Category: Legal Issues

Source: United States Department of Justice

A former Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP) Corrections Officer, Robert D. Smith, 38, pleaded guilty today in federal court to one count of sexual abuse of a ward.

“Today, Robert Smith pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a woman in his custody, in violation of the law and his sworn duty as a Federal Bureau of Prisons officer,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “This prosecution is the latest example of the Justice Department holding to account those who exploit their positions of authority within the Federal Bureau of Prisons and working to eliminate sexual assault from our prison systems.”

“When officials inside our jails and prisons carry out acts of sexual violence against vulnerable women in their custody, they will be held accountable,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “There is zero tolerance for corrections officers who misuse their authority to commit egregious sex crimes, and that rule applies equally to those who work at federal prisons. The Justice Department will continue to aggressively prosecute sexual predators in correctional settings, while standing up for the civil rights of the survivors of these heinous crimes.”

“As today’s guilty plea demonstrates, the Office of the Inspector General is committed to ensuring that Federal Bureau of Prisons employees who exploit their power and authority to sexually abuse inmates are brought to justice and held accountable for their heinous acts,” said Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz of the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General (DOJ-OIG).

“Sexual abuse of prison inmates by federal corrections officers is intolerable,” said U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona for the Northern District of Alabama. “My office will continue to aggressively prosecute and bring to justice those who abuse their authority and prey on vulnerable people they are sworn to protect and keep safe.”

According to court documents, Smith worked as a corrections officer at the Federal Correctional Institution in Aliceville (FCI-Aliceville), Alabama. As part of his duties, Smith was to ensure the safety and security of inmates housed at FCI-Aliceville and to uphold the U.S. Constitution.

While acting in his capacity as an officer, in or around February 2019, Smith knowingly engaged in a sexual act with T.M., a female inmate in official detention, who was under Smith’s custodial, supervisory, or disciplinary authority. Smith also admitted to sexually abusing another inmate on a different occasion. Also while acting in his capacity as an officer, between on or about July 6, 2018, and Nov. 15, 2018, Smith knowingly engaged in a sexual act with R.R-L., a female inmate in official detention, who was under Smith’s custodial, supervisory, or disciplinary authority.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 29. Smith faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

DOJ-OIG investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Royster for the Northern District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Anna Gotfryd of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case.

FBOP is committed to rooting out misconduct within its ranks and working with law enforcement partners to prosecute violations of federal law. The numerous FBOP employees working diligently to ensure justice for the victims of misconduct are critical to the Department’s reform efforts.

Source: United States Department of Justice

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today commemorates National Human Trafficking Prevention Month and renews its commitment to prosecuting human traffickers, protecting victims, empowering survivors, and preventing the proliferation of these abhorrent crimes.

In recognition of Human Trafficking Prevention Month, the Justice Department reaffirms that vindicating the rights of human trafficking victims and other vulnerable persons ranks among its highest priorities. The Department remains resolute in its commitment to bringing the full force of the Department to the fight against human trafficking.

“The Department launched our National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking to bring the full force of the Department to the fight against human trafficking,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Since then, we’ve taken sustained steps forward to make our anti-trafficking efforts stronger than ever. We have brought human traffickers to justice, dismantled trafficking enterprises, and empowered survivors to rebuild their lives. I am proud of the progress the Department has made. But there is still much more work left to do.”

“Human trafficking is a vicious crime, one where the traffickers reap the profits and the victims bear the scars,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “While we recognize Human Trafficking Prevention Month as an annual reminder of the importance of this fight, the women and men of the Justice Department are working 365 days a year to dismantle trafficking organizations, bring traffickers to justice, and empower survivors.”

“Human trafficking deprives exceptionally vulnerable people of their rights to freedom, dignity, and equal protection of the law. Too often, human trafficking crimes go undetected because victims are afraid to come forward, so they remain in the shadows, fearful of defying their traffickers’ demands,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Civil Rights Division remains relentless in our pursuit of justice for victims and survivors of these intolerable offenses. We must continue to build trust in vulnerable communities so those who are endangered, exploited, compelled, or coerced can safely come forward and share their personal testimonies. We will continue to honor and empower survivors and amplify their voices as we work to detect hidden trafficking crimes, hold human traffickers accountable, vindicate the rights of vulnerable victims, and secure justice for survivors.”  

The Justice Department’s National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking sets forth a comprehensive, multi-year strategy to enhance Department-wide efforts to combat all forms of human trafficking. Actions in 2023 to implement this National Strategy and to advance all aspects of the Department’s broad-based anti-trafficking mission include:

