The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced today the establishment of a National Commission on Forensic Science as part of a new initiative to strengthen and enhance the practice of forensic science.

Lender Processing Services Inc. (LPS), a publicly traded mortgage servicing company based in Jacksonville, Fla., has agreed to pay $35 million in criminal penalties and forfeiture to address its participation in a six-year scheme to prepare and file more than 1 million fraudulently signed and notarized mortgage-related documents with property recorders’ offices throughout the United States.

Vice President Joe Biden and Attorney General Eric Holder today awarded the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor to 18 public safety officers who exhibited exceptional courage in saving and protecting others and whose heroic actions were above and beyond the call of duty.

"We’re here to recognize 18 extraordinary individuals for their quick thinking, selflessness, and exceptional courage. They are law enforcement and corrections officers and firefighters who went beyond the call of duty to risk – and in some cases, to give – their lives for their fellow citizens and colleagues," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Leary.

"Consumer advocates like NCL are the front line for so many consumers who have been defrauded and just don’t know where to turn. Like its predecessor, the Fraud Center, the new site will make it easier for consumers to report potential fraud or misrepresentation, and for law enforcement organizations, like the Civil Division, to do something about it," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Delery.

"When food or drug manufacturers lie and cut corners, they put all of us at risk. The Department of Justice will not hesitate to pursue any person whose criminal conduct risks the safety of Americans who have done nothing more than eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Delery.

"In fact, this initiative constitutes a significant step forward in fostering increased levels of engagement with these partners and with Congress, in establishing a productive partnership between the Department of Justice and NIST, and in strengthening our ability to realize the goals and priorities that we all share," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tyrangiel.

The Department of Justice announced today that the government has joined a civil lawsuit alleging that Lance Armstrong, Johan Bruyneel and Tailwind Sports LLC and Tailwind Sports Corporation submitted or caused the submission of false claims to the U.S. Postal Service in connection with its sponsorship of a professional bicycle racing team by regularly employing banned substances and methods to enhance their performance, in violation of the USPS sponsorship agreements.

Pacific International Lines, a Singapore-based container ship company, was sentenced today in D.C. federal court under the terms of a plea agreement that requires the company to pay $2.2 million in criminal penalties.

William P. Danielczyk Jr. and Eugene R. Biagi pleaded guilty today to reimbursing $186,600 in contributions to the Senate and Presidential campaign committees of a candidate for federal office.

The operator of a California-based tax consulting business has been convicted by a federal jury in Fresno, Calif. for impersonating an aide to a U.S. Congressman in order to deceive a client.

Today President Barack Obama granted pardons to the following seventeen individuals.

"From reducing gun violence and confronting a range of public safety challenges, to expanding access to legal services, addressing disparities and divisions, and reaching for the ideals – of equality, opportunity, and justice – that have always defined the best in our profession, each of you will soon step into a future that is far from certain, in a world riven by uncommon challenges and evolving threats," said Attorney General Holder.

"At its core, this is the struggle exemplified in the moment we remember today, when – in the first days of March, 1965, hundreds of peaceful activists, protesting to secure the right to vote, set out from Selma along the road to Montgomery," said Attorney General Holder.

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

"But ultimately, our success will come, not because the federal government removes red tape, or improves policy, or even provides more funding; no, our success will come because those with the greatest stake in the outcome – local leaders, community and faith groups, and citizens – they take action," said Acting Associate Attorney General West.

"Although there is still much work to be done, the United States has made significant strides in developing effective community responses to intimate partner violence that has stolen far too many promising futures – and shattered far too many lives," said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

Following a four-day jury trial in Baton Rouge, La., a federal jury convicted Angela Myers today of wire fraud, making false claims, subscribing to false tax returns and aggravated identity theft.

The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced today that the deadline for submitting written comments on their recent Patent Assertion Entity Activities Workshop has been extended from March 10, 2013 to April 5, 2013.

Hungarian nationals Beatrix Boka and Aleksandar Kunkin were sentenced today to serve 36 months and 48 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in moving approximately $550,000 in illicit proceeds derived from an international online marketplace fraud scheme.

"We have made protecting consumers a centerpiece of the Department’s overall anti-fraud efforts because consumer fraud affects ordinary people every day and can devastate victims," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Delery.

After a thorough review of the proposed transaction, the Antitrust Division has determined that the combination of T-Mobile and MetroPCS is unlikely to harm consumers or substantially lessen competition and has closed its investigation.

Vice President Joe Biden and Attorney General Eric Holder today announced grants to 12 programs across the country to target the urgent need to reduce domestic violence homicides.

Bruce King, the founder and operator of Premier Tax, was sentenced today in Montgomery, Ala., to 70 months in prison and ordered to pay $781,305 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service for orchestrating a tax fraud scheme at his business.

The Justice Department announced today that it has opened a pattern or practice investigation into use of force by the Cleveland Division of Police.

