The Justice Department announced today it has entered into a consent decree with Pierce County, Wash., that, if approved by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, will resolve allegations that the county discriminated against a female employee by retaliating against her in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII is a federal statute which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin or religion and protects employees who file complaints under any of those bases.

Richard Stewart, a resident of Mitchellville, Md., was sentenced to 24 months in prison and ordered to pay $5,414,647 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus for failing to pay over employment taxes in connection with his ownership of Montgomery Mechanical Services, the Justice Department and IRS announced today.

Richard Bonafiglia, 58, of Providence, R.I., an admitted associate of the New England La Cosa Nostra was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Providence today to 84 months in federal prison for his participation in a racketeering conspiracy to shakedown several Rhode Island adult entertainment businesses for protection money.

A federal jury today convicted two Miami-area doctors, one Miami-area therapist and two others for their participation in a Medicare fraud scheme involving more than $205 million in fraudulent billings by American Therapeutic Corporation (ATC), a mental health care corporation.

On June 1, 2012, after a two-week trial in federal court in Los Angeles, a jury found David James Garrison, 50, guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, six counts of health care fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Stockholm-based Autoliv Inc. has agreed to plead guilty for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices of seatbelts, airbags and steering wheels installed in U.S. cars to one automobile manufacturer and a separate conspiracy to fix prices of seatbelts to another.

F. Harvey Whittemore, 55, of Reno, Nevada, was charged with one count of making excessive campaign contributions, one count of making contributions in the name of others and two counts of making a false statement to a federal agency.

Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West today joined U.S. Attorney Michael W. Cotter and Vice-Chairman of the Crow Nation Calvin Coolidge Jefferson to announce a multi-agency collaboration with tribal governments to establish sexual assault response teams (SARTs) in the six Montana reservations under federal jurisdiction.

"We hope that establishing SART teams on every Montana reservation will bring healing and justice to victims of sexual violence – the kind of help that will also strengthen the faith and confidence that native women have in their criminal justice system," said Acting Associate Attorney General West.

The Justice Department announced today the filing of a complaint in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina against Forsyth County, N.C., and the county sheriff, William T. Schatzman, for violating the employment rights of North Carolina Army National Guard soldier Michael Russell under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).

The Justice Department announced today that it has moved to intervene in Hawkins, et al. v. Summit County, Ohio, et al., a private lawsuit alleging sex discrimination by Summit County, Ohio, and the Summit County Sheriff, as well as other defendants. The United States’ complaint in intervention alleges that the county and sheriff discriminated against twenty female deputy sheriffs who filed charges of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and other similarly-situated female deputies because of their sex and engaged in a pattern or practice of sex discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Shaun Kuykendall, 32, of South Carolina; Richard Szulborski, 21, of Pennsylvania; Javahn Algere, 23, of Louisiana; and Jeremy Labrec, 22, of Texas, pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson.

"Protecting taxpayer dollars is one of the Attorney General’s core priorities. This includes a commitment to increase our efforts to reduce fraud at the outset," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Delery.

Paul Solofa, the former chief financial officer for the Department of Education for the government of the U.S. Territory of American Samoa was sentenced today to 35 months in prison following his conviction earlier this year for his efforts to obstruct a federal grand jury and law enforcement investigation into a bribery scheme.

"Yet – if, as they say, what’s past is prologue – and if this class’s record of achievement is any indication – then I believe there is good reason for confidence in the future that your generation will create, and the legacy of progress that each of you will carry forward – and build upon," said Attorney General Holder.

Leyanes Placeres, 32, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Patricia A. Seitz in the Southern District of Florida.

ING Bank N.V., a financial institution headquartered in Amsterdam, has agreed to forfeit $619 million to the Justice Department and the New York County District Attorney’s Office for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA) and for violating New York state laws by illegally moving billions of dollars through the U.S. financial system on behalf of sanctioned Cuban and Iranian entities.

Haji Bagcho, an Afghan national and large scale drug trafficker, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle in the District of Columbia.

The Department of Justice announced today that it has filed a lawsuit against the state of Florida and the Florida Secretary of State in his official capacity alleging that the state has violated its obligations under Section 8 of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.

Former Fort Deposit, Ala., Police Officer Carlos Tyson Bennett was arrested today on charges of stealing money from motorists on Interstate 65 in central Alabama and subsequently trying to conceal his criminal activity, announced the Justice Department.

Edward “Eddy” Lato, 65, of Providence, R.I., an admitted capo regime in the New England La Cosa Nostra (NELCN), was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Providence today to 108 months in federal prison for participating in racketeering extortion conspiracies of several Rhode Island adult entertainment businesses and of a car salesman and his wife.

"At the Department of Justice, we are fully engaged in combating human trafficking, with many components deeply involved in this fight," said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

"This coordinated approach to finding solutions involves more than just enforcement -- we must also direct our efforts to prevent the occurrence of crime in the first place, provide support through intervention programs, and provide individuals reentering our communities from jails and prisons with the tools they need to succeed and turn away from crime," said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

Derrick L. Shoemake, 50, of Moreno Valley, Calif., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Dolly M. Gee in the Central District of California.

R. Allen Stanford, the former board of directors chairman of Stanford International Bank (SIB), was sentenced today in Houston to a total of 110 years in prison for orchestrating a 20-year investment fraud scheme in which he misappropriated $7 billion from SIB to finance his personal businesses.

Seven individuals and four check cashing businesses were charged today in the Eastern District of New York and the Central District of California for their alleged roles in separate schemes to violate the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).