• Designation by the Attorney General of a National Human Trafficking Coordinator and a National Child Exploitation Coordinator to coordinate Department-wide and interagency implementation of strategies for countering human trafficking and child exploitation threats, respectively. 
• Establishment of a Human Trafficking Working Group of U.S. Attorneys through the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee of U.S. Attorneys and its Civil Rights Subcommittee.
• Formation of a specialized Human Trafficking Program Management Team within the FBI’s Crimes Against Children and Human Trafficking Unit to develop and disseminate expertise and training on victim-centered, trauma-informed anti-trafficking strategies to FBI Field Offices nationwide and enhance coordination of human trafficking investigations, prosecutions, and victim services.
• Implementation of the revised Attorney General Guidelines for Victim and Witness Assistance, including delivery of survivor-informed training to all relevant Department personnel on enhanced protections for vulnerable victims and specialized issues impacting human trafficking victims.
• Training of all Department Immigration Judges on detecting human trafficking victims and indicators in immigration-related proceedings through the Executive Office for Immigration Review.
• Expanded efforts to combat forced child labor, including:
  • Leadership of the interagency Forced Labor Initiative Steering Group in conducting strategic assessments of forced child labor threats and guiding criminal forced labor investigations and prosecutions in relevant jurisdictions;
  • Participation in the interagency Child Labor Exploitation Task Force and issuance of guidance to all Office for Victims of Crime grantees, in collaboration with the Department of Labor, on identifying, assisting, and referring victims of forced child labor and child labor exploitation; and
  • Introduction of resolutions on combating forced child labor to the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime Working Group on Trafficking in Persons
• Sustained efforts to combat child sex trafficking, including through:
  • Release of the Department’s 2023 National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction;
  • Operations conducted by the FBI and federal, state, local, and Tribal partners over a two-week period that identified and located 59 missing children and 59 victims of potential federal or state sex trafficking, sexual exploitation, or related offenses, as well as 126 suspects and 141 potential adult victims of such offenses; and
  • Issuance of an Office on Violence Against Women Training and Technical Assistance grant to implement the Building Capacity to Serve Youth Survivors of Sex Trafficking Project; youth sex trafficking grantees and service providers; deliver youth-centered, survivor-informed expertise; and enhance outreach to traditionally underserved youth populations including BIPOC, LGBTQI+, migrant youth, and youth with disabilities.
• Enhanced responses to human trafficking impacting Tribal communities through training, technical assistance, and coordination among Tribal, territorial, federal, state, local, and non-governmental partners, including through the Tribal Consultation on Violence Against American Indian and Alaska Native Women; Not Invisible Act Commission; National Indian Country Training Initiative; and Strengthening Sovereign Responses to Sex Trafficking in Indian Country and Alaska program.
• Issuance of over $95 million in grant funding through the Department’s Office for Victims of Crime, as the largest federal funder of services for human trafficking victims and survivors, including grant funding for direct services and legal services and training and technical assistance to enhance grantees’ capacity to provide services to labor trafficking victims.
• National Institute of Justice-funded research and evaluation studies to inform evidence-based best practices involving multidisciplinary task forces, victim services, and responses to emerging forced labor and forced criminality threats.
• Continued collaboration among U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity and Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Sections to secure convictions, substantial sentences, and significant restitution awards in a wide range of human trafficking prosecutions nationwide.

Anyone who has information about a potential human trafficking situation or a person who may be experiencing human trafficking should contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or text 233733.

Information on the Justice Department’s work to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.

Source: United States Department of Justice

The Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against Shevis “Don” Petties of Moore, Oklahoma, for sexually harassing female tenants in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Petties has owned, operated or managed residential rental properties in Oklahoma City, Forest Park, and Moore, Oklahoma, since at least 2016.

“These women lived in fear every day that their landlord would enter their bedroom unannounced, film them in the bathroom, make lewd comments about their bodies and appearance and grope them,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to enforcing federal civil rights laws to ensure landlords are held accountable for unlawful and predatory behavior.”

“Tenants have the right under federal fair housing laws to be free from unwanted sexual harassment and intimidation by their landlord in order to obtain or maintain housing,” said U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester for the Western District of Oklahoma. “Today’s civil complaint represents a significant step in the Justice Department’s efforts to pursue justice and compensation for vulnerable female victims who have been subjected to civil rights violations.”

The lawsuit alleges that Petties subjected female tenants to unwelcome sexual contact and comments about their physical appearances; physically assaulted tenants; entered tenants’ bedrooms without consent; photographed and filmed female tenants in their bedrooms and bathrooms without their knowledge and permission and demanded that female tenants engage in sexual acts with him under threat of losing their housing. The lawsuit also names the current owners of the rental properties, TMH Group Inc, The Monarch House LLC, also known as Monarch House LLC, and Exceptional Service Company LLC as defendants.

The lawsuit seeks money damages to compensate women harmed by the alleged harassment, a fine for the United States and a court order prohibiting future acts of discrimination and harassment.

The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and familial status. It also prohibits sexual harassment, a form of sex discrimination. Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of sexual harassment at rental properties owned or operated by Petties, or who have other information that may be relevant to this case, may contact the Justice Department by calling its Sexual Harassment in Housing Initiative at 1-844-380-6178, or by calling the U.S. Attorney’s Office at 405-553-8700.

The Justice Department’s Sexual Harassment in Housing 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 works, loan officers and other people who have control over housing. Since launching the initiative in October 2017, the department has filed 38 lawsuits alleging sexual harassment in housing and recovered nearly $11 million for victims of such harassment. The Civil Rights Division is committed to protecting people from sexual misconduct.

More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt. Individuals may report discrimination in housing that violates the Fair Housing Act by calling the Justice Department at 1-833-591-0291, or submitting a report online.

View the complaint here.

Source: United States Department of Justice

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division convened a meeting yesterday with the heads of civil rights offices and senior officials from multiple federal agencies to discuss the critical intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and civil rights as directed by President Biden’s Executive Order on the Safe, Secure and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence.

