los derechos civiles”, señaló la Fiscal General Adjunta Lisa O. Mónaco. “Me siento orgullosa del trabajo que está haciendo el Departamento para modernizar, optimizar y mejorar nuestras políticas y recursos lingüísticos para servir mejor a todos los estadounidenses, incluidas las personas que enfrentan barreras por el lenguaje”.
“Cada persona en este país merece un acceso significativo a los servicios y programas gubernamentales”, dijo la Fiscal General Adjunta Vanita Gupta. “Estas políticas actualizadas reflejan el compromiso del Departamento de Justicia para eliminar las barreras del lenguaje que impiden que muchas comunidades comprendan sus derechos, denuncien delitos o tengan acceso total y equitativo a los recursos del Departamento”.
El Plan de Acceso al Lenguaje actualizado se emite de conformidad con el Memorándum para líderes de agencias federales, directores de oficinas de derechos civiles y consejeros generales sobre el fortalecimiento del compromiso del gobierno federal con el acceso lingüístico de noviembre de 2022 del Fiscal General Garland, el cual ordenó a la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia que trabaje con las agencias federales para mejorar los esfuerzos para garantizar un acceso lingüístico significativo y revisar y actualizar en consecuencia sus planes y políticas de acceso al lenguaje. También marca el 23o aniversario de la Orden Ejecutiva 13166, Mejorar el acceso a los servicios para personas con dominio limitado del inglés (16 de agosto de 2000), que requiere que las agencias federales desarrollen e implementen sistemas que permitan a las personas con dominio limitado del inglés acceder de manera significativa a sus servicios.
La Oficina de Acceso a la Justicia dirigió el desarrollo del Plan actualizado del Departamento, en colaboración con el Grupo de Trabajo de Acceso al Lenguaje del Departamento y la División de Derechos Civiles. Este trabajo es parte del liderazgo más amplio de la Oficina de Acceso a la Justicia (ATJ por sus siglas en inglés) y del Grupo de Trabajo de los esfuerzos del Departamento para ampliar los recursos de acceso al lenguaje, mejorar la concienciación sobre los problemas de acceso al lenguaje y brindar capacitación y asistencia técnica a otras oficinas dentro del DOJ y en todo el gobierno federal.
“El acceso a la justicia significa acceso al lenguaje”, dijo la directora de la ATJ, Rachel Rossi. “A través de las políticas actualizadas en este Plan de Acceso al Lenguaje, volvemos a comprometernos a expandir el acceso al lenguaje como un componente central de todos los programas y actividades del Departamento”.
La División de Derechos Civiles, de conformidad con el memorándum del Fiscal General Garland y su responsabilidad de garantizar el cumplimiento constante y coordinado de todo el gobierno con la Orden Ejecutiva 13166 y el Título VI de la Ley de Derechos Civiles de 1964, también brindó asistencia técnica exhaustiva y se comprometió con partes interesadas externas para ayudar al Departamento y otras agencias federales a actualizar y revisar sus planes de acceso lingüístico. La división reunió a más de 35 agencias federales en sesiones que involucraron a expertos y personal federal para identificar el uso efectivo de empleados bilingües calificados, cómo crear contenido digital multilingüe y las necesidades únicas de acceso al idioma de las personas que hablan idiomas indígenas o tienen una discapacidad. Hoy, la división también agrega una nueva guía para apoyar los esfuerzos de la agencia para recopilar datos de idiomas y publicar contenido multilingüe en su catálogo de recursos de acceso lingüístico en www.LEP.gov.
“Este Plan de Acceso al Lenguaje revisado subraya el compromiso continuo del Departamento con el acceso lingüístico en nuestros propios programas y actividades”, señaló la Fiscal General Auxiliar Kristen Clarke de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. “Esperamos publicar todos los planes revisados de acceso al lenguaje de la agencia en www.LEP.gov para ayudar a garantizar que todas las partes interesadas sepan cómo obtener un acceso significativo al idioma cuando interactúan con el gobierno federal”.
El Plan actualizado se traducirá a varios idiomas y estará disponible en el sitio web del Departamento utilizando la herramienta de selección de idioma lanzada recientemente por el Departamento.
Chillicothe, Illinois, Man Sentenced for Setting Fire to Reproductive Health Services FacilityRead the Press Release
PEORIA, Ill. – A Chillicothe, Illinois, man, was sentenced today for the arson of the Planned Parenthood Peoria Health Center in Peoria, Illinois.
Tyler W. Massengill, 33, was sentenced to 120 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $1,450,000 in restitution by U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid. He previously pleaded guilty on February 16, 2023, to malicious use of fire and an explosive to damage, and attempt to damage, the Peoria Health Center.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Massengill maliciously set fire to the Peoria Health Center on January 15, 2023, because he believed his ex-partner had received an abortion there, and he was angry about it. Massengill believed that, if his actions caused a little delay in a person receiving services at the Peoria Health Center, his conduct may have been worth it. The fire resulted in significant damage to the Peoria Health Center.
“This defendant’s violent conduct severely damaged the Peoria Health Center and upended patients’ access to reproductive health services,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to aggressively prosecute such unlawful, destructive acts, and to protect the clinics that provide reproductive health services, as well as their patients and staff.”
“The defendant’s destructive actions in setting fire to the Peoria Health Clinic were reprehensible and limited the ability of women in our community to access important reproductive health services,” said U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois Gregory K. Harris. “We are grateful to our federal and local law enforcement partners for their excellent work on this investigation.”
“Massengill’s actions represent the very real threat posed by extremists in our communities,” said FBI Springfield Field Office Special Agent in Charge David Nanz. “Protecting the American people from such extremists remains a top priority for the FBI and our team remains laser-focused on identifying, investigating, and disrupting individuals who cross the line from expressing protected speech to violating federal law.”
“Any violent act like this is unacceptable. Worse here, is that this defendant used violence to target health care providers and their patients,” said ATF Director Steven Dettelbach. “I want to commend the ATF investigators, the prosecutors and our partners for taking action to protect the victims of this violent and potentially lethal arson.”
“Our agents worked alongside our law enforcement partners to ensure the defendant was held accountable for this arson,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Christopher Amon of the Chicago Field Division. “I commend the coordination and commitment in both investigating and prosecuting this important case.”
“Massengill’s criminal activity was destructive in many ways – not just physically but emotionally for those that count on Planned Parenthood for their healthcare needs,” said Peoria Police Chief Eric Echevarria. “I am proud of the work our officers, detectives, and federal partners did to arrest the perpetrator of this horrible crime and bring justice to all those it affected.”
The FBI Springfield Field Office, Peoria Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case, with assistance from the Peoria Fire Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald L. Hanna for the Central District of Illinois prosecuted the case with assistance from Trial Attorney Erin Monju of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.
Anyone who has information about incidents of violence, threats and obstruction that target a patient or provider of reproductive health services, or damage and destruction of reproductive health care facilities, should report that information to the FBI at www.tips.fbi.gov. For more information about clinic violence, and the Justice Department’s related enforcement efforts, please visit www.justice.gov/crt/national-task-force-violence-against-reproductive-health-care-providers.
Bộ Tư Pháp Công Bố Chương Trình Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ để Mở Rộng Sử Dụng Các Tài Nguyên và Chương Trình của BộRead the Press Release
Hôm nay, Bộ Tư Pháp công bố Chương Trình Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ cập nhật khắp Bộ để bảo đảm tất cả mọi cá nhân, bất kể ngôn ngữ sử dụng, đều sử dụng và có thể tham gia hoàn toàn vào các chương trình, hoạt động và dịch vụ của Bộ. Chương Trình Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ sẽ hướng dẫn cho các phòng ban tăng cường cách hoạch định tiếp cận ngôn ngữ, bao gồm hiểu rõ các nhu cầu của cộng đồng nói tiếng Anh hạn chế, cải tiến các dịch vụ thông ngôn và thông dịch, thúc đẩy bảo đảm phẩm chất cho các dịch vụ này và mở rộng các công cụ có sẵn để phục vụ công chúng.
“Rào cản ngôn ngữ không được cản trở việc sử dụng các dịch vụ chánh phủ,” Bộ Trưởng Tư Pháp Merrick B. Garland nói. “Chương Trình Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ cập nhật này là một bước quan trọng để bảo đảm mọi người có thể báo cáo tội phạm, sử dụng các tài nguyên quan trọng, và được Bộ Tư Pháp giúp đỡ khi cần thiết.”
“Tiếp cận nhiều ngôn ngữ đẩy mạnh sứ mệnh nhiệm vụ duy trì pháp quyền, giữ an toàn cho quốc gia và bảo vệ dân quyền của Bộ Tư Pháp,” Thứ Trưởng Bộ Tư Pháp Lisa O. Monaco cho biết. “Tôi tự hào về việc Bộ đang thực hiện để hiện đại hóa, sắp xếp, và cải tiến tài nguyên ngôn ngữ và chánh sách để phục vụ tốt hơn cho tất cả những người Mỹ, bao gồm những người đối mặt với rào cản ngôn ngữ.”
“Mỗi người trong quốc gia này xứng đáng sử dụng các dịch vụ và chương trình của chánh phủ,” Phó Bộ Trưởng Tư Pháp Vanita Gupta nói. “Các chánh sách cập nhật này phản ánh cam kết của Bộ Tư Pháp là gỡ bỏ rào cản ngôn ngữ làm cho nhiều cộng đồng không hiểu rõ được quyền lợi, báo cáo tội phạm, hay có thể sử dụng đầy đủ và công bằng các tài nguyên của bộ.”
Chương Trình Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ cập nhật được ban hành theo Bản Ghi Nhớ dành cho Người Đứng Đầu Cơ Quan Liên Bang, Người Đứng Đầu Văn Phòng Dân Quyền, và Tổng Cố Vấn về Củng Cố Cam Kết của Chánh Phủ Liên Bang về Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ tháng Mười Một, 2022 của Bộ Trưởng Garland, hướng dẫn Phân Ban Dân Quyền của Bộ Tư Pháp hợp tác với các cơ quan liên bang để cải tiến nỗ lực bảo đảm truy cập ngôn ngữ, duyệt lại và cập nhật các chương trình và chánh sách tiếp cận ngôn ngữ cho phù hợp. Chương trình này cũng đánh dấu kỷ niệm lần thứ 23 của Sắc Lệnh 13166, Cải Tiến Sử Dụng Dịch Vụ cho Người Nói Anh Ngữ Hạn Chế (16 tháng Tám, 2000), đòi hỏi các cơ quan liên bang phải lập và thực hiện hệ thống giúp người nói Anh ngữ hạn chế sử dụng một cách có ý nghĩa các dịch vụ của cơ quan.
Văn Phòng Tiếp Cận Công Lý dẫn đầu việc lập Chương Trình cập nhật của Bộ, hợp tác với Nhóm Công Tác Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ của Bộ và Phân Ban Dân Quyền. Công việc này là một phần của Văn Phòng Tiếp Cận Công Lý (Office of Access to Justice, hay ATJ) và lãnh đạo khác của Nhóm Công Tác về nỗ lực của Bộ nhằm mở rộng tài nguyên tiếp cận ngôn ngữ, cải tiến nhận thức về vấn đề tiếp cận ngôn ngữ, huấn luyện và trợ giúp kỹ thuật cho các phòng ban trong Bộ Tư Pháp và khắp chánh phủ liên bang.
“Tiếp cận công lý nghĩa là tiếp cận ngôn ngữ,” Giám Đốc ATJ Rachel Rossi nói. “Thông qua các chánh sách cập nhật trong Chương Trình Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ này, chúng tôi cam kết mở rộng tiếp cận ngôn ngữ như là thành phần trung tâm của tất cả các chương trình và hoạt động của Bộ.”
Phân Ban Dân Quyền, theo theo bản ghi nhớ của Bộ Trưởng Garland và trách nhiệm bảo đảm tuân theo nhất quán và phối hợp toàn chính phủ đối với Sắc Lệnh 13166 và Tựa Đề VI của Luật Dân Quyền 1964, cũng hỗ trợ kỹ thuật chuyên sâu và tham gia với những người quan tâm bên ngoài để giúp cho Bộ và những cơ quan liên bang khác cập nhật và duyệt lại các chương trình tiếp cận ngôn ngữ. Phân ban đã tập hợp hơn 35 cơ quan liên bang trong các buổi họp có sự tham gia của chuyên gia và nhân viên liên bang để xác định việc sử dụng hữu hiệu các nhân viên song ngữ chuyên môn, cách lập nội dung đa ngôn ngữ bằng kỹ thuật số, và nhu cầu tiếp cận ngôn ngữ duy nhất của người nói ngôn ngữ bản xứ hay bị tàn tật. Hôm nay, phân ban cũng thêm một hướng dẫn mới để hỗ trợ nỗ lực thu thập dữ liệu và đăng nội dung nhiều ngôn ngữ vào cẩm nang giúp đỡ truy cập ngôn ngữ nơi trang mạng www.LEP.gov.
“Chương Trình Tiếp Cận Ngôn Ngữ duyệt lại này nhấn mạnh cam kết tiếp tục của Bộ về tiếp cận ngôn ngữ trong các chương trình và hoạt động riêng của chúng tôi,” Phụ Tá Bộ Trưởng Kristen Clarke thuộc Phân Ban Dân Quyền của Bộ Tư Pháp cho biết. “Chúng tôi rất mong được công bố tất cả các chương trình tiếp cận ngôn ngữ duyệt lại trên www.LEP.gov để bảo đảm tất cả những người quan tâm biết cách tiếp cận ngôn ngữ khi tham gia với chánh phủ liên bang.”
Chương trình cập nhật sẽ được dịch sang nhiều ngôn ngữ và có sẵn trên mạng lưới của Bộ, sử dụng công cụ lựa chọn ngôn ngữ được giới thiệu gần đây của Bộ.
Ang Kagawaran ng Katarungan ay Naglabas ng Language Access Plan upang Palawakin ang Pag-access sa mga Mapagkukunan at Programa ng KagawaranRead the Press Release
Ang Kagawaran ng Katarungan ay naglabas ngayon ng isang na-update na Language Access Plan sa buong Kagawaran upang makatulong na matiyak na ang lahat ng mga indibidwal, maging anuman ang wikang ginamit, ay mayroong access at ganap na makalahok sa mga programa, aktibidad, at serbisyo ng Kagawaran. Ang Language Access Plan ay nagbibigay ng gabay sa mga tanggapan ng Kagawaran upang tulungan silang palakasin ang pagpaplano ng pag-access sa wika, na kinabibilangan ng pag-unawa sa mga pangangailangan ng mga komunidad na may limitadong kasanayan sa Ingles, pagpapabuti ng mga serbisyo ng pagsasalin at interpretasyon, pagtataguyod ng kalidad ng kasiguruhan ng mga serbisyong iyon, at pagpapalawak ng hanay ng mga magagamit na kagamitan upang maglingkod sa publiko.
“Ang mga hadlang sa wika ay hindi dapat humadlang sa pag-access sa mga serbisyo ng gobyerno,” sabi ni Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Itong na-update na Language Access Plan ay isang mahalagang hakbang tungo sa pagseguro na ang lahat ay makakapag-ulat ng mga krimen, maka-access ng mahahalagang mapagkukunan, at humingi ng tulong mula sa Kagawaran ng Katarungan kapag kailangan nila ito.”