A former web producer for a Tribune Company-owned television station in Sacramento, Calif., was charged today in an indictment for allegedly conspiring with members of the hacker group “Anonymous” to hack into and alter a Tribune Company website.

"Our investigation into CPD’s use of force practices will be thorough, fair and independent. We will follow the facts, wherever the facts. We will peel the onion to its core, and leave no stone unturned," said Assistant Attorney General Perez.

Former Congressional candidate Justin Lamar Sternad pleaded guilty today in Miami to violating the Federal Election Campaign Act during his 2012 campaign.

"This Hall symbolizes the fusion of two core principles here at the Department: Our respect for the majesty of the law, represented by the figure on your right; and our conviction that law’s proper role is in the service of justice, portrayed by the figure on your left," said Acting Associate Attorney General West.

"Today – together – it’s time to declare, once again, that this is unacceptable – and unworthy of a legal system that stands as an example for all the world. It’s time to reclaim Gideon’s petition – and resolve to confront the obstacles facing indigent defense providers. Most of all, it’s time to speak out – with one voice – to rally our peers and partners at every level of government and the private sector to this important cause," said Attorney General Holder.

Executives at two Arlington, Va.-based businesses have pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining more than $31 million in government contract payments that should have gone to disadvantaged small businesses.

"As technology continues to advance, ECPA’s importance to both criminal and civil law enforcement will only increase," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tyrangiel.

Sean Rosales pleaded guilty in Miami federal court to one count of an indictment pending against him, charging conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.

"It has indeed changed – but it has not changed as much as we would like, or as indigent defendants need, to achieve justice," said Acting Senior Counselor Leff.

"The Department is engaged in efforts across the country to break down barriers to opportunity for America’s schoolchildren, and to ensure that school is a road to success, not a pipeline to prison," said Prinicpal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Samuels.

A federal jury in Montgomery, Ala., found James Timothy Turner, also known as Tim Turner, guilty late Friday of conspiracy to defraud the United States, attempting to pay taxes with fictitious financial instruments, attempting to obstruct and impede the Internal Revenue Service, failing to file a 2009 federal income tax return and falsely testifying under oath in a bankruptcy proceeding.

The Department of Justice today filed a motion to dismiss its antitrust lawsuit against Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan after the state of Michigan passed a law that prohibits health insurers from using most favored nation clauses in contracts with health care providers.

The Department of Justice today declined to state its enforcement intentions regarding the implementation of a proposal submitted by IPXI Holdings LLC and its wholly-owned subsidiary Intellectual Property Exchange International Inc. (IPXI) to develop an exchange for the trading of unit license rights (ULRs) to sets of patents.

Honeywell Resins and Chemicals LLC has agreed to pay a $3 million civil penalty for alleged Clean Air Act violations at its Hopewell, Va., plant, and improve the facility’s air pollution control equipment and processes.

Justin D. Schoenauer, 41, also known as Corey J. Schoenauer, a resident of Twin Falls County, Idaho, was sentenced late yesterday in U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho to 27 months in prison for income tax evasion.

Kenny McLaughlin, 35, a corrections officer at the Stone County Regional Facility in Stone County, Miss., pleaded guilty today in federal court to ordering the beating of an inmate at the detention facility.

An indictment against former Jefferson Parish, La., Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Hebert, 48, was announced today by Roy L. Austin Jr., Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division; Dana J. Boente, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana; Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI New Orleans Field Office; and Sheriff Newell Normand from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office.

The owner and the director of nursing of a Louisiana home health agency were each convicted late Friday for conspiring to defraud Medicare of $17.1 million.

A federal jury in Detroit today convicted a home health agency owner and a physical therapist for their participation in a $2.3 million Medicare fraud scheme.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and European Commission Vice President Viviane Reding met today in Washington, D.C. They had cordial discussions on a wide range of fields of collaboration between the Department of Justice and the European Commission.

Charges were unsealed today against four former executives of BizJet International Sales and Support Inc., the U.S.-based subsidiary of Lufthansa Technik AG, which provides aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services, for their alleged participation in a scheme to pay bribes to government officials in Latin America.

Shusen Wei, 45, a citizen of China, pleaded guilty today in Miami federal court to charges stemming from his involvement in the smuggling of a carved rhinoceros horn from the United States to China.

A former Los Angeles resident, who fled to Canada and was a federal fugitive for 12 years, pleaded guilty today to aggravated identity theft and bankruptcy fraud in connection with leading a nearly 15-year foreclosure-rescue scam that fraudulently postponed foreclosure sales for more than 800 distressed homeowners.

The founder and president of the National Association of Special Police and Security Officers (NASPSO) was sentenced to 76 months in prison today for stealing union treasury and pension funds.

With the annual tax filing deadline approaching on April 15, the Justice Department today announced highlights of its work during the past year to defend and enforce the nation’s tax laws