In her opening remarks, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke detailed the division’s comprehensive approach to address the potential impact of AI on civil rights through enforcement, education and outreach, interagency coordination and policy. She highlighted the division’s joint statement with federal partners explaining AI’s potential impact on civil rights, fair competition, consumer protection and equal opportunity and our collective commitment to combating unlawful use of AI systems. She also noted the division’s guidance explaining how algorithms and AI can lead to disability discrimination in hiring and the important work of the division’s internal AI Civil Rights Working Group.

During the meeting, attendees discussed their efforts to safeguard civil rights through robust enforcement, policy initiatives and ongoing education and outreach. Agency representatives explored ways to leverage shared resources to address discrimination or other adverse situations that may arise through the use of AI and other advanced technologies. Participants also provided updates on their respective obligations under the executive order, which include developing and issuing policies, guidance and other resource documents on the application of existing federal civil rights and consumer protection laws to the use of AI in areas such as education, employment, healthcare, housing and credit. All participants highlighted the importance of educating the public about how AI and similar systems can violate federal protections and the need to develop holistic remedies to address those harms.

Attendees at the interagency convening included Chair Charlotte Burrows of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Director Rohit Chopra of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Director of Civil Rights Melanie Fontes Rainer of the Department of Health and Human Services and Officer for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia of the Department of Homeland Security. Additional officials participated from the following agencies: the Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of Education, Department of Energy, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of the Interior, Department of Labor, Department of Transportation, Department of the Treasury, Federal Trade Commission and Social Security Administration.

All of the participants pledged to continue collaboration to protect the American public against any harms that might result from the increased use and reliance on AI, algorithms and other advanced technologies. The agencies also agreed to partner on external stakeholder engagement around their collective efforts to advance equity and civil rights in AI.

Source: United States Department of Justice

A Maryland man was sentenced today to two years in prison, along with three years of supervised release, for making death threats and other calls for violence against a group that advocates for LGBTQI+ people.

According to the evidence presented by the government at today’s sentencing hearing, Adam Michael Nettina, 34, of West Friendship, also sent threatening messages to Maryland and Virginia state delegates due to their support of transgender people.

“This defendant targeted and threatened members of the LGBTQI+ community and their allies, instilling fear and promoting violence toward a heavily targeted community,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This sentence underscores the Justice Department’s commitment to combating threats against public officials and protected communities. We will work tirelessly to expunge the growing threat posed by bias-motivated acts of violence directed at the LGBTQI+ community and their allies.”

“You have the right to your own opinions, but you don’t have the right to threaten the lives of those who disagree with you. As this case demonstrates, free speech does not include violent threats against others,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron for the District of Maryland. “We’ll continue prosecuting these threats to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Threats of violence made against people and organizations to instill fear will not be tolerated,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock of the FBI Baltimore Field Office. “The FBI will continue to work diligently to ensure the civil rights of all Americans are protected.”

According to court documents, on the evening of March 28, 2023, the victim organization received a threatening voicemail from a phone number, which investigators identified as belonging to Nettina. The message referenced the March 27, 2023, mass shooting at a school in Nashville, Tennessee, involving multiple shooting fatalities, where police identified the perpetrator as a transgender woman. During the call, numerous threats were made including, “…we’ll cut your throats. We’ll put a bullet in your head…You’re going to kill us? We’re going to kill you 10 times more in full.”

Nettina admitted that he left this voicemail for the purpose of issuing a threat and with the knowledge that the voicemail would be viewed as a threat. Further, Nettina intentionally selected the advocacy organization as a target of his message because of the actual and perceived gender, gender identity and sexual orientation of the people who work at and are assisted by the organization.

As detailed in his plea agreement, on March 31, 2022, a Maryland State Delegate posted a message of support on social media in honor of Trans Day of Visibility. Nettina responded on social media later that same day, which stated, among other things, that he had “begun the formal process of getting you excommunicated…” from the Catholic Church. On Nov. 8, 2022, the delegate was reelected. Nettina sent the delegate another message on social media, stating: “…Baby killing terrorist. Enjoy hell…You’re going sooner than you think.”

Finally, as outlined in the court documents, on Oct. 13, 2022, an online news story was published about an interview a Virginia State Delegate gave in which she advocated for the prevention of abuse towards transgender children. Two days later, on Oct. 15, 2022, Nettina sent an email to the delegate’s press email account, stating: “The delegate is a terrorist. You are a terrorist. You deserve to be shot and hung in the streets. You want to come after people? Let’s go b**ch.” Nettina also sent a similar message to another email address of the delegate two minutes later. Nettina intentionally selected the delegate and her campaign staff as the recipient of his email because of the actual and perceived gender, gender identity and sexual orientation of the people and constituents for whom the delegate had expressed support.

The FBI Baltimore Field Office investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow for the District of Maryland and Trial Attorney Tara Allison of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case.

For more information about the department’s work to combat and prevent hate crimes, visit www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.

Source: United States Department of Justice

The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) arrested 73,362 fugitives (28,065 on federal and 45,297 on state and local warrants) in fiscal year (FY) 2023. On average, the agency arrested 293 fugitives per day (based on 250 operational days).

“The Justice Department is laser-focused on driving down violent crime by using data and intelligence to go after the individuals most responsible for it,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “By arresting the nation’s most violent fugitives in communities with the highest violent crime rates, the U.S. Marshals Service is making our communities safer.”