“Ang malawak na pag-access sa wika ay nagpapataas sa misyon ng Kagawaran ng Katarungan na itaguyod ang panuntunan ng batas, panatilihing ligtas ang ating bansa, at protektahan ang mga karapatang sibil,” sabi ni Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “Aking pinagmamalaki ang gawain ng Kagawaran para gawing moderno, i-streamline, at pahusayin ang ating mga mapagkukunan at patakaran sa wika upang higit na mapagserbisyohan ang lahat ng mga Amerikano, kabilang ang mga indibidwal na nahaharap sa mga hadlang sa wika.”
“Ang bawat tao sa bansang ito ay nararapat maka-access ng makabuluhang mga serbisyo at programa ng gobyerno,” sabi ni Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “Ang mga na-update na patakarang ito ay sumasalamin sa pangako ng Kagawaran ng Katarungang na alisin ang mga hadlang sa wika na pumipigil sa maraming mga komunidad na maunawaan ang kanilang mga karapatan, mag-ulat ng mga krimen, o kung hindi man ay magkaroon ng buo at pantay na pag-access sa mga mapagkukunan ng Kagawaran.”
Ang na-update na Language Access Plan ay iginawad alinsunod sa memorandum ni Attorney General Garland noong Nobyembre 2022 na Memorandum para sa mga Pinuno ng Ahensyang Pederal, Mga Pinuno ng mga Tanggapan ng Karapatang Sibil, at Pangkalahatang Payo Tungkol sa Pagpapalakas sa Pangako ng Pamahalaang Pederal sa Pag-access sa Wika na nag-utos sa Dibisyon ng Mga Karapatang Sibil ng Kagawaran ng Katarungan na makipagtulungan sa mga ahensyang pederal upang mapabuti ang mga pagsisikap na tiyakin ang makabuluhang pag-access sa wika at rebisahin at i-update ang kanilang mga plano at patakaran sa pag-access sa wika nang naaayon. Minarkahan din nito ang ika-23 anibersaryo ng Kautusang Tagapagpaganap 13166, Pagpapabuti ng Pag-access sa Mga Serbisyo para sa mga Taong may Limitadong Kahusayan sa Ingles (Ago. 16, 2000), na nag-uutos sa mga ahensyang pederal na bumuo at magpatupad ng mga sistema na nagbibigay-daan sa mga taong may limitadong kasanayan sa Ingles na makabuluhang ma-access ang kanilang mga serbisyo.
Pinangunahan ng Tanggapan para sa Pag-access sa Katarungan ang pagbuo ng na-update na Plano ng Kagawaran, nakikipag-ugnayan kasama ang Grupong Kumikilos sa Pag-access sa Wika ng Kagawaran at ang Dibisyon ng mga Karapatang Sibil. Ang gawaing ito ay bahagi ng Tanggapan ng Pag-access sa Katarungan (Office of Access to Justice ATJ) at ang mas malawak na pamumuno ng Grupong Kumikilos ng Kagawaran sa mga pagsisikap na palawakin ang mga mapagkukunan ng pag-access sa wika, pagbutihin ang kamalayan sa mga isyu sa pag-access sa wika, at magbigay ng pagsasanay at tulong teknikal sa ibang mga tanggapan sa loob ng DOJ at sa buong pamahalaang pederal.
“Ang pag-access sa katarungan ay nangangahulugan ng pag-access sa wika,” sabi ni ATJ Director Rachel Rossi. “Sa pamamagitan ng na-update na mga patakaran sa Language Access Plan na ito, muli kaming nangangako sa pinalawak na pag-access sa wika bilang isang pangunahing bahagi ng lahat ng mga programa at aktibidad ng Kagawaran.”
Ang Dibisyon ng Mga Karapatang Sibil, alinsunod sa memorandum ng Attorney General Garland at ang responsibilidad nitong tiyakin ang pare-pareho at koordinadong pagsunod ng buong pamahalaan sa Kautusang Tagapagpaganap 13166 at ang Titulo VI ng Mga Batas sa Karapatang Sibil ng 1964, nagbigay din ng malalim na tulong teknikal at nakipag-ugnayan sa mga panlabas na stakeholder upang tulungan ang Kagawaran at iba pang ahensyang pederal na i-update at baguhin ang kanilang mga plano sa pag-access sa wika. Pinagsama-sama ng dibisyon ang mahigit 35 na mga ahensyang pederal para sa mga sesyon na hinihikayat ang mga eksperto at kawaning pederal upang matukoy ang epektibong paggamit ng mga kwalipikadong bilingguwal na empleyado, kung paano bumuo ng multilingguwal na digital na nilalaman, at ang natatanging pangangailangan sa pag-access sa wika ng mga taong nagsasalita ng mga katutubong wika o may kapansanan. Ngayon, ang dibisyon ay nagdaragdag din ng isang bagong gabay upang suportahan ang mga pagsisikap ng ahensya na mangolekta ng data ng wika at mag-post ng multilingguwal na nilalaman sa katalogo nito ng mga mapagkukunan ng pag-access sa wika sa www.LEP.gov.
“Itong nirebisang Plano sa Pag-access sa Wika ay binibigyang-diin ang patuloy na pangako ng Kagawaran sa pag-access ng wika sa sarili naming mga programa at aktibidad,” sabi ni Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke ng Dibisyon ng Mga Karapatang Sibil ng Kagawaran ng Katarungan. “Inaasahan naming mailathala ang lahat ng binagong plano sa pag-access sa wika ng ahensya sa www.LEP.gov upang makatulong na matiyak na alam ng lahat ng mga stakeholder kung paano makakuha ng makabuluhang pag-access sa wika kapag nakikipag-ugnayan sa pamahalaang pederal.”
Ang na-update na Plano ay isasalin sa ilang mga wika at magagamit sa website ng Kagawaran gamit ang kamakailang inilunsad na kagamitan sa nagpili ng wika ng Kagawaran.
Former Oklahoma Police Officer Indicted for Sexual Assault and ObstructionRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Muskogee, Oklahoma, returned a three-count indictment, unsealed today, charging former Savanna Police Department (SPD) police officer Jeffery Scott Smith Jr. with a federal civil rights violation for sexually assaulting a victim while acting under color of law and obstructing justice.
According to the indictment, on Nov. 2, 2022, in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma, Jeffery Scott Smith Jr., 35, while on duty as an SPD police officer, conducted a traffic stop on a car in which the victim was a passenger. Count one of the indictment charges Smith with depriving the victim of her right to bodily integrity when he sexually assaulted the victim during the traffic stop. That indictment alleges that Smith’s conduct resulted in bodily injury to the victim and included the commission of a nonconsensual sexual act with the victim. Counts two and three of the indictment charge Smith with knowingly altering, concealing, covering up and falsifying an SPD record by deactivating his SPD body worn camera and SPD dashboard camera during the traffic stop, with the intent to impede, obstruct, and influence an investigation into his sexual misconduct.
If convicted, Smith faces a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison on the civil rights count and 20 years in prison on each of the obstruction of justice counts.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Wilson for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, and Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Gray of the FBI Oklahoma City Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Oklahoma City Field Office is investigating the case, with assistance from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the Pittsburg County Sheriff’s Office.
Trial Attorney Laura Gilson of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Clay Compton for the Eastern District of Oklahoma are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
IndictmentAppointment of a Special CounselRead the Press Release
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced today the appointment of U.S. Attorney David Weiss to serve as Special Counsel for the ongoing investigation and prosecutions referenced and described in United States v. Robert Hunter Biden, as well as for any other matters that arose or may arise from that investigation. Mr. Weiss was nominated by the former president in 2017 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 2018. In 2021, he was asked to remain as U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware, where he led this ongoing investigation. On Tuesday, Aug. 8, Mr. Weiss requested to be appointed as Special Counsel, and today the Attorney General made that appointment.
“On Tuesday of this week, Mr. Weiss advised me that in his judgment, his investigation has reached a stage at which he should continue his work as a Special Counsel, and he asked to be so appointed,” said Attorney General Garland. “Upon considering his request, as well as the extraordinary circumstances relating to this matter, I have concluded it is in the public interest to appoint him as Special Counsel. This appointment confirms my commitment to provide Mr. Weiss all the resources he requests. It also reaffirms that Mr. Weiss has the authority he needs to conduct a thorough investigation and to continue to take the steps he deems appropriate independently, based only on the facts and the law.”
The Attorney General also said, “As Special Counsel, he will continue to have the authority and responsibility that he has exercised previously to oversee the investigation and decide where, when, and whether to file charges. The Special Counsel will not be subject to the day-to-day supervision of any official of the Department, but he must comply with the regulations, procedures, and policies of the Department … Today’s announcement affords the prosecutors, agents, and analysts working on this matter the ability to proceed with their work expeditiously, and to make decisions indisputably guided only by the facts and the law … I am confident that Mr. Weiss will carry out his responsibility in an even-handed and urgent matter, and in accordance with the highest traditions of this Department.”
Appointment Order of David WeissOwner of Maryland Construction Company Pleads Guilty to Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
A Maryland man pleaded guilty today to evading his federal income taxes.
According to court documents, Jerry Lee Redman of Severn, Maryland, owned Redman Services Inc. (RSI), a paving and construction company. For at least 2015 through 2018, Redman filed corporate income tax returns for RSI that underreported the business’s gross receipts. Redman caused customers to write checks to him personally, instead of to RSI, and then deposited those checks into his personal bank account. Those payments were not reported as gross receipts on RSI’s corporate returns. During the same years, Redman also did not report other income that he received from RSI. Redman withdrew and caused others to withdraw funds from RSI’s business bank account to pay for his personal expenses, but Redman did not report those funds as income on his own tax returns. Some of the withdrawals for personal expenses were also falsely deducted as business expenses on RSI’s corporate returns. Redman’s conduct caused a loss to the IRS of approximately $666,113.
If convicted, Redman faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison. He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Melissa S. Siskind and Christina M. Grimes of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
Two Nigerian Nationals Plead Guilty, and One Sentenced to Prison for International Inheritance Fraud Scheme That Defrauded Elderly U.S. VictimsRead the Press Release
Two Nigerian nationals who were previously extradited to the United States from Spain pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit fraud, and one Nigerian national who was extradited to the United States from the United Kingdom was sentenced to 87 months in prison, all for their respective roles in an international inheritance fraud scheme.
According to court documents, Ezennia Peter Neboh, 48, Kennedy Ikponmwosa, 52, and Jerry Chucks Ozor, 43, were part of a group of fraudsters that sent personalized letters to elderly victims in the United States, falsely claiming that the sender was a representative of a bank in Spain and that the recipient was entitled to receive a multimillion-dollar inheritance left for the recipient by a family member who had died years before in Portugal. Victims were told that before they could receive their purported inheritance, they were required to send money for delivery fees and taxes, and also were instructed to make other payments. Victims sent money to the defendants through a complex web of U.S.-based former victims. The defendants convinced these former victims to receive money from new victims and then forward the fraud proceeds to others. On July 25, U.S. District Judge Kathleen M. Williams sentenced Ozor to 87 months in prison for his role in the scheme. Ikponmwosa pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit mail fraud and wire fraud on the same date. Earlier today, Neboh pleaded guilty to committing the same offense.
“The Justice Department's Consumer Protection Branch will continue to bring to justice international criminals responsible for defrauding U.S. consumers,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Working together, U.S. and foreign law enforcement can and will thwart schemes such as the one charged in this case and prevent further losses to American victims.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) has a long tradition of protecting American citizens from these types of schemes and bringing those responsible to justice,” said Inspector in Charge Juan A. Vargas of the USPIS Miami Division. “This result is a testament to the dedicated partnership between the Justice Department's Consumer Protection Branch, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the USPIS, to protect our citizens from these scams.”
“International criminal organizations using schemes that target and steal from the elderly will be held responsible for their despicable actions,” said Special Agent in Charge Scott Brown of HSI Arizona. “This case demonstrates HSI’s commitment, with our partner law enforcement agencies domestically and abroad, to prove wrong those who believe they are beyond the reach of the law. I thank all the law enforcement agencies that dedicated countless hours to ensure that this investigation was successful.”
In June, Judge Williams sentenced Emmanuel Samuel, 39, of London, to 82 months in prison for his role in the scheme. During sentencing, Judge Williams said that it was important to send a message to international criminals who believe that “they would never have been caught” that they cannot prey on people in the United States “with impunity.” Sentencing is scheduled for Neboh and Ikponmwosa on Nov. 2 and Oct. 20, respectively.
The Consumer Protection Branch, USPIS, and HSI are investigating the case.
Senior Trial Attorney Phil Toomajian and Trial Attorneys Josh Rothman and Brianna Gardner of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Europol and authorities from the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal all provided critical assistance.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Justice Department hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish and other languages are available.
More information about the department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at its Elder Justice Initiative webpage. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Justice Department provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.
United States Orders Mewbourne Oil Company to Pay $5.5 Million and Reduce Unlawful Air Pollution from Oil and Gas Wells in New Mexico and Texas, Eliminating More than 11,000 Tons of Harmful Air Pollutants AnnuallyRead the Press Release
Mewbourne Oil Company has agreed to pay a $5.5 million penalty and to spend at least $4.6 million for projects to ensure 422 of its oil and gas battery pads in New Mexico and Texas comply with state and federal clean air regulations. These terms are in settlement of claims of unlawful operations alleged in a civil complaint filed today under the federal Clean Air Act and New Mexico state law. Mewbourne’s actions taken pursuant to the deal will eliminate more than 11,000 tons of harmful pollutants from the air each year.
“Good air quality is essential to the health of our communities, and we need to ensure that oil and gas facilities are properly designed, maintained and monitored in order to meet national standards,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We will continue to work to improve air quality and public health, including by holding oil and gas production operations like Mewbourne accountable for their violations of federal and state law.”
“Today’s settlement will eliminate 11,000 tons of harmful air pollutants annually and ensure that Mewbourne complies with the Clean Air Act,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “The result will be cleaner, healthier air for communities in New Mexico and Texas.”
“Compliance with air quality regulations is essential to ensure the health of our people and the protection of our environment,” said New Mexico Environment Cabinet Secretary James Kenney. “We will continue to conduct oil and gas investigations and aggressively enforce violations.”
The complaint, filed jointly by the United States on behalf of the EPA and the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED), alleges that, at more than 100 of its oil and gas production operations in New Mexico and Texas, Mewbourne failed to obtain required state and federal permits, failed to capture and control air emissions from storage vessels and failed to comply with inspection, monitoring and recordkeeping requirements. EPA and NMED identified the alleged violations through field investigations and repeated flyover surveillance conducted in 2019, 2020 and 2022.
In addition to paying a $5.5 million fine – to be shared equally by the United States and the State of New Mexico – the consent decree, filed together with the complaint, requires the company to take numerous steps to ensure that 422 battery pads covered by the decree and located in New Mexico and Texas are operated lawfully. New Mexico’s portion of the fines will be sent to the State of New Mexico’s general fund.
Mewbourne will also spend at least $3.6 million to implement extensive design, operation, maintenance and monitoring improvements, including installing new tank pressure monitoring systems that will provide advance notification of potential emissions and allow for immediate response action by the company.
The company’s compliance with the consent decree will result in annual reductions of more than 9,900 tons of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and 1,300 tons of methane.
VOCs are a key component in the formation of ground-level ozone, a pollutant that irritates the lungs, exacerbates diseases such as asthma and can increase susceptibility to respiratory illnesses, such as pneumonia and bronchitis. In addition, as a co-benefit of these reductions, the consent decree will result in significant reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. This includes reduction of methane – a powerful greenhouse gas – by more than 33,000 tons per year, measured as carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent, which would be like eliminating the consumption of over 3.4 million gallons of gasoline. Greenhouse gases from human activities are a primary cause of climate change and global warming.