The Justice Department announced that it has reached an agreement with Grayson County, Va., that will allow for the county and its four political subdivisions, the Grayson County School District and the towns of Independence, Fries and Troutdale, Va., to bail out from their status as “covered jurisdictions” under the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act, and thereby exempt these jurisdictions from the preclearance requirements of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. The agreement is in the form of a consent decree filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and must be approved by the court.

Andrew James Miller, 23, of Devon, Penn., was arrested this morning on charges contained in a four-count indictment filed in the District of Massachusetts.

"So as we continue to bring our law enforcement tools to bear to investigate, prosecute and punish elder abuse perpetrators, we at the Department also know that the most effective elder abuse case is the one we prevent," said Acting Associate Attorney General West.

David Kalai, Nadav Kalai and David Almog were indicted by a federal grand jury in the Central District of California and charged with conspiring to defraud the United States, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. The superseding indictment, which was returned late yesterday, was unsealed following the defendants’ arrests.

The owner of a southern California-based mesquite charcoal distributor pleaded guilty for his role in a customer allocation and bid-rigging conspiracy for the sale of mesquite charcoal.

"Ultimately, however, the role that science plays in forming our policies and practices -- that will depend on each of you: your commitment; your vigilance; your dedication to ensuring that our work to create a criminal justice system that is more effective, more efficient, more just, will rest not merely on a foundation of hope, or goodwill, or good intentions, but on a bedrock of integrity born of science and research," said Acting Associate Attorney General West.

The Justice Department announced today the filing of a lawsuit against Rose Acre Farms Inc., a major U.S. egg producer based in Seymour, Ind., alleging that Rose Acre engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination against work-authorized non-citizens in the employment eligibility verification process.

Chase McClary, 23, of Johnsonville, S.C., pleaded guilty today in federal court in the District of South Carolina to violating the Matthew Shepard-James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in his violent assault of an African-American teenager.

Three former executives of Fair Financial Company, an Ohio financial services business, were found guilty for their roles in a scheme to defraud approximately 5,000 investors of more than $200 million, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Joseph H. Hogsett, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana; and Special Agent in Charge Robert Holley of the FBI in Indiana announced today.

Attorney General Eric Holder and European Commission Vice-President Viviane Reding issued the following statement following the EU-U.S. Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial meeting in Copenhagen.

The Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against the town of Colorado City, Ariz.; the city of Hildale, Utah; Twin City Water Authority; and Twin City Power alleging a pattern or practice of police misconduct and violations of federal civil rights laws.

The Justice Department today announced it has reached a consent decree with the town of Davie, Fla., to resolve allegations that Davie engaged in a pattern or practice of intentional discrimination against pregnant firefighters employed by Davie’s fire department.

Kelly Doll, formerly a VIP host at the Pure Nightclub located within the Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday to one count of filing a false federal income tax return for the 2006 tax year, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. U.S. District Court Judge Miranda Du presided over the plea hearing.

Gregory K. Dupont, 38, of Plaquemine, La., was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Baton Rouge, La., to serve six months in prison, to be followed by four months in a half-way house and two years of supervised release for the first ever felony conviction and prison sentence resulting from the illegal hunting of American alligators.

Michael Makalou, 41, a former State Department employee, was sentenced today to 12 months in prison for assaulting his wife with a dangerous weapon with intent to do bodily harm, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Neil H. MacBride.

A Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty today to conspiring to willfully reproduce and distribute tens of thousands of infringing copies of copyrighted works without permission, including infringing copies of movies before they were commercially released on DVD, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Neil H. MacBride and Special Agent in Charge John P. Torres of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) in Washington, D.C., announced today.

Attorney General Eric Holder issued the following statement today on the Supreme Court’s Ruling on Arizona v. The United States.

The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) today announced funding awards to over 220 cities and counties, aimed at creating or saving approximately 800 law enforcement positions. The grants will fund over 600 new law enforcement positions and save an additional 200 positions recently lost or in jeopardy of being cut due to local budget cuts.

The Justice Department today announced its largest-ever disability-based housing discrimination settlement fund to resolve allegations that JPI Construction L.P. and six other JPI entities based in Irving, Texas, discriminated on the basis of disability in the design and construction of multifamily housing complexes throughout the United States.

William R. Herder of Bellville, Ohio, was arrested today on federal tax charges, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division Kathryn Keneally, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio Stephen M. Dettelbach and Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office, Darryl K. Williams announced. On June 19, 2012, a federal grand jury sitting in Cleveland returned an indictment against Herder, charging him with corruptly endeavoring to impair and impede the due administration of the Internal Revenue laws, failure to file tax returns, failure to pay taxes, and structuring transactions to evade currency reporting requirements.

Billy Denica, 50, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard in Miami.

"We look forward to welcoming these new additions to our nation's law enforcement community - and to building on the partnerships, and record of success, that we've established here in Philadelphia and beyond," said Attorney General Holder.

The Justice Department announced today that it reached a settlement agreement with the Fort Payne City School District in Alabama and private plaintiffs in a longstanding school desegregation case. The parties filed a proposed consent order in the federal district court in Birmingham, Ala.

A federal jury in Elkins, W. Va., convicted Richard Evick, a U.S. Army Sergeant First Class and Non-Commissioned Officer in charge of contracting at a U.S. military base in Kuwait, and his associate, Crystal Martin, of all counts with which they were charged in connection with a bribery and money laundering scheme related to defense contracts awarded in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.