“I am proud of the dedication displayed by the men and women of the U.S. Marshals Service, whose efforts continue to drive our mission forward,” said USMS Director Ronald Davis. “I cannot underscore enough, the importance of our partnerships with our state, local, federal, Tribal, and international agencies who are pivotal in accomplishing our collective achievements.”

FY 2023 Arrest Statistics:

• Sex offenders – 10,088 (Sex offenses include sexual assault, failure to register/noncompliance with the national sex offender registry, and other offenses.)
• Gang members – 3,496
• Homicide suspects – 5,447
• International/foreign fugitives – 1,487 (A foreign fugitive is wanted by a foreign nation and believed to be in the United States.)
• Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program fugitives – 1,051 (OCDETF cases combine the resources and expertise of numerous federal agencies to target drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.)
• Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act (AWA) violations – 287 (AWA categorizes sex offenders into a three-tiered system based on the crime committed and requires offenders to maintain their registration information accordingly. For example, Tier 3 offenders – the most serious – must update their whereabouts every three months with lifetime registration requirements.)
• “15 Most Wanted” fugitives – four

The USMS seized more than 4,731 firearms during numerous violence reduction and counter gang operations in FY 2023.

The total warrants cleared by USMS arrest: 86,388[1]

• State and local warrants – 57,280
• Federal warrants – 29,108

Major Operations

In January 2023, the USMS conducted Operation North Star II (ONS II), a 30-day initiative resulting in the arrest of 833 fugitives, violent criminals, sex offenders, and self-identified gang members in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Buffalo, New York; Cleveland; Columbus, Ohio; Detroit; Jackson, Mississippi; Kansas City, Missouri; Milwaukee; Oakland, California; and Puerto Rico. USMS used its broad arrest authority and network of task forces to arrest individuals wanted on charges including 95 for homicide and 68 for sexual assault. In addition, investigators seized 181 firearms, more than $229,000 in currency, and more than 160 kilograms of illegal narcotics.

From March to May 2023, the USMS, along with state and local agencies in 16 federal judicial districts and geographical locations across the United States, led a 10-week national operation that resulted in the recovery or safe location of 225 endangered missing children, which includes runaways and those abducted by non-custodial persons. Operation We Will Find You was a nationwide missing child operation focused on geographical areas with high clusters of critically missing children. With technical assistance from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Operation We Will Find You resulted in the recovery of 169 children and the safe location of 56 children.

During the summer of 2023, the USMS conducted Operation North Star III (ONS III), arresting 4,455 fugitives. The operation targeted violent offenders in 20 cities and resulted in the clearance of 2,818 violent warrants, to include homicide, forcible sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and firearms violations. During this three-month enforcement effort, investigators also seized 555 firearms, more than $1 million in U.S. currency, and 85 kilograms of illegal narcotics. The primary jurisdictions of ONS III were Albuquerque, New Mexico; Baltimore; Buffalo, New York; Chicago; Cleveland; Columbus, Ohio; Detroit; Houston; Indianapolis; Jackson, Mississippi; Kansas City, Missouri; Los Angeles; Memphis, Tennessee; Milwaukee; New Orleans; New York; Oakland, California; Philadelphia; Puerto Rico; and Washington, D.C.

The USMS Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, District of Maryland, and Task Force partners conducted a large-scale, multi-agency law enforcement operation focused on apprehending violent fugitives and wanted gang members throughout the month of May 2023, arresting dozens of violent offenders throughout Maryland. Operation Washout resulted in a total of 95 fugitive arrests, including 17 suspects wanted for homicide, 16 wanted for attempted homicide, 19 wanted for robbery, and seven wanted for weapon-related offenses. Six validated gang members were among those arrested. Additionally, law enforcement seized 10 firearms, 72 pounds of marijuana, 78 grams of crack cocaine, six grams of heroin, and $3,200 in currency.

Notable Arrests in FY 2023

On Jan. 13, 2023, Michael Anthony Baltimore, 44, a fugitive on the USMS 15 Most Wanted list was arrested in Broward County, Florida, after he fled the scene of a bar fight. Baltimore was wanted by the Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Police Department and the USMS in the Middle District of Pennsylvania for homicide, assault, and parole violation charges. Baltimore is alleged to have shot to death Kendell Jerome Cook and injured another man at the GQ Barbershop on North Hanover Street in Carlisle on May 22, 2021. 

On Aug. 13, 2023, USMS personnel assisted in the manhunt and capture of Danilo Cavalcante, 34, who had escaped from a Pennsylvania prison days after being sentenced to life in prison without parole in the fatal stabbing of his ex-girlfriend. The manhunt went on for 14 days until he was caught near South Coventry Township, Pennsylvania.

On Aug. 29, 2023, the USMS, along with West Virginia State Police, Lewisburg Police Department, and Greenbrier County Sheriff’s Office, arrested Samuel Paul Hartman, 39, in Lewisburg, West Virginia. Hartman had escaped from an Arkansas prison facility in 2022, after being sentenced to life in prison in 2013 for sexually assaulting his 14-year-old stepdaughter. He escaped on a work detail in a field near the detention facility. Also taken into custody were Hartman’s wife, Misty Hartman, 39, his mother, Linda Annette White, 61, and White’s boyfriend, Rodney Trent, 52, of Lester, West Virginia. Both women are alleged to have helped Hartman escape using a pickup truck and jet skis. Trent faces felony charges for allegedly harboring a sex offender and for assisting the trio while on the run.