In addition to more immediate reductions in VOCs, Mewbourne has committed to spending at least $1 million to replace over 2,000 pollutant-emitting pneumatic devices with non-emitting devices on an accelerated schedule. This offset project will reduce VOC emissions over 15 years by approximately 4,500 tons beyond that required by existing regulation.
The Clean Air Act requires the EPA to set National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for criteria pollutants that are considered harmful to public health and the environment. Ozone is a criteria pollutant that is created when oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and VOC react in the atmosphere. VOC and NOx are emitted by oil and gas production facilities, such as those operated by Mewbourne. During the timeframes of Mewbourne’s alleged violations, air quality monitors/ in the relevant counties in New Mexico registered rising ozone concentrations exceeding 95% of the NAAQS for ozone. In counties where ozone levels reach 95% of the NAAQS, NMED is required by New Mexico state statute to take action to reduce ozone pollution.
Mewbourne is an independent oil and gas producer engaged in the exploration, development, production and acquisition of oil and natural gas resources in the United States. The company is a large producer in the Permian Basin, which is a shale oil and gas producing area located in southeast New Mexico and West Texas.
The Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Enforcement Section is prosecuting this case in conjunction with the New Mexico Environment Department and EPA Region 6.
This settlement is part of EPA’s National Enforcement and Compliance Initiative, Creating Cleaner Air for Communities by Reducing Excess Emissions of Harmful Pollutants.
The consent decree is available for public viewing at www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. The United States will publish a notice of the consent decree’s lodging with the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico in the Federal Register and will accept public comment for 30 days after the notice is published. The Federal Register notice will also include instructions for submitting public comment.
Justice Department Files Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Georgia-Based Rental Property Owners and ManagerRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it has filed a Fair Housing Act lawsuit against Iraj Shambayati and several other defendants alleging that Shambayati sexually harassed and retaliated against female tenants at residential properties he has owned or managed in Savannah, Georgia.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, alleges that since at least 2008, Shambayati has made repeated and unwelcome sexual comments and advances to female tenants, inappropriately touched their bodies without their permission, entered their homes without their permission or knowledge, requested sexual acts from them, offered them rental benefits in exchange for sex and took retaliatory actions against female tenants who rejected his sexual advances. The complaint also alleges that his son Daniel Shambayati, Akbar Keshavarz, 1511 Rosewood LLC and IDHD Properties LLC are vicariously liable for Iraj Shambayati’s discriminatory conduct, because he acted as their agent when he sexually harassed tenants at properties in which they had an ownership interest.
“Landlords and other housing providers who abuse their positions by sexually harassing tenants violate the Fair Housing Act,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This lawsuit sends the message that the Justice Department will take concrete action to stop this illegal conduct.”
“Tenants have a right to fair treatment – and it’s the law,” said U.S. Attorney Jill E. Steinberg for the Southern District of Georgia. “We will not tolerate unlawful discrimination, harassment or abuse.”
The lawsuit seeks monetary damages to compensate persons harmed by the alleged harassment, civil penalties to vindicate the public interest and a court order barring future discrimination.
Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of sexual harassment or other types of housing discrimination at rental dwellings managed by Iraj Shambayati, or who have other information that may be relevant to this case, can contact the Justice Department’s housing discrimination tip line at 1-833-591-0291. Select 1 for English, and select option number 2, then option number 02 to leave a message. Individuals may also e-mail the Justice Department at [email protected] or submit a report online.
The Justice Department launched its Sexual Harassment in Housing Initiative in October 2017. The department’s initiative is led by the Civil Rights Division, in coordination with U.S. Attorneys’ offices across the country. The initiative seeks to address and raise awareness about sexual harassment by landlords, property managers, maintenance workers, loan officers or other people who have control over housing. Since launching the initiative, the department has filed 33 lawsuits alleging sexual harassment in housing and recovered over $10.8 million for victims of such harassment.
The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing based on sex, race, color, religion, national origin, disability and familial status. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt.
The complaint contains allegations of unlawful conduct. The allegations must be proven in federal court.
ComplaintAttorney General Merrick B. Garland Statement Regarding the 58th Anniversary of the Voting Rights ActRead the Press Release
The Justice Department issued the following statement from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland ahead of the 58th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act:
“The right of all eligible citizens to vote and to elect representatives of their own choice is the foundation of our democracy.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was signed into law 58 years ago this weekend, with the goal of making real the 15th Amendment’s guarantee that no American citizen be denied the right to vote on account of race.
That law, enacted thanks to the urgent calls to action of the Civil Rights Movement, gave the Justice Department some of its most important authorities to protect the right to vote, including Section 5 of the law, its “preclearance” provision. That provision required jurisdictions with a history of suppressing voting rights to obtain preclearance from the Justice Department or a court before making any changes in voting procedures. Between 1965 and 2006, the Justice Department blocked almost 1,200 proposed voting laws in those jurisdictions in order to protect the fundamental right to vote.
With the Supreme Court’s decision Shelby County v. Holder in 2013, the Justice Department effectively lost this powerful tool. And in the wake of that decision, states across the country advanced voting measures that have made it harder for citizens to cast a vote that counts, measures that the Justice Department likely would have been able to block or deter had the preclearance provision still been in place. The Justice Department therefore continues to urge Congress to restore the tools we need to effectively protect the right to vote.
But we are not waiting for Congress to act. The Justice Department is using every authority we have to protect the franchise for all voters. We have doubled the size of the Civil Rights Division’s enforcement staff for protecting voting rights. The Department has brought voting rights cases and filed statements of interest and amicus briefs in courts across the country. We have sought to address discriminatory voting laws, to protect language access at the ballot box, and to ensure that voters with disabilities are able to exercise the right to vote. And we have provided guidance and outreach to state and local election officials and the public about federal voting rights laws.
The Justice Department will never stop working to ensure that all eligible voters can cast a vote, that all lawful votes are counted, and that every voter has access to accurate information. Our democracy depends on it.”
Permanent Injunctions and Judgment of over $1 Million in Civil Penalties Entered in Case of Deceptive Marketing of Purported COVID-19 TreatmentsRead the Press Release
Nutritional supplement company Quickwork LLC and one of its managers, Eric Anthony Nepute, have agreed to injunctions and to pay civil penalties to resolve a lawsuit alleging they deceptively marketed vitamin supplements during the COVID-19 pandemic, in violation of the Federal Trade Commission Act and the COVID-19 Consumer Protection Act. The resolution of this lawsuit follows an order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri on July 19, awarding partial summary judgment to the government.
In a complaint filed on April 15, 2021, the government alleged that the defendants made misleading and unsubstantiated advertising claims that their Vitamin D and Zinc supplements could be used to treat or prevent COVID-19, and in fact provide equal or better protection against COVID-19 than the available COVID-19 vaccines. The complaint also alleged that the defendants had mischaracterized the results of scientific studies to support some of their claims.
In an order entered on Nov. 14, 2022, Quickwork agreed to an injunction and a $1 million civil penalty, partially suspended due to an inability to pay. On July 19, the court granted partial summary judgment against Nepute, finding that there was no reasonable basis in the record to support claims that Zinc can treat or prevent COVID-19, or that Vitamin D or Zinc provide equal or better protection against COVID-19 than the available COVID-19 vaccines. In an order entered on Aug. 2, Nepute agreed to an injunction and to pay $80,000 in civil penalties.
The court’s injunctions prohibit the defendants from advertising that their supplements can prevent, cure, mitigate, or treat COVID-19 without competent and reliable scientific evidence to support such claims. The defendants are also banned from misrepresenting the results of COVID-19 research in their advertising. The defendants agreed to pay damages in the event that they make prohibited representations in the future.
“Consumers have a right to receive truthful information when deciding whether to purchase products,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department's Civil Division. “This is especially important when claims about those products could affect how consumers seek to protect themselves during a pandemic.”
The case was handled by attorneys in the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, including Trial Attorneys Benjamin Cornfeld, Brandon Robers, Zachary Cowan, Rachel Baron, and Meredith Reiter, as well as Assistant Directors Lisa Hsiao and Rachael Doud, with support and assistance from Federal Trade Commission (FTC) staff.
For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the FTC, visit its website at www.FTC.gov.
Food Products Manufacturer FrieslandCampina Agrees to Pay More Than $2.8 Million in Civil Penalty and Implement Environmental Protection Project at Food Production Facility in Central New YorkRead the Press Release
The Justice Department, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the State of New York have entered into a consent decree with FrieslandCampina Ingredients North America, Inc. (Friesland) of Delhi, New York, to resolve violations of the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act and New York state law. The proposed consent decree calls for Friesland to address its air emissions, as well as its wastewater discharges to a municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and the West Branch of the Delaware River.
The company’s Clean Water Act violations led to pollution that passed through and interfered with the Village of Delhi WWTP and entered the West Branch of the Delaware River, which is part of the watershed supplying drinking water to New York City and other water systems. This action also addresses the company’s Clean Air Act violations, which led to excessive emissions of toluene, a volatile organic compound and hazardous air pollutant. The company will pay a civil penalty of $2.88 million. Half of the penalty will be directed to New York State, exclusively to fund projects to prevent, abate, restore, mitigate or control any identifiable instance of prior or ongoing water, land or air pollution. Additionally, the company will implement a supplemental environmental project (SEP) at its facility to reduce its discharges of heated water to the river at a cost of $1.44 million.
“Today’s settlement secures significant reductions in air pollution and improves water quality in the Delaware River and a watershed system that provides drinking water to millions of Americans,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The settlement shows the United States’ commitment to ensuring that companies like Friesland comply with federal law requirements that limit discharge of industrial pollutants to our air and water.”
“This settlement will result in a 95% reduction of toluene emissions into the air, as well as significant reductions in discharges of pollutants into the West Branch of the Delaware River, which is a drinking water source,” said EPA Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia. “This settlement sends an important message that the United States will take decisive action to hold companies accountable for failing to properly control pollutants being emitted into the air and discharged into the water, and that shirk permitting and reporting responsibilities. EPA’s work will benefit the people of Delhi and will result in a healthier Delaware River for all who enjoy and rely on it.”
“Every New Yorker has a fundamental right to clean air and water, and companies have a fundamental obligation to protect public health and the environment wherever they operate,” said Attorney General Letitia James for the State of New York. “For years, FrieslandCampina ignored their obligation and the law, and as a result, put New Yorkers at substantial risk. This settlement reflects my office’s continuing commitment to protecting the environment and holding those who break our environmental and public health laws fully accountable. I want to thank the Department of Justice and the New York Department of Environmental Conservation for their continued partnership in this effort.
“DEC is committed to ensuring the safety of New York’s air and water for all and will continue to work hand-in-hand with our state and federal partners to hold those who violate New York's strict environmental laws accountable,” said Commissioner Basil Seggos of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). “Thanks to the partnership with the New York State Attorney General’s Office, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Justice, this joint enforcement action and substantial penalty will require FrieslandCampina to improve its operations, protect Delhi residents and fund environmental benefit projects that will improve the surrounding community."
As a significant industrial source under the Clean Water Act, Friesland must first treat its wastewater – a process referred to as pre-treatment – before discharging it to the local municipal WWTP. Proper pre-treatment prevents excessive pollution levels, which can interfere with the effectiveness of the WWTP and can cause untreated pollutants to pass through the plant into receiving waters. In this case, the pollution levels that the company discharged exceeded levels set by the Village of Delhi on numerous occasions. The company also failed to comply with the requirements of New York’s industrial stormwater permit, which prohibits the exposure of industrial materials and activities to rain, snow, snowmelt or runoff that can transport pollutants to surface waters.
The facility is also a major source of toluene emissions under the Clean Air Act. Exposure to toluene can adversely affect human health by harming the nervous system and negatively impacting the kidney, liver and immune system. Friesland failed to obtain the proper permit coverage for its toluene emissions and to install the necessary emission controls, and violated other permit conditions, such as reporting requirements.
As a result of EPA’s and New York’s enforcement actions, Friesland has already completed approximately $6 million worth of work to come into compliance with all applicable CAA and CWA requirements by, among other things, installing equipment to properly control its toluene emissions, upgrading its wastewater pretreatment plant to properly treat its wastewater and taking other corrective measures.
Furthermore, Friesland will perform a SEP at its facility to reduce the adverse impacts of its discharges of heated water and the overall environmental risk to the Delaware River, by converting its non-contact cooling water system to a recirculating closed-loop system. The new system will reduce Friesland’s discharges of heated water to the West Branch of the Delaware River by approximately 85 percent. The river is habitat for several species of trout and is managed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation as a trout fishery. Water temperature is essential to this habitat because trout are a cold-water species that cannot survive in warmer water temperatures.
The case is being handled by the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Enforcement Section in conjunction with EPA and the State of New York. The consent decree for this settlement, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the court. A copy of the consent decree and information on submitting comments will be available on the Justice Department's website at: www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
38 Members of a Violent Gang in Caguas, Puerto Rico, Charged with Drug Trafficking and Firearms Offenses, with Five Members Charged with the Firearms Murder of an Innocent WomanRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On July 17, 2023, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging 38 violent gang members from the municipality of Caguas with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, possession and distribution of controlled substances, and firearms violations, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Puerto Rico Police Bureau (PRPB) Caguas Strike Force, and the United States Marshals Service conducted the investigation with collaboration and support from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), PRPB Special Arrests Unit, and Guaynabo Municipal Special Response Team (SRRT).
“With today’s arrests we move closer to bringing justice to the family of victim MRM, a woman senselessly murdered as she was caught in the crossfire during a gang shootout in May 2022, as well as others in the community harmed by drug trafficking and other related acts of violence,” said U.S. Attorney Muldrow. “Federal and state authorities will continue to hold violent gang members accountable for their crimes. Although the leader of this violent gang remains a fugitive from justice, we will pursue and find him and his criminal associates, no matter where they hide or how long it takes.”
“The gang members arrested today held the Caguas region hostage through violence and intimidation. Our message today is, Puerto Rico belongs to the people and the FBI will continue to disrupt and dismantle these criminal organizations to make sure this continues to be the case,” said Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office, Joseph González. “In the FBI, we know the great courage it takes to speak up against violent gangs and do not take public cooperation lightly. Combating gang related violence is a mission that requires a whole-of-society approach, which is why we will continue to encourage anyone with information on whereabouts of fugitives associated with this organization to call 787-987-6500 or visit tips.fbi.gov.”
The indictment alleges that from 2017 through the present, the drug trafficking organization distributed heroin, cocaine base (commonly known as “crack”), cocaine, marihuana, Fentanyl, Oxycodone (Percocet), and Alprazolam (Xanax) within 1,000 feet of the Brisas del Turabo, the Raúl Castellón, the Turabo Heights, and the Juan Jiménez García Public Housing Projects; and at the Barriada Morales, Barriada La Pajilla, and Bunker Wards in Caguas, and other areas throughout Puerto Rico, all for significant financial gain and profit.
Defendant [1] Nelson Torres-Delgado, the leader of the violent drug trafficking organization charged in this Indictment, has held power over drug trafficking in the Caguas area since the early 2010s. He has been a federal fugitive since 2017 and has maintained control over the organization as a fugitive through deadly violence and intimidation, and by engaging in violent turf wars against rival drug trafficking organizations. His methods of avoiding capture while controlling his gang include limiting face-to-face contact to only the highest and most trusted leaders in his organization.
