The Department will monitor the primary elections on June 1, 2010, in Cibola and Sandoval Counties, N.M., to ensure compliance with the minority language requirements of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and other federal voting rights statutes.

Brian Thomas Smith, of Gainesville, Fla., was sentenced today to 42 months in prison and a lifetime of supervised release following his prison term for attempted possession of child pornography and obstruction of justice.

Houston-area physician Dr. Howard Grant and Houston residents Clinton Lee and Obisike Nwankwo were convicted late Wednesday by a federal jury in connection with their roles in a multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme.

The June 25 public workshop in Madison, Wis., is the third in a series of five joint public workshops and will examine competition and regulatory issues in the dairy industry.

The Department will monitor elections on June 8, 2010, in the following jurisdictions to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and other federal voting rights statutes: Riverside County, Calif.; Middlesex County, N.J.; and Charles Mix and Shannon Counties, S.D.

The U.S. Trustee Program has successfully resolved litigation against Countrywide Home Loans Inc. in its ongoing efforts to protect homeowners in bankruptcy.

Andrew Warren, 42, a former official with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), pleaded guilty today to a two-count criminal information charging him with abusive sexual contact and unlawful use of cocaine while possessing a firearm.

Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Kathleen Sebelius today sent a letter to state attorneys general urging them to work with HHS and federal, state and local law enforcement officials to mount a substantial outreach campaign, beginning this summer, to educate seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries about how to prevent scams and fraud.

Selective Structures L.L.C. pleaded guilty and was sentenced today for illegally storing hazardous waste at its facility in Athens, Tenn.

The agreement was reached under Project Civic Access (PCA), the department's wide-ranging initiative to ensure that cities, towns and counties throughout the country comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The agreement was reached under Project Civic Access (PCA), the department’s wide-ranging initiative to ensure that cities, towns and counties throughout the country comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

A federal grand jury in San Francisco returned a superseding indictment against AU Optronics Corporation, its Houston-based American subsidiary and six of its executives for participating in a conspiracy to fix prices of TFT-LCD panels.

The Department of Justice has reached a settlement that will require Amcor Ltd. to divest a North Carolina plant used in the development, production and sale of certain bags used for medical purposes in order to proceed with its acquisition of the Alcan Packaging Medical Flexibles business from Rio Tinto plc.

The Department has reached a consent decree with the township of Green Brook, N.J., that, if approved by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, will resolve the department’s lawsuit against Green Brook alleging racial discrimination in employment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended.

The Justice Department today announced that it will monitor the municipal election on June 15, 2010, in the village of Port Chester, N.Y., to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

A federal court in Columbia, S.C., has permanently barred Winston Able of Blythewood, S.C., from preparing federal income tax returns for others.

The United States filed False Claims Act counterclaims against Saehan Bank and crossclaims against Steve Yong Kim and Young Soon Kim in the Northern District of Oklahoma.

Two U.S. citizens charged in connection with the operation of a series of fraudulent business opportunities were arrested today in Costa Rica following their indictment by a federal grand jury in Miami on March 9.

For the first time in its history, the Department of Justice today observed June 15 as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day to raise awareness about the vulnerability of the elder population to abuse and violence.

The city of Columbus, Ind., has agreed to pay $24,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that the city had discriminated against a group home for persons recovering from drug and alcohol addiction, in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act.

Benjamin Haskell, 23, of Springfield, Mass., pleaded guilty to a superseding information charging him with two crimes related to the burning of the Macedonia Church of God in Christ, a predominantly African-American church in Springfield.

The United States filed a False Claims Act suit against R&J Feed Co., Jerry Goodwin, Richard Carter and Carter Livestock Inc. in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo.

The Department has filed a stipulated settlement agreement resolving a portion of its lawsuit against Erie County, N.Y, regarding the limited issue of suicide prevention and related mental health care.

The Department will monitor the municipal election on June 19, 2010, in Galveston, Texas, to ensure compliance with the requirements of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

"I believe our criminal defense system can, and will, become a source of tremendous national pride. I look forward to working with you all in achieving this goal. And I am grateful for your guidance, your engagement, and for your commitment," said Attorney General Holder.

The Justice Department today announced that it has reached an agreement with Morton’s of Chicago/Portland Inc. to settle allegations that it required two non-citizens authorized to work in the United States to present more documents than legally required to establish their work eligibility.

The Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today the agenda and panelists for the June 25 workshop examining competition in the dairy industry.

"With your help and engagement, we’re working to ensure that the Justice Department lives up to its responsibility to provide a work environment where every employee is respected and given an equal opportunity to thrive," said Attorney General Holder.