On May 10, 2023, the USMS-led Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force arrested Cherie Goss, 42, on charges of attempted first-degree murder. Goss was wanted by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, after charges were filed against her in early April. The USMS was able to track her to Stark County, Ohio, where she was arrested.

On Sept. 27, 2023, the USMS arrested Jason Billingsley, 32, a suspect in the murder of tech CEO Pava LaPere, 26. Billingsley, a convicted felon and registered sex offender, was taken into custody near Bowie, Maryland, with the assistance of local law enforcement agencies.

On Sept. 27, 2023, the USMS North Star Fugitive Task Force, Dakota County Sheriff’s SWAT, and the Minnesota Department of Corrections arrested Kevin Lamarr Mason, 28, after he had been erroneously released from the Marion County Jail in Indiana on Sept. 13 on a clerical mistake. The prisoner release created a massive manhunt stretching nationwide and eventually back to where he was wanted in Minnesota.

Finding Missing Children

In FY 2023, the USMS assisted in the location or recovery of 495 missing children. Since the passage of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, the USMS has contributed to the location or recovery of more than 3,248 missing children.

Additional information about the USMS can be found at www.usmarshals.gov.

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[1] The number of warrants cleared nearly always exceeds the number of arrests in a given year because fugitives are often wanted on numerous warrants, and a single arrest can clear them all at once.

Source: United States Department of Justice

The Justice Department, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), California Air Resources Board (CARB) and California Attorney General’s Office today released the details of a proposed settlement with diesel engine maker Cummins Inc. for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act and California law. Beyond agreeing to pay a $1.675 billion civil penalty – the largest ever assessed in a Clean Air Act case – Cummins has agreed to spend more than $325 million to remedy the violations, which included the use of software “defeat devices” that circumvented emissions testing and certification requirements.

Under the settlement, Cummins must complete a nationwide vehicle recall to repair and replace the engine control software in more than 600,000 RAM 2500 and RAM 3500 pickup trucks equipped with the company’s diesel engines. Cummins will also extend the warranty period for certain parts in the repaired vehicles, fund and perform projects to mitigate excess ozone-creating nitrogen oxides (NOx) emitted from the vehicles and employ new internal procedures designed to prevent future emissions cheating. In total, the settlement is valued at more than $2 billion.

NOx pollution contributes to the formation of harmful smog and fine particulate matter in air. Children, older adults, people who are active outdoors and people with heart or lung diseases are particularly at risk for health effects related to smog or particulate matter exposure. Nitrogen dioxide formed by NOx emissions can aggravate respiratory diseases, particularly asthma, and may also contribute to asthma development in children. 

“The Justice Department is committed to vigorously enforcing environmental laws that protect the American people from harmful pollutants,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland.  “The types of devices we allege that Cummins installed in its engines to cheat federal environmental laws have a significant and harmful impact on people’s health and safety. This historic agreement makes clear that the Justice Department will be aggressive in its efforts to hold accountable those who seek to profit at the expense of people’s health and safety.”

“Today’s agreement, which includes the largest-ever Clean Air Act civil penalty, stands as notice to manufacturers that they must comply with our nation’s laws, which protect human health and the health of our environment,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We appreciate the work of our partners, the EPA and the State of California, in helping us reach this significant settlement.”

“Today’s landmark settlement is another example of the Biden-Harris administration working to ensure communities across the United States, especially those that have long been overburdened by pollution, are breathing cleaner air,” said EPA Administrator Michael Regan. “Today we‘ve reaffirmed that EPA’s enforcement program will hold companies accountable for cheating to evade laws that protect public health.”

“Cummins installed illegal defeat devices on more than 600,000 RAM pickup trucks, which exposed overburdened communities across America to harmful air pollution,” said Assistant Administrator David M. Uhlmann of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “This record-breaking Clean Air Act penalty demonstrates that EPA is committed to holding polluters accountable and ensuring that companies pay a steep price when they break the law.” 

“Cummins knowingly harmed people’s health and our environment when they skirted state emissions tests and requirements,” said California Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Today’s settlement sends a clear message: If you break the law, we will hold you accountable. I want to thank our federal and state partners for their collective work on this settlement that will safeguard public health and protect consumers across the country.”

“The collaboration between California and its federal partners makes it clear that companies will be held accountable for violating essential environmental laws that are in place to provide the clean air that communities across California and the nation want and deserve,” said CARB Executive Officer Dr. Steven Cliff. “California’s air quality regulations protect public health and are backed by a world-class emissions testing laboratory that ensures CARB’s enforcement efforts are rigorously supported with data and science, which CARB was pleased to contribute to this landmark case.” 

Background

As in prior cases against other manufacturers, EPA discovered defeat devices in Cummins engines used in RAM pickup trucks through testing at the agency’s National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory. That testing of RAM trucks was done as follow-up on a 2015 EPA warning to manufacturers that the agency planned to conduct special testing to identify defeat devices using driving cycles and conditions that were non-standard, but still reflected normal vehicle operation and use.

The terms of the proposed settlement with Cummins are spelled out in two consent decrees that the United States and California filed today with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In a related set of complaints filed today, the United States and California allege that nearly a million model year 2013-2023 RAM 2500 and RAM 3500 pickup trucks with Cummins diesel engines utilized undisclosed engine control software features, and more than 630,000 of those trucks made in model years 2013-2019 had illegal emissions control software defeat device features. Those software defeat devices helped the trucks pass standard EPA emissions tests, but they artificially reduced the effectiveness of the emission controls – and increased NOx emissions – during normal driving outside of the standard test conditions. 