Throughout the course of the conspiracy, members of this organization have been murdered or have gone to prison, but the organization’s rules and leadership have persisted as a constant means of accomplishing its criminal goals. To that end, the rules allowed for recruitment of new lookouts and sellers, and afforded upward mobility for some within the organization. However, Torres-Delgado and the other leaders maintained the power to authorize acts of violence, including murders. As a rule, no member of the organization could kill someone without the permission of Torres-Delgado. At times, gang leadership would delegate the authority to authorize lesser violent punishments.
As part of the conspiracy, the defendants used abandoned apartments in the public housing projects to prepare the drugs for distribution at the drug points and procured access to many vehicles to transport money, narcotics, and firearms. For that purpose, the co‑conspirators would steal cars or buy stolen cars from others to use in furtherance of the drug trafficking activities.
The defendants acted in different roles to further the goals of the drug trafficking conspiracy, to include: leaders, enforcers, runners, sellers, facilitators, and lookouts. The members of the gang used force, violence, and intimidation to maintain control of the areas in which they operated. The defendants charged in the drug trafficking conspiracy are:
[1] Nelson Torres-Delgado, a.k.a. “El Burro/Burro/Father/Nelsito/Cuatro Patas/El Animal/El Animal de Cuatro Patas
[2] Edwin Padilla-López, a.k.a. “Play/NBA/Pliki/Biscochito/Bizcochito/Juga”
[3] Ronald Aponte-Marquez, a.k.a. “El Enano/Enano/Sepe”
[4] Eroz Rodríguez-Hernández, a.k.a. “Eros/Wason/El Joker”
[5] José Jiménez-Ramos, a.k.a. “El Mono/Mono/Joel El Mono”
[6] Lenne Carrasquillo-Serrano, a.k.a. “Taz/Leny/Lenny/Lenee/La J”
[7] Giovanny Solis-Carrasco, a.k.a. “Blanquito/Jova El Blanco/Joba El Blanco/Jova”
[8] Evaristo González-Vega, a.k.a. “Sonic/Viejo/Eva”
[9] Jariel Figueroa-Maymi, a.k.a. “Moni”
[10] José Torres-Pagán, a.k.a. “Abelino/Ave/Abe”
[11] Carlos De Jesús-García, a.k.a. “Oreja/Orejas”
[12] Gabriel Vázquez-Roldán, a.k.a. “Gordo/Gabby Gordo/Goldo/Goldito/Goldo Vázquez”
[13] José Martinez-Galvez, a.k.a. “El Chef/El Che/Chef”
[14] Armando L. Rivera-Rodríguez
[15] Jan Borges De Jesús, a.k.a. “El Man/Jan el Man/Jan El Chulo”
[16] Lester Vélez-Rodríguez, a.k.a. “El Eco/El Feo/Coco”
[17] Vanessa Santiago-Cotto
[18] Diana Mimoso-Figueroa, a.k.a. “La D/Di”
[19] José de la Vega, a.k.a. “Chupi/Pablo/Pablito”
[20] Michael Rodríguez-Flores, a.k.a. “Pinki”
[21] José Gautier-Medina, a.k.a. “Tempo”
[22] Miguel González-Sánchez, a.k.a. “Miky/Mikyy/El Code”
[23] Brian Sierra-Feliciano, a.k.a. “Kobe”
[24] Eric Camacho-Castro, a.k.a. “Pali” [25] Héctor Torres-Pagán, a.k.a. “Pepo”
[26] Christian Martines-Franco, a.k.a. “El Menor/Menor/El Mynor/Mynor/Christian Menor”
[27] Edward Vázquez-Concepción, a.k.a. “Draculín/Drácula/Draco/Bestia Demon”
[28] Juan Acevedo-Ramos, a.k.a. “Tono/Tonito/Pelotero Kuker”
[29] Jean Villanueva-Figueroa, a.k.a. “Mueca/Mueka/Jan Mueca/Jean Mueca”
[30] Waldemar Pedraza-Díaz, a.k.a. “Walde”
[31] Melquiades Santana-Martínez, a.k.a. “Melki/Melqi”
[32] Juan Orellano-Díaz, a.k.a. “El Indio/Indio”
[33] Cesar Acevedo-Adorno
[34] Elimelec García-Escoda, a.k.a. “Flaco/Eli/Elimelek”
[35] Christopher Contreras-Baez, a.k.a. “Chimuelo”
[36] Luis Burgos-Ofarril, a.k.a. “Pájaro”
[37] Francisco López-Sánchez
Twenty-six defendants are charged in Count Seven with possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Count Eight charges eight defendants with possession of a machinegun in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Count Nine charges defendants [15] Jan Borges De Jesús, [20] Michael Rodríguez-Flores, [21] José Gautier-Medina, [22] Miguel González-Sánchez, and [23] Brian Sierra-Feliciano for the murder of M.R.M. on May 15, 2022, in Caguas. This murder is related to a shooting that took place in Barriada Morales where a woman was killed, and a man was injured.
Count Ten charges [38] Sheila Luyando-Fuentes with wrongful disclosure of individually identifiable health information. According to the indictment, Luyando-Fuentes, who was employed in the health care industry and had access to protected health information, acted as a facilitator and shared protected health information with gang members, including information about rival gang members hospitalized with injuries resulting from gun fights between the gangs, to assist in the gang’s efforts to locate and kill their enemies.
This investigation was led by the FBI San Juan Violent Gang Safe Streets Task Force, which is comprised of Special Agents and Task Force Officers from the FBI, Puerto Rico Bureau of Police (PRPB), San Juan Municipal Police, Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Puerto Rico Treasury Department (Hacienda), United States Department of Housing and Urban Development - Office of the Inspector General (HUD-OIG), Carolina Municipal Police Department, and the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections (PRDOC).
The FBI thanks the United States Marshals Service, PRPB Caguas Strike Force and PRPB Arrestos Especiales for their assistance in this investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) and Chief of the Gang Section Alberto López-Rocafort, Deputy Chief of the Gang Section, AUSA Teresa Zapata-Valladares, and AUSAs Damaré Theriot, Héctor Siaca Flores, and R. Vance Eaton are prosecuting the case. If convicted on the drug charges, the defendants face a minimum sentence of 10 years, and up to life in prison. If convicted of both the drug and firearms charges in Count Seven, the defendants face a minimum sentence of 15 years, and up to life in prison. The defendants charged in Count Eight with possession of machineguns in furtherance of drug trafficking face a mandatory consecutive sentence of thirty years in prison. The defendants charged in Count Nine with the firearms-related murder of M.R.M. face a potential sentence of life imprisonment and, if authorized by the Attorney General of the United States, the death penalty. The defendant charged in Count Ten faces a maximum sentence of ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine. All defendants charged in the drug conspiracy are facing a narcotics forfeiture allegation of $132,000,060.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Two New York Men Sentenced for Operating Mass Mailing Fraud Scheme Targeting Elderly and Vulnerable VictimsRead the Press Release
Two New York men were sentenced today for participating in a 12-year scheme to mail fraudulent prize notices that tricked elderly and vulnerable consumers into paying fees for falsely promised cash prizes.
Sean Novis, 53, and Gary Denkberg, 59, both of Long Island, were sentenced to 90 and 66 months in prison, respectively. The sentences were imposed by U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, who also ordered Novis to forfeit $60 million and Denkberg to forfeit $19 million.
In August 2020, Novis and Denkberg were charged with operating mass mailing fraud schemes that tricked thousands of victims, many of whom were elderly, into providing the defendants with money by falsely promising prizes. Evidence presented at trial showed that, from January 2003 to September 2016, Novis and Denkberg mailed millions of prize notices that falsely represented that the victims had been specifically chosen to receive a large cash prize and would receive the prize if they paid a fee. Victims who paid the requested fee, however, did not receive the promised cash prize. Although the notices appeared to be personalized correspondence, they were merely mass-produced, boilerplate documents that were bulk mailed to recipients whose names and addresses were on mailing lists. During 12 years of perpetrating these mail fraud schemes, Novis and Denkberg stole more than $90 million from thousands of victims.
In May 2022, a federal jury in Central Islip, New York, convicted both men of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, fraudulent use of fictitious names, and aiding and abetting other mail fraud schemes.
“Today’s sentencing is an important step in delivering justice for the thousands of victims who had more than $90 million stolen from them by the defendants in this case,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department is accelerating our efforts to investigate and prevent scams that target seniors, to return stolen funds to the victims, and to hold accountable the criminals who prey on vulnerable Americans.”
“Those who commit fraud that targets America’s seniors face serious penalties,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department is committed to pursuing these prosecutions and is thankful for the Postal Inspection Service’s assistance with this matter.”
“Today’s sentence clearly demonstrates that defrauding Americans has serious consequences,” said Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale. “Postal Inspectors are committed to investigating fraud targeting our customers and bringing those responsible to justice.”
The trial resulted from a multi-year investigation conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Consumer Protection Branch Trial Attorneys Charles Dunn and Carolyn Rice and Assistant Director J. Matt Williams are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanisha Payne for the Eastern District of New York’s Asset Recovery Section is handling forfeiture matters.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This U.S. Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish, and other languages are available.
For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch, visit its website at www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Information about the Department of Justice’s Elder Fraud Initiative is available at www.justice.gov/elderjustice.
Justice Department Secures Agreement with Miami-Based Manufacturer to Resolve Immigration-Related Discrimination ClaimsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it has secured a settlement agreement with three corporate entities, Mr. Glass Doors and Windows Inc., Mr. Glass Doors and Windows Manufacturing LLC, and Powder Coating Technologies LLC (collectively Mr. Glass Group). The settlement resolves the department’s determination that Mr. Glass Group violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by discriminating against non-U.S. citizens when checking their permission to work in the United States.
“Requiring workers to provide specific or unnecessary documents to prove their permission to work creates an unlawful barrier to employment for people who are eager to begin working and providing for themselves and their families,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will not stand for unlawful discrimination and will continue to ensure that employees have equal opportunity in the hiring process and in the workplace.”
The department’s investigation determined that from at least March 1, 2018, to Sept. 16, 2020, Mr. Glass Group routinely required lawful permanent residents to present a specific immigration document when checking their permission to work, based on the employees’ citizenship or immigration status.
Under the terms of the settlement, Mr. Glass Group will pay $120,000 in civil penalties to the United States. The agreement also requires Mr. Glass Group to train its personnel on the INA’s requirements, revise its employment policies and be subject to departmental monitoring and reporting requirements.
Federal law allows all workers to choose which valid, legally acceptable documentation to present to demonstrate their identity and permission to work, regardless of citizenship, immigration status or national origin. The INA’s anti-discrimination provision prohibits employers from asking for specific or unnecessary documents because of a worker’s citizenship, immigration status or national origin. Indeed, many non-U.S. citizens, including lawful permanent residents, are eligible for several of the same types of documents to prove their permission to work as U.S. citizens (such as a driver’s license and an unrestricted Social Security card). Employers must allow workers to present whatever acceptable documentation the workers choose and cannot reject valid documentation that reasonably appears to be genuine.
The Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. Among other things, the statute generally prohibits discrimination based on citizenship status and national origin in hiring, firing or recruitment or referral for a fee; unfair documentary practices; retaliation; and intimidation.
Learn more about IER’s work and how to get assistance through this brief video. Applicants or employees who believe they were discriminated against based on their citizenship, immigration status, or national origin in hiring, firing, recruitment or during the employment eligibility verification process (Form I-9 and E-Verify); or subjected to retaliation, may file a charge. The public can also call IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); sign up for a live webinar or watch an on-demand presentation; email [email protected]; or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites. Sign up for email updates from IER.
El Departamento de Justicia llega a un acuerdo con un fabricante radicado en Miami que resuelve acusaciones de discriminación relacionada con la inmigraciónRead the Press Release
El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha llegado a un acuerdo conciliatorio con tres entes corporativos, Mr. Glass Doors and Windows Inc., Mr. Glass Doors and Windows Manufacturing LLC, y Powder Coating Technologies LLC (en su conjunto Mr. Glass Group). El acuerdo resuelve la determinación del Departamento que Mr. Glass Group vulneró la ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad (INA, por sus siglas en inglés) cuando discriminó a no ciudadanos de los EE. UU. al comprobar su permiso para trabajar en los Estados Unidos.
«Requerir que los trabajadores proporcionen documentos específicos o innecesarios para probar su permiso para trabajar crea una barrera ilegal al empleo para esos individuos que están tan ansiosos por comenzar a trabajar y mantener a sí mismos y sus familias», afirmó Kristen Clarke, la Fiscal General Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. «El Departamento de Justicia no tolerará la discriminación ilícita y seguirá garantizando que los empleados tengan la igualdad de oportunidades en el proceso de contratación y en el lugar de trabajo».
La investigación del Departamento determinó que, al menos desde el 1 de marzo del 2018 hasta el 16 de septiembre del 2020, Mr. Glass Group requería, de forma rutinaria, que residentes permanentes legales presentaran un documento migratorio específico en el momento de la verificación de su permiso para trabajar, con base en la ciudadanía o el estatus migratorio del empleado.
Conforme los términos del acuerdo, Mr. Glass Group pagará $120,000 por concepto de sanciones civiles a los Estados Unidos. El acuerdo también requiere que Mr. Glass Group capacite a su personal en cuanto a los requisitos de la INA, que revise sus políticas de empleo y que se someta a los requisitos de supervisión y declaración del Departamento.
Las leyes federales permiten a todo trabajador elegir la documentación válida y legalmente aceptable que desea presentar para demostrar su identidad y permiso para trabajar, independientemente de su ciudadanía, estatus migratorio o nacionalidad de origen. La disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA prohíbe que los empleadores soliciten documentos específicos o innecesarios por motivos de la ciudadanía, estatus migratorio o nacionalidad de origen de un trabajador. De hecho, muchos no ciudadanos de los EE. UU., entre ellos los residentes permanentes legales, son elegibles para varios de los mismos tipos de documentos para demostrar su permiso para trabajar como lo son los ciudadanos de los EE. UU. (como, por ejemplo, una licencia de conducir y una tarjeta de Seguro Social sin restricciones). Los empleadores deben permitir que los trabajadores presenten cualquier documentación aceptable que tales trabajadores deseen y no pueden rechazar documentos válidos que parecen ser genuinos.
La Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados («IER», por sus siglas en inglés) de la División de Derechos Civiles es responsable de hacer cumplir la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA. Entre otras cosas, la ley prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de estatus de ciudadanía y nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión; prácticas documentales injustas y represalias e intimidación.
Aprenda más sobre el trabajo de la IER y cómo conseguir ayuda mediante este vídeo corto. Aquellos aspirantes o empleados que creen haber sido discriminados por motivos de su ciudadanía, estatus migratorio o nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido, reclutamiento o verificación de la elegibilidad para trabajar (Formulario I-9 e E-Verify) o sujetos a represalias pueden presentar una denuncia. El público también puede llamar a la línea directa de la IER para trabajadores al 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); llamar a la línea directa de la IER para empleadores al 1-800-255-8155 (1‑800‑237‑2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); inscribirse a un seminario en línea en vivo o ver una presentación a pedido; enviar un correo electrónico a [email protected]; o visitar los sitios web de la IER en inglés y español. Inscríbase para recibir actualizaciones por correo electrónico de la IER.