As part of the Obama Administration’s launch of the first-ever Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement, Attorney General Eric Holder today emphasized the Department of Justice’s ongoing commitment to protecting U.S. intellectual property as central to America’s economic prosperity and public safety.

The Williamsport, Pa., Sanitary Authority (WSA) has agreed to make significant improvements to its combined sewer system at an estimated cost of approximately $10 million, in order to resolve long-standing problems with combined sewer overflows to the Susquehanna River, which flows to the Chesapeake Bay.

Puerto Rico Senator Hector Martinez Maldonado and Juan Bravo Fernandez, the former president of one of the largest private security firms in Puerto Rico, have been charged in an indictment returned today by a federal grand jury in Puerto Rico for their alleged roles in a bribery scheme involving legislation beneficial to Bravo Fernandez’ business.

Thomas Gleason, 22, of Springfield, Mass., pleaded guilty to a superseding information charging him with two crimes related to the burning of the Macedonia Church of God in Christ, a predominantly African-American church, in Springfield on the morning after President Barack Obama was elected as the first African-American President of the United States.

Darwin Kenneth Morgan and his company, D.K. Morgan Consolidated LLC, have agreed to pay $680,000 in monetary damages and civil penalties to settle a Fair Housing Act lawsuit alleging that Morgan discriminated against African-Americans and sexually harassed female tenants and prospective tenants at Morgan Mobile Home Parks in Bloomingdale, Ga.

– Seven Houston-area residents who worked for a home health agency have been charged for their alleged participation in a $5 million Medicare fraud scheme.

"In the recent past, including many miles on the campaign trail, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know our First Lady," said Attorney General Holder.

"As we emerge from this recession, it is critical that we not only look for ways to hold those who discriminated in the past accountable. We must also find ways to repair some of the damage done to families and to communities. We must use the power of the law to encourage innovative strategies for rebuilding, and be sure that decades of investment have not been permanently lost," said Assistant Attorney General Perez.

The workshop explores the appropriate role for antitrust and regulatory enforcement in the dairy industry.

The Department announced a comprehensive settlement agreement with the town of Gretna, Va., under the Americans with Disabilities Act to eliminate barriers for providers of foster care services who wish to provide community placements in their homes for persons with disabilities. 

A federal jury in Chicago convicted former Chicago Police Department (CPD) Commander Jon Burge, 60, of Apollo Beach, Fla., on perjury and obstruction charges related to his denials that he participated in the torture of suspects in police custody decades ago.

Juan Javier Cardenas was charged in a three-count indictment returned today by a federal grand jury in Miami with conspiracy to buy, sell and use stolen credit card information.

Attorney General Eric Holder met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Minister of Justice Habibullah Ghalib and Attorney General Mohammad Ishaq Aloko today to discuss the department’s ongoing efforts to foster the rule of law in Afghanistan.

Eric Jon Eisenhower was arraigned in federal court in Alexandria, Va., on an indictment that alleges that he failed to collect, account for and pay over to the Internal Revenue Service more than $200,000 in withholdings from employees’ paychecks between 2004 and 2008.

The owners and operators of Ivanhoe House Apartments, an apartment complex in Ann Arbor, Mich., have agreed to pay $82,500 to settle a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department alleging that they had discriminated against African-American home-seekers, in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

Steven Jinwoo Kim, 40, of Houston pleaded guilty on Nov. 16, 2009, to one count of intentionally accessing a protected computer without authorization and recklessly causing damage.

The Department of Justice challenged the state of Arizona’s recently passed immigration law, S.B. 1070, in federal court today. The Department said the Arizona law unconstitutionally interferes with the federal government’s authority to set and enforce immigration policy.

The lawsuit alleged that the Fitchburg Housing Authority and Hill violated the Fair Housing Act by adopting and implementing policies that denied tenants with disabilities other than mobility impairments the opportunity to transfer between apartments within Fitchburg’s public housing neighborhoods.

The Department filed a lawsuit against Garland Sales Inc., a rug manufacturer and seller located in Dalton, Ga., alleging it engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination by imposing unnecessary and discriminatory hurdles to employment for work authorized individuals.

Ten individuals pleaded guilty today in Manhattan federal court to conspiring to serve as unlawful agents of the Russian Federation within the United States and will be immediately expelled from the United States.

The Justice Department announced today that it will monitor the primary runoff elections on July 13, 2010, in Barbour, Lee and Russell Counties, Ala., to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The United States has asked a federal court to permanently bar a Utah man from promoting an alleged false church-based tax fraud scheme.