Recall and Repair Program

Cummins sought all EPA and CARB emission certifications for the RAM trucks equipped with its engines, even though the trucks were sold by the RAM truck division of Fiat Chrysler and its dealers. The settlement requires Cummins to work with Fiat Chrysler and its dealers on a vehicle recall and repair program that will remove all defeat devices from the affected 2013-2019 RAM trucks free of charge and bring the vehicles into compliance with applicable emissions standards under the Clean Air Act. The repair only involves software updates. Cummins has already started the recall and repair program required by the settlement.

Cummins must repair at least 85% of the 2013-2019 RAM trucks equipped with defeat devices within three years. The company must offer a special extended warranty covering emission control system parts on 2013-2019 RAM trucks that receive the replacement software. Cummins also must test some of the repaired trucks over a number of years to ensure that the trucks continue to meet emissions standards over time. 

Mitigation Programs

As another requirement of the settlement, Cummins must fully offset the excess NOx emissions from the 2013-2019 RAM trucks that were equipped with defeat devices. For California, Cummins will make a lump sum payment to CARB of slightly more than $175 million to fund mitigation actions or projects that reduce NOx emissions in California through CARB mitigation programs. For the rest of the country, Cummins will secure offsetting NOx reductions by working with railroad locomotive owners on two types of locomotive emission reduction projects. First, Cummins will finance and ensure the replacement of 27 old, high-emitting diesel locomotive engines with new, low-emitting diesel or electric engines. Second, Cummins will fund and complete 50 projects that will reduce idling time for diesel-powered switch locomotives to reduce fuel usage and emissions of NOx, particulate matter, volatile organic compounds and carbon dioxide. 

Public Information and Public Comment

This EPA website offers additional information concerning the settlement:

https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/2024-cummins-inc-vehicle-emission-control-violations-settlement

The complaints and the proposed consent decrees in the related cases filed by the Justice Department’s Environment Enforcement Section and the State of California can be viewed on the Justice Department’s website at www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. The proposed consent decree in the case filed by the United States is subject to a 30-day public comment period.

Source: United States Department of Justice

SAP SE (SAP), a publicly traded global software company based in Germany, will pay over $220 million to resolve investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

SAP’s resolution with the department stems from schemes to pay bribes to government officials in South Africa and Indonesia. The department’s resolution is coordinated with prosecutorial authorities in South Africa, as well as with the SEC.

According to court documents, SAP entered into a three-year deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the department in connection with a criminal information filed in the Eastern District of Virginia charging the company with two counts: conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery and books and records provisions of the FCPA relating to its scheme to pay bribes to South African officials, and conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery provision of the FCPA for its scheme to pay bribes to Indonesian officials.

“SAP paid bribes to officials at state-owned enterprises in South Africa and Indonesia to obtain valuable government business,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Today’s resolution—our second coordinated resolution with South African authorities in just over a year—marks an important moment in our ongoing fight against foreign bribery and corruption. We look forward to continuing to strengthen our relationship with South African authorities and others around the world. This case demonstrates not only the critical importance of coordinated international efforts to combat corruption, but also how our corporate enforcement policies incentivize companies to be good corporate citizens, by cooperating with our investigations and appropriately remediating, so that we can take strong action to address misconduct.”

“SAP has accepted responsibility for corrupt practices that hurt honest businesses engaging in global commerce,” said U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia. “We will continue to vigorously prosecute bribery cases to protect domestic companies that follow the law while participating in the international marketplace.”

According to court documents, SAP and its co-conspirators made bribe payments and provided other things of value intended for the benefit of South African and Indonesian foreign officials, delivering money in the form of cash payments, political contributions, and wire and other electronic transfers, along with luxury goods purchased during shopping trips. Specifically, with respect to South Africa, between approximately 2013 and 2017, SAP, through certain of its agents, engaged in a scheme to bribe South African officials and to falsify SAP’s books, records, and accounts, all with the goal of obtaining improper advantages for SAP in connection with various contracts with South African departments, agencies, and instrumentalities, including the City of Johannesburg, the City of Tshwane, the Department of Water and Sanitation (a South African state-owned and state-controlled custodian of water services), and Eskom Holdings Limited (a South African state-owned and state-controlled energy company).

“This successful resolution against SAP is another example of the power of relationships and persistence,” said Assistant Director in Charge Donald Always of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “The sustained diligence by the prosecution team and continuous collaboration with South African law enforcement, regulators, and prosecutors identified corrupt activity in multiple countries. The FBI will continue our nonstop efforts to identify, investigate, and prosecute companies willfully engaging in corrupt activities around the world.”

In addition, between approximately 2015 and 2018, SAP, through certain of its agents, engaged in a scheme to bribe Indonesian officials to obtain improper business advantages for SAP in connection with various contracts between and among SAP and Indonesian departments, agencies, and instrumentalities, including the Kementerian Kelautan dan Perikanan (the Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries) and Balai Penyedia dan Pengelola Pembiayaan Telekomunikasi dan Informatika (an Indonesian state-owned and state-controlled Telecommunications and Information Accessibility Agency). 