ENRD Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kate Konschnik Readout on Combating Illegal Logging and Associated Trade During Meeting at APEC 2023Read the Press Release
On July 30, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kate Konschnik of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division made the plenary opening remarks for the 24th meeting of the Experts Group on Illegal Logging and Associated Trade (EGILAT). EGILAT focuses on promoting trade in legally harvested forest products and combatting illegal logging and associated trade.
In her remarks, Konschnik emphasized the promotion of legal trade and sustainable use of forests to combat climate change and protect biodiversity, and to prevent the illegal trade of forest products from contributing to other issues.
“As the Asia-Pacific region and the world continue to recover from the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is ever more important to ensure that the illegal trade of forest products does not undermine this recovery, nor threaten the livelihoods of those participating in the legal supply chain,” Konschnik said. “We must recommit to ensuring the global forest products market does not become a financial playground to criminal elements who use illegally harvested forest products to drive other transnational crimes, perpetuate civil unrest, threaten global security, and fund terrorist organizations.”
Konschnik discussed U.S. initiatives consistent with the EGILAT mandate, including efforts to conserve critical rainforests around the world, the creation of the Timber Interdiction Membership Board and Enforcement Resources (TIMBER) Working Group and expanding efforts to tackle timber trafficking. She closed by emphasizing the importance of bilateral and regional collaborations in achieving EGILAT’s goal and highlighting the unique place EGILAT has in the global effort to promote the trade of legally harvested forest products and combat illegal logging and associated trade.
As part of the broader EGILAT meeting, the economies discussed activities in support of the policy theme “Advancing the Trade and Distribution of Legally Harvested Forest Products: Navigating to Legal Timber.” Members had opportunities to participate in field trips, including one to view the National Fish and Wildlife Forensic Mobile Lab, which can identify illegally traded timber from endangered species. EGILAT also planned to host a technology workshop with members joining six other work groups in a half-day meeting on Policy Partnership on Food Security.
EGILAT was created in 2011 by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), which is a regional economic forum of 21 members, including the U.S. APEC was established in 1989 with the aim to promote prosperity in the region through sustainable, innovative, and secure growth. The United States is the 2023 host of APEC.
Operation Cross Country XIII Leads to Identification/Location of Adolescent VictimsRead the Press Release
Note: B-roll from Operation Cross Country XIII operations can be found/downloaded here: Operation Cross Country 2023 B-Roll
The FBI, working with its state and local partners, identified and located 200 victims of sex trafficking during a nationwide enforcement campaign called Operation Cross Country. The operation also led to identification or arrest of 126 suspects of child sexual exploitation and human trafficking offenses and 68 suspects of trafficking were identified or arrested.
Through targeted operations and collaborative efforts, Operation Cross Country achieved significant milestones in recovering victims, apprehending offenders, and raising public awareness about these heinous crimes. The FBI and its partners located 59 minor victims of child sex trafficking and child sexual exploitation offenses and located 59 actively missing children during its 2-week operation in July.
“Sex traffickers exploit and endanger some of the most vulnerable members of our society and cause their victims unimaginable harm,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This operation, which located 59 actively missing children, builds on the tremendous work the FBI has undertaken over many years to rescue minor victims and arrest those responsible for these unspeakable crimes. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners across the country to prevent human trafficking; increase detection, investigation, and prosecution of human trafficking crimes; and expand support and services to protect and empower survivors.”
The FBI-led nationwide initiative, in partnership with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), focused on identifying and locating victims of sex trafficking and investigating and arresting individuals and criminal enterprises involved in both child sex and human trafficking. Law enforcement agencies conducted targeted operations to identify and apprehend offenders, dismantling criminal networks, and preventing further harm to victims. Those suspects identified will be subject to additional investigation for potential charges.
“Human traffickers’ prey on the most vulnerable members of our society, and their crimes scar victims – many of them children – for life. The FBI's commitment to combatting this threat will never waver, and we will continue to send our message that these atrocities will not be tolerated,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “This operation would not be possible without the commitment and collaboration from our state and local law enforcement partners, and it demonstrates our continued focus on actively pursuing the criminals responsible for these heinous violations and connecting those impacted with dedicated victim services and resources.”
A multidisciplinary team (MDT), to include victim specialists, child/adolescent forensic interviewers, and other victim service personnel, in addition to special agents, ensures a victim-centered, culturally responsive, trauma-informed investigative response. The FBI MDT works with state and local partners to make resources available to meet the unique needs of trafficking victims.
Victim specialists provide services based on the individual needs of human trafficking victims, to include crisis intervention, emergency food and clothing, transportation to receive emergency services, and locating shelter or housing. The victim specialists also serve as conduit between the victims and the investigative team to help ensure they are receiving case updates, as appropriate.
“Behind every statistic, there is a person with dreams, aspirations, and the right to live a life free from child sex trafficking and exploitation. As a society we must work together to ensure the protection, support, and empowerment of those impacted by this heinous crime.” said NCMEC President & CEO Michelle DeLaune. “We applaud the FBI and their partner law enforcement agencies for their unwavering dedication to protecting children. Their tireless efforts in combatting crimes against children sends a powerful message that child sexual exploitation will not be tolerated.”
The FBI remains steadfast in its commitment to combatting child exploitation and human trafficking. Operation Cross Country is just one facet of the Bureau's ongoing efforts to protect the most vulnerable members of society and hold offenders accountable. The FBI encourages continued vigilance, cooperation, and reporting from the public to help identify and recover victims and bring perpetrators to justice.
Resources:
- Victim Services Division
- Crimes Against Children
- National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)
- NCMEC’s 24/7 call center number: 1-800-THE-LOST (843-5678)
California Truck Parts Manufacturer Sinister Diesel Agrees to Pay $1 Million After Pleading Guilty to Conspiracy and for Manufacturing and Selling Illegal Defeat DevicesRead the Press Release
Diesel performance parts manufacturer Sinister Mfg. Company, Inc. – doing business as “Sinister Diesel” – pleaded guilty to criminal charges today in federal court in Sacramento, California, and agreed to pay a total of $1 million in criminal fines and civil penalties. The company also agreed to implement a compliance program and to not manufacture, sell or install any device that defeats a vehicle’s emissions controls.
Image from U.S. v. Sinister Mfg. Company, Inc., Case no. 2:23-CR-168 JAM Plea Agreement, Exhibit A A photo of a truck “rolling coal” that Sinister posted to its Facebook page titled: “Get Serious. Get Sinister.”Sinister Diesel pleaded guilty to a two-count Information, charging it with conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act (CAA) and defraud the United States, and with violating the CAA by tampering with the monitoring device of an emissions control system of a diesel truck. Under the plea agreement, the defendant agrees to pay a $500,000 criminal fine.
Sinister must pay an additional $500,000 under the civil consent decree which the United States filed simultaneously with its civil complaint against Sinister, alleging violations of the CAA’s prohibition against the sale or manufacture of devices that bypass, defeat or render inoperative emissions controls. The civil consent decree prohibits the company from making, selling or offering to sell defeat products, including delete tuners, and prevents Sinister Diesel from transferring intellectual property that would allow others to make such products. To ensure compliance with these requirements, Sinister Diesel will implement a robust internal training program and notify its distributors and former customers about the settlement.
“Businesses that manufacture and sell illegal devices to defeat a vehicle’s emissions controls foster pollution and risk decades of progress in curtailing harmful emissions from motor vehicles in this country,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The plea agreement and civil settlement show that we will take strong action to enforce the Clean Air Act and ensure that emissions control requirements for cars and trucks are being followed.”
“Sinister Diesel sold products that allowed drivers to strip the emissions controls from their trucks, causing a dramatic increase in the release of pollutants that worsen air quality and harm the quality of life,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert for the Eastern District of California. “Environmental laws that control diesel pollution are especially important to protect sensitive populations such as the young, the elderly and people who suffer from respiratory conditions. My Office will continue to vigorously prosecute those who place profit above the public’s health and the environment.”
“For close to ten years, Sinister Diesel sold parts designed to override or disable the emissions control systems on trucks,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “EPA testing has shown that a vehicle altered with these parts can emit more than 100 times the amount of certain harmful air pollutants, compared to a vehicle with an intact emissions control system. This case shows that we will aggressively prosecute those who manufacture and sell devices designed to defeat vehicle emissions controls.”
According to court documents, Sinister Diesel – from its 2010 incorporation to April 2020 – manufactured and sold parts intended to be installed on motor vehicles, particularly diesel trucks, to enable “deleting” the trucks by removing or disabling the trucks’ emissions control systems. Various products, referred to as “delete devices” or “defeat devices,” are used in the process of “deleting” a vehicle. Sinister often sold its products as part of “delete kits,” sometimes bundled with “delete tunes.” The delete tunes were software produced by another company which could alter a diesel truck’s on-board computer to allow a truck with its emissions controls “deleted” to appear to run normally.
Through its employees, Sinister Diesel reached agreements with other companies that manufactured tuners or tuning platforms to sell their products bundled together. Sinister would often advise customers on other needed parts for their deleted vehicles to run properly with Sinister’s delete kits — such as a tuner or tuning platform and delete tunes — and sell them those products, too. Sinister also counseled customers on how to evade state emissions tests.
Though Sinister sometimes labeled its delete products for “racing” and included disclaimers in marketing materials indicating that its products should be used only in off-road settings, the company knew most of its delete products were purchased by diesel truck drivers who used those products on public roads, not racetracks. At times, approximately 25% of Sinister’s gross revenue stemmed from its delete products. According to Sinister’s sales statistics, between October 30, 2015, and July 17, 2017, it sold 39,792 defeat devices, including at least 35,960 kits that disable vehicles’ exhaust gas recirculation systems.
Deleting a diesel truck causes its emissions to increase dramatically. For example, for a fully deleted truck with all emissions equipment removed, EPA testing has quantified the increased emissions as follows: Nitrogen oxides increased 310 times, non-methane hydrocarbons increased 1,400 times, carbon monoxide increased 120 times and particulate matter increased 40 times. EPA’s Air Enforcement Division released a report in November 2020 finding that more than 500,000 diesel pickup trucks in the United States – approximately 15% of U.S. diesel trucks that were originally certified with emissions controls – have been illegally deleted.
Diesel emissions contain multiple hazardous compounds and harm human health and the environment. Diesel emissions have been found to cause and worsen respiratory ailments such as asthma and lung cancer. One study found that 21,000 American deaths annually are attributable to diesel particulate matter. Additionally, exposure to polluted air in utero has been associated with a host of problems with lifelong ramifications including low birth weight, preterm birth, autism, asthma and brain and memory disorders.
The defendant is scheduled to be sentenced in the criminal case by U.S. District Court Judge John A. Mendez for the Eastern District of California on November 14, 2023. Though Sinister Diesel agreed to pay a $500,000 criminal fine under its plea agreement, the company faces – for each count – a maximum fine of $500,000 or twice the gross pecuniary gain derived from the offense. Its sentence will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of all applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
The criminal case was the product of an investigation by the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Sacramento Field Office. Assistant United States Attorney Katherine T. Lydon of the Eastern District of California and Senior Counsel Krishna S. Dighe and Trial Attorney Stephen J. Foster of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) are prosecuting the criminal case. The federal civil case is being handled by Senior Attorney Eric Albert and Senior Counsel Joanna Day of the Environmental Enforcement Section of ENRD, Attorney Advisor David H. Kim of EPA’s Region 9 office, and Janice Chan of the EPA’s Region 9 office.
Stopping the manufacture, sale, and installation of illegal delete devices is a priority for EPA. To learn more, visit: www.epa.gov/enforcement/national-compliance-initiative-stopping-aftermarket-defeat-devices-vehicles-and-engines. To learn more about EPA’s criminal enforcement actions on defeat devices, visit www.epa.gov/enforcement/criminal-press-releases-2023 and https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/criminal-press-releases-2022.
The consent decree for this settlement, lodged today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the court. A copy of the consent decree and information on submitting comments will be available on the Department of Justice website at: www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
Virginia Veterinary Technician Sentenced for Dogfighting and Promoting Animal Fighting VenturesRead the Press Release
Carlos Warren, 49, of Rapidan, Virginia, was sentenced today to 20 months in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiring to fight dogs and promote dogfighting using interstate publications. U.S. District Judge Norman K. Moon for the Western District of Virginia pronounced the sentence and ordered the forfeiture of all the dogs and animal-fighting paraphernalia seized at Warren’s residence during the execution of a search warrant in March 2022. As a condition of his supervised release, Warren was ordered not to own or care for any animals, and to relinquish or not procure any licenses, certifications or other authorizations related to veterinary or animal care.
According to court-filed documents, Warren started fighting dogs as a teenager. While living in both California and Virginia, he published and distributed nationally a magazine called “the Connector.” The magazine contained interviews of known dogfighters, the results of various fights, breeding and pedigree information, advertisements for fighting dogs and a page which advertised the illegal sale of injectable steroids and other substances for dogs.
After moving to Virginia, Warren set up a dogfighting yard, hosted dogfights on his property and attended other dogfights. Notably, Warren’s work as a veterinary technician during much of this time enabled him to steal or otherwise obtain medications and other supplies. He then used these medications and supplies, as well as his veterinary technician training, to treat dogs during fights up until they lost or refused to fight. When that happened, Warren executed dogs through brutal means including electrocution.
“This prosecution highlights the department’s continued commitment to holding accountable those who participate in and promote the blood sport of dogfighting,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The defendant’s certification and work as a veterinary technician, which he used to further these fights and promote the barbarous treatment of dogs, makes his crimes even more reprehensible.”
“Dog fighting is savage and inhumane, and it will not be tolerated,” said U.S. Attorney Christopher R. Kavanaugh for the Western District of Virginia. “The individuals involved in the breeding, training and cruel deaths suffered by innocent animals – especially in a case like this at the hands of a trained veterinary technician – will be held accountable and justly punished by the Justice Department.”
The FBI Richmond Field Office investigated the case with the assistance of Virginia State Police. The case was prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Todd W. Gleason of the Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Carlton for the Western District of Virginia. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Williams for the Central District of California also assisted with this case.
New Jersey Tax Preparer Arrested for Fraudulently Seeking over $124 Million in COVID-19 Employment Tax CreditsRead the Press Release
A New Jersey tax preparer was arrested today on charges related to fraudulently seeking over $124,000,000 from the IRS by filing over 1,000 tax returns falsely claiming COVID-19-related employment tax credits.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact, Congress authorized an employee retention tax credit that a small business could use to reduce the employment tax it owed to the IRS, also known as the “employee retention credit” or ERC.
Congress also authorized the IRS to give a credit against employment taxes to reimburse businesses for the wages paid to employees who were on sick or family leave and could not work because of COVID-19. This “paid sick and family leave credit” was equal to the wages the business paid the employees during the sick or family leave, also subject to a maximum amount.
According to court documents, from November 2020 to May 2023, Leon Haynes of Teaneck, New Jersey, allegedly repeatedly exploited a program created to help small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Acting as a tax preparer, Haynes allegedly prepared and submitted approximately 1,387 false forms to the IRS claiming COVID-related tax credits on behalf of himself and clients. The complaint further alleges that Haynes falsely told his clients that the government was giving out COVID-relief money for businesses and that they were eligible for the money simply because they had a business. Allegedly, without consulting with his clients, Haynes then submitted forms to the IRS on behalf of their businesses that grossly overstated the number of employees and amount of wages paid. Haynes allegedly submitted similarly false forms for three of his own companies.
Based on these and other misrepresentations, Haynes’ conduct allegedly sought approximately $124,751,995 in tax refunds on behalf of his companies and numerous other businesses in his clients’ names. The IRS allegedly mailed Haynes multiple tax refund checks totaling $1,007,966 for his own companies and allegedly disbursed a total of $31.6 million in refunds to Haynes’ clients and himself based on the false tax forms that Haynes submitted. The complaint further alleges that Haynes charged many clients a fee of as much as 15% of the refund they received.
If convicted, Haynes faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false return and 20 years in prison for mail fraud. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger for the District of New Jersey made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation, Social Security Administration-Office of the Inspector General, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the case.
Trial Attorney Samuel B. Bean of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fatime Meka Cano of the District of New Jersey’s Economic Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case.
A complaint/information is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Martin’s Point Health Care Inc. to Pay $22,485,000 to Resolve False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
Martin’s Point Health Care Inc. (Martin’s Point), headquartered in Portland, Maine, has agreed to pay $22,485,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting inaccurate diagnosis codes for its Medicare Advantage Plan enrollees in order to increase reimbursements from Medicare.
Under Medicare Advantage, also known as the Medicare Part C program, Medicare beneficiaries have the option of enrolling in managed care insurance plans called Medicare Advantage Plans (MA Plans). MA Plans are paid a per-person amount to provide Medicare-covered benefits to beneficiaries who enroll in one of their plans. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which oversees the Medicare program, adjusts the payments to MA Plans based on demographic information and the diagnoses of each plan beneficiary. The adjustments are commonly referred to as “risk scores.” In general, a beneficiary with diagnoses more expensive to treat will have a higher risk score, and CMS will make a larger risk-adjusted payment to the MA Plan for that beneficiary.
Martin’s Point operates Medicare Advantage plans for beneficiaries living in Maine and New Hampshire. The United States alleged that, from 2016 to 2019, Martin’s Point engaged in chart reviews of their Medicare Advantage beneficiaries to identify additional diagnosis codes that had not been submitted to Medicare. Many of the additional codes submitted, however, were not properly supported by the patients’ medical records. The government alleged that Martin’s Point nevertheless submitted those diagnosis codes, which resulted in higher payments from CMS.
“The government expects those who participate in Medicare Advantage to provide accurate information to ensure that proper payments are made for the care received by enrolled beneficiaries,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Michael D. Granston of the Justice Department's Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch. “Today’s result sends a clear message to the Medicare Advantage community that the United States will take appropriate action against those who knowingly submit inflated claims for reimbursement.”
“It is a privilege for health plans to provide services to Medicare beneficiaries, not a right. Medicare Advantage Plan sponsors that submit inaccurate claim information in order to justify inflated payments undermine the financial integrity of the program,” said Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Christian J. Schrank at the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector (HHS-OIG). “HHS-OIG remains committed to protecting taxpayer-funded health care programs, including Medicare Advantage.”
The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Alicia Wilbur, a former manager in Martin’s Point’s Risk Adjustment Operations group. Under those provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned U.S. ex rel. Wilbur v. Martin’s Point Health Care Inc., No. 2:18-cv-00254 (DME). As part of today’s resolution, the whistleblower will receive approximately $3.8 million.
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine, with assistance from HHS-OIG.
The investigation and resolution of this matter illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).
The matter was handled by Trial Attorney J. Jennifer Koh of the Justice Department’s Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Osborn and James Concannon for the District of Maine with the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s in-house auditor.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
SettlementJustice Department Sues Alabama Department of Transportation for Disability Discrimination in HiringRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) for violating Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, alleges that ALDOT refused to hire an individual because of his physical disability that restricts his ability to lift heavy objects.
According to court documents, the individual worked successfully as a Transportation Maintenance Technician (TMT) at ALDOT for many years. He was injured on the job, resulting in a disability that limits his ability to lift heavy objects. Even with his disability, he continued to work successfully with accommodations at ALDOT for several years. However, the United States alleges, when the individual reapplied to be a TMT after a brief retirement, ALDOT refused to re-hire him because of his disability and instead hired less experienced applicants.
“Qualified people with disabilities must have an equal opportunity to participate in the workforce,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This lawsuit reflects the Justice Department’s ongoing commitment to protect the employment rights of people with disabilities under the ADA.”
Title I of the ADA prohibits employers from discriminating against qualified individuals on the basis of disability. This includes refusing to hire qualified applicants because of their disability, or using selection criteria that screen out qualified applicants that are not job-related or consistent with business necessity.
This case is being handled by the department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama based on a referral from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TTY 1-833-610-1264) or visit www.ada.gov. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. Individuals who believe they may have been victims of discrimination may file a complaint at www.civilrights.justice.gov.
ComplaintBelle Fourche and Bridger Pipeline Companies to Pay $12.5 Million in Penalties and Improve Compliance after Pipeline Spills in Montana and North DakotaRead the Press Release
Belle Fourche Pipeline Company and Bridger Pipeline LLC – affiliated companies that own and operate a network of crude oil pipelines – have together agreed to pay a $12.5 million civil penalty to resolve claims under the Clean Water Act, pipeline safety laws and North Dakota state laws relating to oil spills in Montana and North Dakota.
“Today’s settlement is the result of federal and state partners working together to comprehensively address oil spills and assess a significant penalty to deter future violations,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The agreement also protects public health, safety, and the environment by requiring action to make future spills less likely.”
“Oil pipeline spills can cause enormous and long-lasting damage to the environment,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “This settlement holds Belle Fourche and Bridger Pipeline accountable for their significant oil spills and requires them to take meaningful measures to prevent future spills from their oil pipelines.”
“All pipeline spills harm our environment and many threaten the safety and well-being of the American public,” said Deputy Administrator Tristan Brown of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). “PHMSA and our state and federal partners are sending a strong message that spills will not be tolerated.”
“As the longest free-flowing river in the Lower 48, the Yellowstone River not only is a national treasure for its historic significance, ecosystems and recreational opportunities, but it also is an important economic resource for communities along its banks and the state of Montana,” said U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich for the District of Montana. “It is essential for pipeline companies operating in and around our rivers to comply with environmental protection and public safety regulations. This agreement holds these companies accountable for their significant oil spills, and more importantly, will help protect the iconic Yellowstone River from future damage.”
“Through this settlement, we are furthering North Dakota’s twin objectives of safe energy development and protection of our environment,” said Attorney General Drew H. Wrigley for the State of North Dakota. “I want to especially thank the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality staff who spent countless hours investigating and responding to the spill.”
In 2015, Bridger’s Poplar Pipeline ruptured where it crosses under the Yellowstone River near Glendive, Montana. The pipeline crossing had been installed using the “trench-cut” method. The pipeline failed after being exposed due to river scour. Bridger has completed its cleanup of the Montana spill site, and Bridger and the State of Montana separately resolved claims under Montana state law.
Belle Fourche’s Bicentennial Pipeline ruptured in 2016 in Billings County, North Dakota. The pipeline traversed a steep hillside above an unnamed tributary to Ash Coulee Creek – which feeds into the Little Missouri River – when the slope failed. The size of the North Dakota spill was exacerbated by Belle Fourche’s failure to detect the spill until it was reported by a local landowner. Belle Fourche’s cleanup of the North Dakota spill site is ongoing with oversight by the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality. The State of North Dakota is a co-plaintiff in this case, and it has worked closely with the United States; both are signatories to the consent decree.
In addition to the $12.5 million civil penalty, the companies are required to implement specified compliance measures including meeting certain control room operation requirements and related employee training, implementing their water crossings and geotechnical evaluation programs and updating their integrity management program. Belle Fourche will also pay the state of North Dakota’s past response costs.
The case is being handled by the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Enforcement Section, in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana, EPA, PHMSA and the State of North Dakota.
The consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. Under section 7003(d) of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, a commenter may request an opportunity for a public meeting in the affected area. The consent decree will be available for viewing here: www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
Justice Department Sues to Shut Down Florida Tax Return PreparersRead the Press Release
The United States filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida against George Brito, Luis Brito, and Brito and Brito Accounting USA, Inc. The civil complaint seeks to enjoin the defendants from preparing federal tax returns for others.
The civil complaint alleges that the defendants George Brito and Luis Brito have worked as tax return preparers for almost thirty years, and since 2019 have prepared thousands of tax returns annually. The complaint alleges that the defendants prepare returns that understate their customers’ tax liabilities and overstate their refunds. According to the complaint, the defendants’ unlawful schemes include deducting ineligible expenses as itemized deductions; claiming false or inflated business expenses and losses; and fabricating residential energy credits without any factual basis to claim them.
As alleged in the complaint, the defendants have caused the United States to issue inflated refunds that defendants’ customers were not entitled to receive and to lose tax revenue. The complaint further alleges that the defendants’ conduct harmed their customers who pay substantial fees for what they believe to be honest return preparation services, but eventually learn that they owe money to the IRS because of the inaccuracies reported on their returns.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers as return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’s Dirty Dozen Tax Scams. The IRS offers tips on how to accurately file returns and how to choose a tax return preparer, as well as steps taxpayers can take to get a jumpstart on filing. The IRS has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers and offers information on how to avoid “ghost” tax preparers, whose refusal to sign a return should be a red flag to taxpayers.
In addition, IRS Free File, a public-private partnership, offers free online tax preparation and filing options on IRS partner websites for individuals whose adjusted gross income is under $73,000. For individuals whose income is over that threshold, IRS Free File offers electronical federal tax forms that can be filled out and filed online for free.
In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found here.
Readout of Pardon Attorney Elizabeth Oyer’s Visit to Federal Correctional Institution AlicevilleRead the Press Release
On July 26, Pardon Attorney Elizabeth Oyer and members of her team visited Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Aliceville, a low-security Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) facility for women, in Aliceville, Alabama. The Pardon Attorney and her team provided a series of educational sessions about the federal clemency process and answered questions from inmates and staff. The Pardon Attorney and her team met with over 500 inmates and staff during their visit.
The visit to FCI Aliceville was the third in a series of quarterly educational events that the Pardon Attorney is conducting for inmates and staff at different Bureau of Prisons locations.
The first took place at FCI Fort. Dix, a low-security institution in New Jersey in January 2023. During that visit, the Pardon Attorney and her team met with over 700 inmates and staff in a day-long series of trainings throughout the facility. The second took place at USP Lewisburg, a medium-security institution in Pennsylvania in April 2023. During that visit, the Pardon Attorney and her team met with over 300 inmates and staff in a day-long series of trainings throughout the facility.
These educational sessions within the BOP are part of a year-round initiative by the Office of the Pardon Attorney to increase the accessibility and transparency of the clemency process through education and community engagement.
Readout of Department of Justice Federal/Tribal Regional Summit in Spokane, WashingtonRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref for the Eastern District of Washington hosted a Federal/Tribal Regional Summit in Spokane, Washington, July 25-26, alongside co-hosts from the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), the Office of Environmental Justice and the Office of Tribal Justice. The Federal/Tribal Regional Summit built on a November 2022 Tribal Listening Session in Washington, DC and a national Federal/Tribal Summit in Columbia, South Carolina in early 2023. The Summits are intended to deliver on the promise in the Department’s Comprehensive Environmental Justice Enforcement Strategy to work with Tribal governments and other federal agencies to find “ways to address and incorporate Tribal concerns into the Department’s enforcement work.” This meeting was the first of three Regional Summits planned for this calendar year.
At the Spokane meeting, U.S. Attorney Waldref welcomed representatives of Tribal nations from Idaho, Washington, and Montana. U.S. Attorney Waldref acknowledged that the gathering was taking place on the ancestral lands of the Spokane Tribe. The meeting was held in the Spokane Public Library overlooking Spokane Falls and artwork by Virgil “Smoker” Marchand, a member of the Lakes Band of the Colville Confederated Tribe, who passed away earlier this year. Monica Tonasket, a member of the Spokane Tribal Council also gave a land acknowledgement and blessing to the group to start off the Summit.
In his remarks to the group, Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for ENRD challenged the group to identify new ways to work together to address the substantial challenges that Tribes face in establishing and preserving sustainable homelands. AAG Kim noted the unique government-to-government relationship that the United States has with Tribes, and the Justice Department’s role in upholding and asserting federal reserved water rights claims and other tribal and treaty rights. He then linked Summit goals to three key Administration priorities: respecting Tribal sovereignty and self-governance, furthering environmental justice and combating the climate crisis.
In her remarks, U.S. Attorney Waldref noted the criminal prosecutions that her office has pursued in Indian Country and announced that the Justice Department has selected the Eastern District of Washington to house a federal prosecutor focused on addressing the crisis of Murdered and Missing Indigenous People for the Western Region of the United States. She also conveyed her commitment to environmental justice, reflected in her position as Chair of the Environmental Justice & Environmental Issues Subcommittee that advises Attorney General Merrick Garland. U.S. Attorney Waldref also emphasized that environmental protection is a critical component of public health and safety.
The Summit then progressed into short presentations followed by in-depth discussions around three issues: tribal water rights, challenges Tribes are facing with a rapidly changing climate and treaty rights related to hunting and gathering of natural resources.
The second day began with remarks by Regional Administrator Casey Sixkiller for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 10. The Federal Bureau of Investigation then presented on its work in Indian County, including emerging trends related to pollution crime, theft of natural resources and illicit activity tied to extractive industries. Additional presentations provided information on federal grant opportunities, the National Ocean Justice Strategy and grant and investigatory resources at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“It was an honor for the Eastern District of Washington to host the Justice Department’s first regional summit focused on defending and strengthening Tribal homelands, climate adaptation, resilience and environmental justice,” said U.S. Attorney Waldref after the event. “It was humbling to gather together with several Tribal nations at the base of Spokane Falls, where Tribes from across the Columbia Plateau have historically gathered to fish for the Chinook Salmon that once spawned beneath these sacred waterfalls. The Justice Department and our District are fully committed to enforcing laws to achieve environmental justice, working together to combat the climate crisis, and protecting civil rights, all while continuing to recognize and respect Tribal sovereignty.”
Future Regional Tribal Summits are scheduled for Sept. 26-27, in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Oct. 16-17, in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Pharmacy Owner Convicted of Payment of Illegal Kickbacks and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
A federal jury in the Northern District of Texas convicted the owner of several compounding pharmacies today for paying illegal marketing kickbacks involving TRICARE, a federal program that provides health insurance benefits to active duty and retired service members and their families. He was also convicted of a conspiracy to launder the proceeds of the unlawful activity.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Richard Hall, 53, of Fort Worth, Texas, worked with others to create and market expensive compounded medications, which are medications that are intended to be custom-tailored to individual patient needs. Hall and others paid marketers, who recruited area doctors to write prescriptions for these expensive compounded medications, including by creating so-called “investment opportunities” so that doctors who wrote prescriptions to the pharmacy could profit from the pharmacy operations. Hall paid illegal kickbacks to these marketers and engaged in a conspiracy to launder the unlawful proceeds.
The jury convicted Hall of four counts of paying and receiving unlawful kickbacks, and one count of money laundering. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on each kickback count, and 10 years in prison on the money laundering count. A sentencing date has not yet been set. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Michael Mentavlos of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Special Agent in Charge Jason Meadows of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Dallas Regional Office, Special Agent in Charge Chad B. Yarbrough of the FBI Dallas Regional Office, Special Agent in Charge Steven Grell of the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG) Central Regional Office, and Special Agent in Charge Kris Raper of the Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG) South Central Field Office made the announcement.
The DCIS, HHS-OIG, FBI, DOL-OIG, and VA-OIG investigated the case.