“When the mails are used in furtherance of a fraud or corruption scheme, borders are not an obstacle for U.S. Postal Inspectors,” said Postal Inspector in Charge of Criminal Investigations Eric Shen. “Postal inspectors, with our FBI law enforcement partners and Justice Department prosecutors, followed the wide-spread trail of bribes and corruption from South Africa to Indonesia. This joint effort resulted in the defendant company paying a significant criminal penalty and agreeing to long-term remedial measures.”

Pursuant to the DPA, SAP will pay a criminal penalty of $118.8 million and administrative forfeiture of $103,396,765. SAP will also continue cooperating with the department in any ongoing or future criminal investigation arising during the term of the DPA. In addition, the department will credit up to $55.1 million of the criminal penalty against amounts that SAP pays to resolve an investigation by law enforcement authorities in South Africa for related conduct. The department will credit up to the full forfeiture amount against disgorgement that SAP pays to the SEC or South African authorities.

Under Part I of the Criminal Division’s March 2023 Compensation Incentives and Clawbacks Pilot Program, SAP’s compliance obligations include a commitment to implementing criteria relating to compliance in the company’s compensation and bonus system, subject to local labor laws. Under Part II of the Pilot Program, the department reduced the criminal penalty by $109,141 for compensation that SAP withheld from qualifying employees, which action the company defended in substantial litigation.

The department reached this resolution with SAP based on a number of factors, including, among others, the nature and seriousness of the offense. SAP received credit for its cooperation with the department’s investigation, which included (i) immediately beginning to cooperate after South African investigative reports made public allegations of the South Africa-related misconduct in 2017 and providing regular, prompt, and detailed updates to the department regarding factual information obtained through its own internal investigation, which allowed the government to preserve and obtain evidence as part of its independent investigation; (ii) expeditiously producing relevant documents and other information to the department from multiple foreign countries, while navigating foreign data privacy and related laws; (iii) at the request of the department, voluntarily making company officers and employees available for interviews; (iv) taking significant affirmative steps to facilitate interviews while addressing witness security concerns; (v) raising and resolving potential deconfliction issues between SAP’s internal investigation and the investigation being conducted by the department; (vi) promptly collecting, analyzing, and organizing voluminous information, including complex financial information, at the request of the department; (vii) translating voluminous foreign language documents to facilitate and expedite review by the department; and (viii) imaging the phones of relevant custodians at the beginning of SAP’s internal investigation, thus preserving relevant and highly probative business communications sent on mobile messaging applications.

SAP also engaged in timely remedial measures, including: (i) conducting an analysis of the root causes of the underlying conduct and gap analysis, and undertaking appropriate remediation to address those root causes and enhance its compliance program; (ii) undertaking a comprehensive risk assessment focusing on high risk areas and controls around payment processes and enhancing its regular compliance risk assessment process, including by incorporating comprehensive operational and compliance data into its risk assessments; (iii) eliminating its third-party sales commission model globally, and prohibiting all sales commissions for public sector contracts in high-risk markets; (iv) significantly increasing the budget, resources, and expertise devoted to compliance and restructuring its Offices of Ethics and Compliance to ensure adequate stature, independence, autonomy, and access to executive leadership; (v) enhancing its code of conduct and policies and procedures regarding gifts, hospitality, and the use of third parties; (vi) enhancing its reporting, investigations, and consequence management processes; (vii) adjusting compensation incentives to align with compliance objectives and reduce corruption risk; (viii) enhancing and expanding compliance monitoring and audit programs, planning, and resources, including developing a well-resourced team devoted to audits of third-party partners and suppliers; (ix) expanding its data analytics capabilities to cover over 150 countries, including all high-risk countries globally; and (x) promptly disciplining any and all employees involved in the misconduct.

In light of these considerations as well as SAP’s prior history, which include a non-prosecution agreement from 2021 with the department’s National Security Division, as well as administrative agreements with the Departments of Commerce and the Treasury relating to export law violations, and a resolution in 2016 with the SEC concerning alleged FCPA violations in Panama, the criminal penalty calculated under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines reflects a 40% reduction off the tenth percentile above the low end of the otherwise applicable guidelines fine range.   

The FBI’s International Corruption Unit and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys William E. Schurmann, Anthony Scarpelli, and Gwendolyn A. Stamper and Assistant Chief Jonathan P. Robell of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Heidi B. Gesch for the Eastern District of Virginia are prosecuting the case.

The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and authorities in South Africa provided assistance in this matter.

The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.

Source: United States Department of Justice

Clinical laboratory RDx Bioscience Inc. (RDx), of Kenilworth, New Jersey, and its owner and Chief Executive Officer Eric Leykin, of Brooklyn, New York, have agreed to pay to the United States $10,315,023 to resolve False Claims Act allegations involving illegal kickbacks and medically unnecessary laboratory testing. RDx and Leykin will pay an additional $2,934,977 to the State of New Jersey, which jointly funded claims paid by the New Jersey Medicaid program. RDx and Leykin have agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department’s investigations of, and litigation against, other participants in the alleged schemes.

“Regardless of how they are disguised, kickbacks for laboratory referrals are illegal and can corrupt medical providers’ decision making and subject patients to expensive and unnecessary testing,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “We will hold accountable individuals and entities who participate in kickback schemes that harm taxpayers and threaten the integrity of federal healthcare programs.”

The Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits offering, paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration to induce referrals of items or services covered by Medicare, Medicaid and other federally funded healthcare programs. The Anti-Kickback Statute is intended to ensure that medical providers’ judgments are not compromised by improper financial incentives and are instead based on the best interests of their patients. Claims that are knowingly submitted in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute are ineligible for payment and can violate the False Claims Act. 

The settlement announced today resolves allegations concerning five types of kickbacks paid to induce referrals to RDx for laboratory testing. First, from 2018 to 2022, RDx and Leykin allegedly paid commissions based on the volume and value of Medicare and Medicaid referrals to independent contractor marketers to arrange for and recommend that healthcare providers order RDx laboratory tests. Second, from 2018 to 2022, RDx marketer Corum Group LLC allegedly paid healthcare providers thousands of dollars in purported management services organization (MSO) payments, which were disguised as investment returns but actually were offered to induce the providers to order RDx laboratory tests. Third, from 2017 to 2023, RDx marketers BeauMed Consultants LLC and Ralston Health Group Inc. allegedly paid thousands of dollars to healthcare providers that were disguised as consulting or medical director fees but were actually offered to induce orders, among other things, for RDx laboratory tests. Fourth, from 2019 to 2020, RDx marketer Seaworthy Recovery Services Inc. allegedly paid thousands of dollars in kickbacks to one or more principals of certain substance abuse recovery centers to induce their referrals to RDx for laboratory testing. Fifth, RDx and Leykin allegedly paid specimen collection fees to the staff members of referring healthcare providers to induce those providers to order RDx laboratory testing. The settlement resolves allegations that RDx and Leykin billed or caused Medicare and Medicaid to be billed for the tests despite paying or knowing of these kickbacks.

In addition, from 2017 to 2023, RDx and Leykin allegedly submitted or caused false claims to be submitted to Medicare and Medicaid for laboratory tests that were not reasonable and necessary; not covered because they were identical orders of urine drug testing panels for all patients within a clinician’s practice without individualized decision-making; or not covered because they were improperly duplicative of other claims for urine drug testing for the same date of service, the same patient, and the same drugs.

“Kickbacks have no place in our healthcare system,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip R. Sellinger for the District of New Jersey. “Patients need to trust that health care referrals are made in their best interests, not in the interests of lining someone else’s pockets. We have pursued and will continue to pursue laboratories that enter into unlawful financial arrangements that waste taxpayer dollars and improperly influence healthcare providers.”

“This settlement demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that health care providers are not permitted to induce referrals, thereby causing unnecessary medically testing,” said Special Agent in Charge Naomi Gruchacz of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG).  “The defendants in this case disguised payments, which is a violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute.”

The settlement was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, with assistance from HHS-OIG.

Senior Trial Counsel Christopher Terranova of the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kruti Dharia for the District of New Jersey handled the settlement.

The United States has recovered over $46 million relating to conduct involving MSO kickbacks to healthcare providers, including False Claims Act settlements with 43 physicians, three laboratories, five medical practices, three healthcare executives and one office manager.

The government’s pursuit of these matters 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 HHS at 1-800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).

The claims resolved by the settlements are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Source: United States Department of Justice

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta announced the release of a new publication, Considerations for Specialized Units: A Guide for State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies to Ensure Appropriateness, Effectiveness, and Accountability, commissioned in the wake of the killing of Tyre Nichols and amid mounting public concern over the use of specialized units in police agencies. The guide is designed to support law enforcement agencies and communities across the country as they assess the appropriateness of the use of specialized units, and, where units are deemed appropriate, ensure the necessary management and oversight of such units to advance effective and just policing practices.

The guide is the result of a series of convenings, roundtable discussions, and interviews with law enforcement, civil rights organizations, and other stakeholders, led by the Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) and the National Policing Institute (NPI). It provides law enforcement leaders, mayors, and community members with actionable considerations for the formation, management, and accountability of specialized units.

“After the tragic death of Tyre Nichols and public scrutiny of the SCORPION unit, we made it a priority at the Justice Department to develop a practical resource for law enforcement and community leaders assessing the use of specialized units in police agencies,” said Associate Attorney General Gupta. “We hope that police chiefs, mayors, and community stakeholders will use the guide when considering whether a specialized unit should be formed to focus on a particular problem, and, if formed, how to ensure proper transparency, oversight, accountability, and evaluation of such units. The Justice Department is grateful for the engagement of law enforcement and community stakeholders that helped make this vital resource a reality.”

The guide looks at four main stages of specialized units: (1) formation, (2) personnel selection and supervision, (3) management and accountability, and (4) community engagement. Each section of the guide offers key considerations for agencies as they are creating or reviewing their own specialized units. If law enforcement and the community determine that a law enforcement response is required to address a problem and that standard patrol units are unable to effectively address the concern, this publication offers actionable guidance for defining the specialized unit’s mission and culture, hiring the most suitable personnel and supervisors, developing innovative unit and personnel performance metrics, and establishing policies and practices to mitigate the risks of specialized units.

“This guide is based on input from representatives from law enforcement, the community, academic institutions, and advocacy organizations across the country,” said Director of the COPS Office Hugh T. Clements, Jr. “I feel confident this guide will help both law enforcement and the communities they serve to demonstrate and uphold the principles of effective, constitutional policing.”

The report is available at www.portal.cops.usdoj.gov/resourcecenter?item=cops-r1140.