Assistant Chiefs Kate Payerle and Brynn Schiess and Trial Attorneys Lee Michael Hirsch and Jacqueline DerOvanesian of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, comprised of 15 strike forces operating in 25 federal districts, has charged more than 5,000 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $24 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
Justice Department Commemorates the 33rd Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act Highlighting Efforts to Address the Criminalization of People with DisabilitiesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division hosted a program yesterday to commemorate the 33rd anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and to highlight the need to address unnecessary interactions between people with disabilities and the criminal justice system. Passed into law in 1990 with broad bipartisan support, the ADA prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in everyday activities, including in workplaces, businesses, and in state and local government services, including law enforcement and corrections.
The program, entitled “Addressing the Criminalization of People with Disabilities,” focused on the department’s efforts to combat disability discrimination that leads to needless criminal justice involvement, particularly with respect to people with mental health disabilities and substance use disorders. The program called attention to the need for more community-based services to address behavioral health needs, rather than deploying the criminal justice system.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke opened the program with remarks detailing the interactions of millions of people with disabilities with the criminal justice system and the Justice Department’s efforts to fight for greater access and greater equity for people with disabilities. The program also featured recorded remarks from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland who acknowledged the progress that has been made toward fulfilling the promise of equal justice and opportunity for people with disabiltities, but that much more work remains.
“The anniversary of the ADA gives us the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the enormous impact the law has had on the lives of people with disabilities – and on our entire country. It also gives us an important opportunity to recognize the many barriers that remain, and to recommit ourselves to breaking them down,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “We know that far too often, law enforcement officers are forced to respond to individuals experiencing challenges that do not have a law enforcement solution. This can contribute to significant harm to people experiencing mental health crises, as well as to needless incarceration or institutionalization of such people. At the same time, it puts a great strain on the law enforcement officers who are forced to fill in the gap where community services have failed. The Justice Department is working to address these challenges through our enforcement of the ADA.”
“We are committed to using our federal civil rights laws to address the unnecessary use of law enforcement and criminal justice responses to people with disabilities when our community service systems fail them,” said Assistant Attorney General Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “To fully realize the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act, we must confront issues that lie at the intersection of disability rights, criminal justice and racial justice. Simply put, people with disabilities should receive the services they need rather than being treated as criminals.”
Equal Justice Initiative Executive Director Bryan Stevenson provided a keynote speech regarding the continued systemic work that must be done to address the criminalization of people with disabilities. He also answered questions posed by Assistant Attorney General Clarke regarding ways to continue to advance progress for people with disabilities.
“When you look at the landscape now where we have one of the largest prison populations in the world, there is no community that has been more severely impacted than people with disabilities,” said Mr. Stevenson. “Our jails and prisons are filled with people with behavioral health disabilities that we have not addressed and it is an urgent and necessary issue to take on. While we can accept and acknowledge that much has been gained, there is tremendous work that needs to happen with regard to this topic of criminalizing people with disabilities.”
Finally, the program included a panel discussion featuring Former Pennsylvania Secretary of Public Welfare Estelle Richman, NYC Justice Peer Initiative Executive Director Helen Skipper and Civil Rights Division attorneys. The panel addressed various reasons for reliance on the criminal justice system to respond to people with disabilities and explored potential solutions.
The Department is also actively enforcing the ADA in this context, and recently found violations of the ADA by police departments in Louisville and Minneapolis for relying on law enforcement as the primary and generally sole responders to behavioral health calls, even when safety does not require a law enforcement presence.
For more information about the ADA, please visit www.ada.gov or call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383). For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt.
Joint Statement from Canada, Mexico, and the United States Following the Second Trilateral Fentanyl Committee MeetingRead the Press Release
On July 25, 2023 Mexico’s Secretary of Security Rosa Icela Rodriguez hosted U.S. Homeland Security Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall and Canada’s National Security and Intelligence Advisor Jody Thomas (virtually) in the second meeting of the Trilateral Fentanyl Committee to propel and expand actions on our shared commitment to combat the trafficking of synthetic drugs.
President Joe Biden, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau established this trilateral Committee, comprising high-level representatives from the three countries, during the North American Leaders’ Summit on January 9-10, 2023, to guide priority actions to address the illicit fentanyl threat facing North America.
The three co-chairs reaffirmed commitments to jointly confront the deadly scourge of synthetic drugs, and discussed the steps we are taking to fulfill them, including by: 1) intensifying and expanding prosecution of drug traffickers and dismantling criminal networks; 2) targeting the supply of precursor chemicals used to make illicit fentanyl and inviting action by private chemical and shipping companies to prevent diversion; 3) preventing the trafficking of drugs across our borders; and 4) promoting public health services to reduce harm and demand, educate individuals on the risks of substance use, and provide treatment to those seeking it.
The three delegations committed to create an expert working group to identify challenges related to our respective legislative and regulatory frameworks associated with precursor chemicals, and related equipment. The three countries also committed to establishing an agile mechanism to promptly share emerging illegal drugs and drug trafficking trends.
The three countries committed to continue working together to expand international support to address the threat of synthetic drugs, building on the very strong collaboration of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, and working through the new Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats. To that end, the three countries committed to present progress on their joint efforts within the Trilateral Fentanyl Committee to Coalition partners at the next meeting of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly.
Representing Mexico were the Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection, Rosa Icela Rodríguez; the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Alicia Bárcena Ibarra; the Secretary of the Interior, Luisa María Alcalde Luján; the Secretary of National Defense, Gen. Luis Cresencio Sandoval González; the Secretary of the Navy, Adm. José Rafael Ojeda Durán; Secretary of Health, Dr. Jorge Alcocer Varela; the General Attorney of the Republic, Alejandro Gertz Manero; Chief Officer for North America, Roberto Velasco Álvarez; Ambassador of Mexico to the United States, Esteban Moctezuma Barragán; Ambassador of Mexico to Canada, Carlos Joaquín González (virtual); Deputy Commissioner of the National Migration Institute, Alejandro Tagle Marroquin; the General Secretary of the National Intelligence Center, Saúl Parra Ibarra; the fiscal Attorney General, Arturo Medina Padilla; the head of the Financial Intelligence Unit, Pablo Gómez Álvarez; and the spokesperson for the Mexican Government, Jesús Ramírez Cuevas.
The U.S. delegation was led by the White House Homeland Security Advisor, Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall; and included the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar; the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, Richard Verma; the Deputy Attorney General, Lisa O. Monaco; the Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristie Canegallo; the Senior Advisor to the Director of National Drug Control Policy, Kemp Chester; the Department of Justice Senior Counsel Joshua Handell; and U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission in Mexico, Mark C. Johnson.
Canada was represented by the National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister, Jody Thomas (virtually); the Associate Deputy Minister of Public Safety Canada, Tricia Geddes; the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for Crime Prevention at Public Safety Canada, Talal Dakalbab; the Chargé d’Affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission of Canada in Mexico, Shauna Hemingway; the Executive Director of the Opioid Response Team at Health Canada, Jennifer Novak; the Senior Policy Advisor to the National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister, Shannon Partridge; the Counsellor for Intergovernmental Affairs at the Canadian Embassy in Mexico, Lucie Verreault; and the Public Safety Canada Counsellor at the Canadian Embassy in Washington D.C., Michael Holmes.
Youngstown Man Sentenced to 10 years for Selling Drugs and Possessing FirearmsRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND – Daniel May, 29, of Youngstown, Ohio, was sentenced today to 10 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Christopher A. Boyko, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute drugs, distributing drugs, and to being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. May was ordered to serve 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment and pay a $900 special assessment.
According to court documents and court records, May illegally possessed firearms, sold narcotics and conspired with others to distribute cocaine, cocaine base, heroin, fentanyl, and fentanyl analogues in the Youngstown, Ohio, area. Search warrants executed at houses associated with May resulted in the recovery of four firearms, ammunition, cocaine, cocaine base, heroin, fentanyl, and fentanyl analogues. Also seized was a drug kilogram press and over $10,000.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Youngstown, the Youngstown Police Department, the Boardman Police Department, the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office, and the Campbell Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason M. Katz.
Justice Department, EPA and the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality Reach Agreement with City of Jackson on Proposal to Address Sewer System IssuesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and the City of Jackson, Mississippi agreed to a proposed stipulated order, lodged today in federal district court, to expedite needed sewer system repairs and address spills of raw and undertreated sewage into homes, businesses, streets, yards and waterways. Under the terms of the agreement, the federal court would appoint Ted Henifin as interim third-party manager of the city’s sewer system. Henifin, who has been serving as interim third-party manager for the city’s drinking water system since November 2022, would manage, operate and maintain the city’s sewer system.
The proposal is an interim measure until the parties negotiate modifications to a judicially enforceable consent decree to achieve the sewer system’s long-term compliance with federal and state regulations. The proposed stipulated order is subject to a public comment period through Aug. 31, during which public meetings will be held in the City of Jackson.
“Under today’s agreement, expedited measures will be taken to address the City of Jackson’s deteriorating sewer infrastructure and inadequate operation and maintenance, which have caused residents and businesses to endure sewage discharges that threaten public health and the environment,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This action shows the continuing commitment of the Justice Department to seek justice, health and safety for the residents of Jackson, Mississippi, and to prioritize enforcement in the communities most burdened by environmental harm.”
“In November of last year, the Justice Department filed a proposal to appoint a third-party manager to oversee and implement improvements to Jackson’s drinking water system,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Today, we continue to protect the health and safety of Jackson residents by proposing the oversight and programs needed to restore Jackson’s sewer systems.”
“This agreement is an appropriate next step in our enforcement efforts to ensure that the City of Jackson lives up to its responsibility, pursuant to the federal Clean Water Act and Mississippi law, to address and correct issues with its sewer system,” said Executive Director Chris Wells of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality.
The agreement acknowledges that the city failed to achieve significant progress under a 2013 settlement among the parties that was entered by the federal court as a consent decree, and that the sewer system has further deteriorated over the last 10 years, resulting in violations of the settlement, the federal Clean Water Act (CWA), the Mississippi Air and Water Pollution Control Law (MAWPCL), and the city’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits associated with the sewer system.
The agreement requires implementation of certain programs and capital projects to improve the sewer system’s condition, operations, and maintenance that are anticipated to bring near-term relief to the city’s residents and businesses.
The interim third-party manager would have the authority to, among other things:
- Operate and maintain the city’s sewer system in compliance with the CWA, MAWPCL and NPDES permits;
- Implement capital improvements to the city’s sewer system. This includes a set of priority projects to investigate and repair certain areas of the sewer system (including 215 areas previously identified by the city as emergency sewer failure locations), and certain repair work associated with the Savanna and Trahon wastewater treatment plants; and
- Implement or continue implementing programs to post signage about sewer overflows where there is a reasonable expectation of public exposure; keep fats, oils, and grease out of the sewer system; and clean and inspect lines on a recurring schedule.
Under the proposal, the Justice Department, EPA, MDEQ and the City of Jackson will resume negotiations within three years to modify the 2013 settlement to achieve long-term compliance with the CWA, MAWPCL and NPDES permits.
A copy of the proposed stipulated order and instructions for submitting public comments is available at www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. All comments must be electronically submitted or postmarked by Aug. 31.
Public meetings to receive comments are planned at the Mississippi e-Center, 1230 Raymond Road, Jackson, Mississippi on Aug. 21, 6:00 – 8:00 pm. Additional meetings are being planned and will be announced separately. For information and details on the public meetings, please visit www.epa.gov/ms/jackson-ms-sewer-system.
The case is being litigated by the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Enforcement Section, in conjunction with EPA and MDEQ.
Members of the public can help protect our environment by identifying and reporting environmental violations. Learn more here.
Jacksonville Tax Preparer Pleads Guilty to Preparing False Personal ReturnRead the Press Release
A Florida woman pleaded guilty today to aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return.
According to court documents, Iona Coates of Orange Park, Florida, owned and operated Bits & Bytes Accounting Services Inc., a tax preparation and bookkeeping services company located in Jacksonville. Between 2015 and 2020, Coates reported wages and tax withholdings from Bits & Bytes on her personal tax returns, including $42,500 of withholdings on her 2017 return. However, as Coates knew, Bits & Bytes did not withhold and pay over any taxes to the IRS during those years. In total, between 2015 and 2020, Coates claimed false withholdings of $228,788.
Coates faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison, and also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg for the Middle District of Florida made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Kevin Schneider and Wilson Stamm of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
Departments of Justice, Commerce and Treasury Issue Joint Compliance Note on Voluntary Self-Disclosure of Potential ViolationsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department, Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), and Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today issued a joint compliance note focusing on the voluntary self-disclosure policies that apply to U.S. sanctions, export controls and other national security laws, including recent updates to certain of those policies. Today’s note marks the second collective effort by the three agencies to inform the private sector about enforcement trends and provide guidance to the business community on compliance with U.S. sanctions and export laws.
“American businesses play a vital role in defending our national security because they are gatekeepers for sensitive technologies and key participants in the financial system,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Responsible companies that come forward as soon as they learn of potential sanctions and export control violations will benefit from the protections of these self-disclosure policies.”
“When it comes to protecting our cutting-edge technology from falling into the wrong hands, industry is our first line of defense,” said Assistant Secretary Matthew S. Axelrod of the Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement. “As this joint compliance note makes clear, we need companies to tell us when they have potentially violated our rules and offer them concrete benefits for doing so.”
The compliance note describes the voluntary self-disclosure policies of BIS, the Justice Department’s National Security Division, and OFAC, and highlights recent updates related to these policies. Additionally, the compliance note highlights the Financial Crime Enforcement Network (FinCEN)’s Anti-Money Laundering and Sanctions Whistleblower Program, which incentivizes individuals in the United States and abroad to provide information to the government about violations of U.S. trade and economic sanctions, in addition to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.
“As adversaries leverage increasingly sophisticated efforts to evade international sanctions and export controls, it’s more important than ever to maintain open communication between the public and private sectors,” said Director Andrea Gacki of the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. “By taking advantage of our voluntary self-disclosure policy, companies can both help themselves and help us protect our financial system.”
The note underscores the importance of an effective and robust compliance program. If a company discovers a potential violation, whether it is an administrative or criminal violation, that company must promptly disclose and remediate. Not only does such reporting make the disclosing company potentially eligible for significant mitigation, but it also alerts national security agencies to activities that may pose a threat to the national security and foreign policy objectives of the U.S. government.
The full compliance note is available here.
Tri-Seal Compliance NoteSouth Carolina Man Charged with Sex Trafficking of Four Victims, including a MinorRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Florence, South Carolina, returned an indictment charging a South Carolina man with three counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, one count of sex trafficking of a minor, two counts of interstate travel in aid of racketeering and one count of obstructing a sex trafficking investigation.
According to the indictment, between August 2019 and August 2020, Aaron T. Simmons, 26, of Greenville, used force, threats of force and coercion to compel three adult women to engage in commercial sex. The indictment also charges Simmons with sex trafficking of a minor victim.
Simmons will make his initial court appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the District of South Carolina. It is initially scheduled for July 28. If convicted of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion, Simmons faces a minimum penalty of 15 years in prison and up to life in prison. If convicted of sex trafficking of a minor, Simmons faces a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and up to life imprisonment. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Adair F. Boroughs for the District of South Carolina and Special Agent in Charge Steven J. Jensen of the FBI Columbia Field Office made the announcement.
The Greenville Police Department and the FBI Greenville Field Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Carrie Fisher Sherard for the District of South Carolina and Trial Attorney Francisco Zornosa of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit are prosecuting the case.
The FBI is asking anyone with information about Aaron Simmons to contact the FBI Columbia Field Office at (803) 551-4200. If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, please call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at (888) 373-7888.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
IndictmentMassachusetts Man Sentenced for Lottery Tax Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Massachusetts man was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for his role in an elaborate “ten-percenting” tax fraud conspiracy involving dozens of convenience stores across Massachusetts.
Mohamed Jaafar, 31, of Watertown, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to six months in prison and two years of supervised release. Jaafar was also ordered to pay $964,569 in restitution. In November 2022, Jaafar pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. In May 2023, Jaafar’s co-conspirators, Ali Jaffar and Yousef Jaafar, were sentenced to five years and 50 months, respectively.
Between 2011 and 2020, the defendants purchased winning lottery tickets from individuals across Massachusetts who wanted to sell their winning tickets for a cash discount instead of claiming their prizes from the Massachusetts State Lottery Commission. This allowed the real winners to avoid identification by the Commission, which is legally required to identify lottery winners and withhold any outstanding taxes, back taxes and child support payments before paying out prizes. The defendants recruited and paid the owners of dozens of convenience stores to facilitate the transactions. After purchasing tickets from the lottery winners at a discount, using the convenience stores as go-betweens, the defendants falsely claimed the full amount of the prize money as their own. The defendants then further profited by reporting the winnings on their income tax returns and claiming equivalent fake gambling losses as an offset, thereby avoiding federal income taxes and receiving fraudulent tax refunds.
In total, the defendants unlawfully claimed more than 14,000 winning lottery tickets and laundered over $20 million in proceeds. The result was more than $6 million in federal tax loss. As a direct result of this case, the Massachusetts State Lottery Commission is in the process of revoking or suspending the licenses of more than 40 lottery agents.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher J. Markham and Kristen A. Kearney of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit prosecuted the case.
Malden Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Trying to Hire Contract Killer to Murder His WifeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Malden man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for attempting to hire a contract killer – who was actually an undercover federal agent – to murder his then-wife.
Massimo Marenghi, 57, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs to 120 months in prison and three years of supervised release. On March 16, 2023, Marenghi pleaded guilty to one count of murder-for-hire.“Domestic violence is a truly haunting reality that is far too pervasive in our society. At its core, that is what the prosecution of Mr. Marenghi was all about. He was looking to engage in the most extreme form of domestic violence by plotting the murder of his wife. While the vast majority of domestic violence situations do not involve the federal criminal law, when this office has an opportunity to hold people accountable for this type of despicable conduct, we will spare no effort in prosecuting such offenders,” said Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy.
“Massimo Marenghi plotted to kill his wife and went to great lengths not to get caught. Thankfully, his plot was thwarted because the person he thought was a contract killer was in fact an undercover FBI Special Agent,” said Christopher DiMenna, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. “Mr. Marenghi’s conduct in this case was truly horrific, and today’s sentence is just. It is our hope the victim in this case can rest easier knowing that he will spend the next decade behind bars.”
In January 2021, an individual reported to law enforcement that Marenghi had complained about his then-wife seeking a restraining order against him. Marenghi asked the individual for assistance in killing his wife. At the direction of federal agents, the individual introduced Marenghi to an undercover agent who posed as a contract killer. Later that month, Marenghi met with the undercover agent and sought help to “eliminate” his problem. Marenghi provided the undercover agent with a photograph of his then-wife’s residence and explained how to evade detection by cameras while approaching the residence.
On Jan. 29, 2021, Marenghi again met with the undercover agent and discussed moving forward with the killing of his wife, providing a $1,500 cash deposit for the murder. Marenghi explained that the sooner the “demolition job” took place, the sooner he would be able to pay the balance owed. He also provided a photograph of his then-wife, the color, model and license plate number of her car, the hours of operation of her place of business and a schedule indicating when he would have custody of his children, which he said would be the “best time for the construction work to start.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Levy and FBI Acting SAC DiMenna made the announcement today. The Malden Police Department provided valuable assistance with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Deitch of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
Justice Department Advances Proposed Rule to Strengthen Web and Mobile App Access for People with DisabilitiesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department sent to the Federal Register for publication a notice of proposed rulemaking under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that aims to improve web and mobile applications (apps) access for people with disabilities and clarify how public entities – primarily state and local governments – can meet their existing ADA obligations as many of their activities shift online.
Across the United States, people routinely rely on web and mobile apps to access a variety of vital public programs and services like employment and educational resources, voting information, health and emergency services, parking, and transit schedules. The proposed rule is particularly significant in the wake of the pandemic, as public entities have significantly increased the scope of essential services and programs offered through the web and mobile apps. It is critical for these technologies to be accessible for people with disabilities.
“This marks the first time in the history of the Americans with Disabilities Act that the Justice Department has issued a proposed rule on website accessibility,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This proposed rule seeks to ensure that Americans with disabilities have equal access to the websites and apps that connect them to essential services provided by state and local governments.”
“This proposed rule, which is the culmination of years of work and collaboration, is a historic moment for the Justice Department,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “It will help enshrine the right of Americans with disabilities to access critical information needed to lead safe, productive, and prosperous lives.”
“This proposed rule marks a significant milestone in the Justice Department’s efforts to advance accessibility in the digital sphere,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This groundbreaking moment makes clear our commitment to eradicating the barriers faced by people with disabilities and affording equal access to online government programs and services that people around the country depend on every day. We will continue to use every tool available to ensure that people with disabilities are provided full access to the digital town square.”
As state and local governments continue to move more of their programs and activities online – from applying for permits to checking the status of service requests, registering vehicles, and paying taxes and fees – ensuring that people with disabilities have equal access to these same services is essential. When websites and mobile apps are not accessible, they can be difficult or even impossible for people with disabilities to use. This can block people with disabilities from readily accessing important government services and programs that others can quickly and easily obtain online.
The Department is eager to hear from the public and get input from relevant stakeholders on the regulatory proposal set forth in our forthcoming proposed rule. The proposed rule will soon be available for review on the Federal Register’s website at www.federalregister.gov. A fact sheet that provides information about the proposed rule will soon be available on www.ada.gov. The Department invites the public to submit their comments on the proposed rule once it is published. The comment period will be open for 60 days from the date the proposed rule is published. Public comments can be submitted on www.regulations.gov.
For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit the Department’s website. For more information on the ADA, please call the Department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit the ADA website.
Joint Statement from Mexico and the United States on Shared Efforts to Combat Illicit Fentanyl, Disrupt Arms Trafficking, and Humanely Manage MigrationRead the Press Release
On July 24, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and senior Government of Mexico officials hosted a U.S. delegation led by Homeland Security Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco, Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Kristie Canegallo, and Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Rich Verma to further the significant cooperation that our countries already have undertaken, including on the global fight against illicit fentanyl and dual-use chemical substances, combatting arms trafficking, managing migration, and modernizing our shared border. This meeting built on previous high-level meetings led by Dr. Sherwood-Randall and Security Secretary Rosa Icela Rodríguez.
The leaders discussed our commitment to continuing joint efforts under the U.S.-Mexico Bicentennial Framework for Security, Public Health, and Safe Communities to combat drug traffickers, disrupt the supply of the chemicals used to make illicit fentanyl, prevent trafficking of these deadly narcotics across our shared border, and promote public health services to reduce harm and demand and increase treatment services. Our countries also recognize that discovering, disrupting, and dismantling firearms trafficking networks is critical to our shared efforts to combat illicit fentanyl, and we remain committed to addressing firearms trafficking that contributes to violence and destruction on both sides of our shared border.
The leaders also discussed the challenges and progress in cooperation regarding regional migration and committed to continue to forge a region-wide response, guided by the principles in the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection. To that end, the United States and Mexico committed to further expand the availability of legal pathways throughout the region, including to Mexico and the United States. Leaders also discussed expanding our joint development work in Central America, and maintaining strong consequences for irregular entry at our shared border.
Finally, the United States and Mexico committed to furthering ongoing work to modernize and advance infrastructure projects that support our border communities and benefits both nations and strengthens our bilateral relationship and security.
Globe Metallurgical to Pay $2.6 Million Fine, Implement Extensive Emissions Controls and Limit Sulfur Inputs to Reduce Pollution from Industrial Furnaces in OhioRead the Press Release
Globe Metallurgical, Inc. has agreed to a consent decree that would require it to pay a $2.6 million civil penalty, implement an estimated $6.5 million in new and improved air pollution emissions controls and limit the sulfur content of inputs in its metal production process to settle alleged violations of the Clean Air Act (CAA) at a ferroalloy production facility in Beverly, Ohio. Emissions of air pollutants, such as the sulfur dioxide (SO2) and particulate matter (PM) emitted from Globe’s operation of five electric arc furnaces, may cause adverse environmental and health impacts, including lung disorders such as asthma and bronchitis.
According to the six-count complaint, filed simultaneously with the settlement today in the Southern District of Ohio, Globe allegedly violated CAA requirements following the expansion of one of its furnaces, including a failure to assess best available pollution control technology for the modified furnace and failure to demonstrate compliance with regulations applicable to ferroalloy production plants. The United States also alleged that Globe had a history of excessive emissions of PM from the facility in violation of its existing permits.
“The extensive measures required by today’s settlement will reduce pollution and help prevent future violations of the Clean Air Act, ensuring that the citizens of Southeast Ohio have cleaner air to breathe,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This case demonstrates that the Department of Justice will work tenaciously to hold accountable companies that violate federal environmental law.”
“This settlement requires Globe to take substantial steps to reduce emissions of harmful air pollutants from industrial furnaces at its Beverly, Ohio facility,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “The result will be cleaner, healthier air for neighboring communities.”
“Compliance with regulations requiring upgrades to aging industrial facilities are critical when protecting health and the environment,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker for the Southern District of Ohio. “The Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency are vigilantly ensuring compliance with the Clean Air Act and other environmental laws.”
In addition to paying a penalty, Globe will now be required to utilize coal and other materials with a specified reduced-sulfur content to limit the generation of harmful SO2 emissions. Globe will also take significant steps to reduce emissions of PM, including construction of an additional pollution control baghouse, and implementation of physical improvements to equipment and changes to operational practices to reduce emissions of PM both from stacks and directly to the atmosphere from equipment. Globe will also be conducting extensive testing and implementing significantly enhanced monitoring of air pollutants to ensure ongoing compliance.
The consent decree also brings the Globe facility’s pollution control obligations up to date with environmental regulations that post-date the plant’s construction, including stricter limits on PM and carbon monoxide emissions.
The consent decree is subject to a 30-day comment period and final approval by the court. A copy of the consent decree is available on the Justice Department web site at www.usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html.
The Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Enforcement Section is prosecuting this case in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio and EPA Region 5
Final Defendant Sentenced in Multi-State Dogfighting RingRead the Press Release
The final defendant prosecuted as part of an extensive investigation into a dogfighting and drug distribution network was sentenced for his crimes in federal court.
Herman Tyrone Washington, 51, of Highland Springs, Virginia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne for the Eastern District of Virginia to serve 46 months in prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. Washington pleaded guilty to conspiracy to participate in an animal fighting venture and possession of a pitbull-type dog for the purpose of having the animal participate in an animal fighting venture. As a condition of his supervised release, Washington is prohibited from owning or possessing dogs or their reproductive cells.
Washington was the last of seven individuals charged in this conspiracy. Collectively, the individuals were sentenced to a total of 534 months’ imprisonment, and each will serve a multi-year period of supervised release. Like Washington, the other defendants are prohibited from owing or possessing dogs during their supervised release.
“Dogfighting is not a sport, it’s a brutal crime against animals who rarely escape death unless liberated by law enforcement,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The lengthy sentences faced by Washington and others who conspired in this dogfighting ring illustrate that those who seek to profit from the suffering of animals face significant prison time.”
“The inhumane treatment of animals, especially ones bred to be companions for humans is not only strictly illegal, but deeply cruel,” said U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia. “We have sought significant sentences in this case because the mistreatment of animals is a serious crime born of malicious intent. These dogs deserved better.”
“Dog-fighting is an extremely violent and abhorrent activity that profits from the abuse and neglect of animals. With today’s sentence, these criminals will be served justice for profiting from this abuse,” said Special Agent in Charge Stanley M. Meador of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Richmond Field Office.
“This successful prosecution is the result of a multi-year investigation and a fantastic example of long term, effective cooperation between local, state and federal resources. Dog fighting is a serious, cruel offense that often is connected to additional narcotic and gun crimes. I’m proud of my team’s role and hard work that contributed to justice being served,” said Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares.
According to information in the public record, in 2019, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) began investigating several individuals in connection with a drug investigation. Through a court authorized electronic surveillance of co-conspirator’s Kenneth Otey’s phone, law enforcement officers analyzed over 400 conversations between the co-conspirators discussing their involvement and participation in dogfighting activities over two months. The ensuing investigation revealed that between December 2017 and August 2021, the conspirators organized contract matches (an agreed-upon fight negotiated by two parties for dogs of a specific weight and gender to take place on a set date, with an established purse and forfeit) and roll fights (a short fight between two dogs to test the dogs’ fighting abilities, usually for the purpose of sport and entertainment). They also transported dogs in Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina to participate in dog fights; bred and trained dogs to fight; and at least one of the conspirators killed losing dogs by drowning them in buckets of water. The conspirators used private messaging applications, including Meta and Telegram, to communicate with other people including to coordinate fights and post videos of fights and training techniques. They collectively sponsored an animal in or attended at least 100 dog fights during the conspiracy.
In November and December 2020, law enforcement executed six residential search warrants and seized 93 dogs that were being used in connection with the dogfighting criminal organization. The Court found the animal fighting venture to involve extraordinary cruelty and to be of exceptional scale.
The following co-conspirators have been convicted and sentenced in this prosecution:
Kenneth L. Otey, Jr., 48, of Richmond, Virginia, was sentenced to a total term of 300 months’ imprisonment to be followed by 5 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to two drug offenses, a firearm offense, and conspiracy to participate in an animal fighting venture.
Connell Samuel Stukes, Sr., 49, of Rembert, South Carolina, was sentenced to a total term of 63 months’ imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to participate in an animal fighting venture and possession of a pit bull-type dog for purpose of having the animal participate in an animal fighting venture.
Raymond Johnson, 42, of Richmond, Virginia, was sentenced to a total term of 37 months’ imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to a firearm offense and conspiracy to participate in an animal fighting venture.
Jerome Donte Smith, 35, of Richmond, Virginia, was sentenced to a total term of 37 months’ imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to participate in an animal fighting venture and sponsoring an animal in an animal fighting venture. At the time of his offense conduct, Smith was on supervised release in connection with a prior federal drug conviction.
Antonio Thomas Ruffin, 55, of Baltimore, Maryland, was sentenced to a total term of 36 months’ imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to transporting a pit bull-type dog for purpose of having the animal participate in an animal fighting venture and possession of an animal for the purpose of having the animal participate in an animal fighting venture.
Royal Washington, 51, of Charles City, Virginia, was sentenced to a term of 15 months’ imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to participate in an animal fighting venture.
The FBI, DEA, and the Office of the Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Virginia investigated the case. Special thanks go to United States Marshal Service, FBI – Baltimore Field Office, Virginia Animal Fighting Task Force, Richmond Animal Care and Control, the Henrico County Police Division, Sussex Virginia Sheriff’s Office, Baltimore Police Department, Baltimore Animal Services and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
Trial Attorneys Banumathi Rangarajan and William J. Shapiro of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen E. Anthony of the Eastern District of Virginia prosecuted the case.