The Department has reached a consent decree with Franklin County, N.C., that, if approved in federal court in Raleigh, N.C., will resolve the department’s allegation that the county retaliated against a former employee in its Department of Public Utilities, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Formosa Plastics Corp., Texas, and Formosa Plastics Corp., Louisiana, will spend more than $10 million on pollution controls to address air, water, and hazardous waste violations at two petrochemical plants in Point Comfort, Texas, and Baton Rouge, La.

A Florida doctor was charged today by a federal grand jury in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., with allegedly orchestrating a fraudulent political fund raising and lobbying scheme through which he secretly diverted to himself more than $350,000 from contributions to political organizations he controlled.

The lawsuit alleging that conditions at the Erie County Holding Center and the Erie County Correctional Facility routinely and systematically deprive inmates of constitutional rights.

The consent decree will resolve the Department’s complaint on behalf of an Indiana National Guardsman alleging that the law firm violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).

“Today’s settlement reflects the Justice Department’s ongoing commitment to protect the integrity of the doctor-patient relationship,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division.

Gary Fillers pleaded guilty to one criminal felony count for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act’s “work practice standards” related to the proper stripping, bagging, removal and disposal of asbestos.

Detroit residents Dierdre Teagen, Robert Wynn, Ernest Neal, James Harris and Steve Sherman pleaded guilty for their roles in various Medicare fraud schemes.

The Bank will invest more than $600,000, open a new branch in an African-American neighborhood in west central Alabama and take other steps as part of a settlement.

The United States has filed a lawsuit alleging that a bank and two automobile dealerships in Los Angeles violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act by charging non-Asian-American customers higher interest rate mark-ups for a period of at least two years.

"We at the Department are especially committed to encouraging compliance with the Act and to fulfilling President Obama's goal of making this Administration the most open and transparent in history."

The OCDETF Program -- now in its 27th year -- is a model of interagency coordination, innovation, and teamwork, and is the cornerstone of the Justice Department’s anti-cartel strategy.

Timothy Smith, a resident of Cullman, Ala., was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for tax evasion.

A federal judge today assessed the Southern Union Company $18 million for illegally storing mercury at a company-owned site in Pawtucket.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Cittadini, a retired sales manager for Boeing, failed to report income from bank accounts under his control at UBS AG in Switzerland on his individual income tax returns from 2001 through 2003.

"Talk alone isn’t going to keep crime rates down. Talk alone isn’t going to protect innocent victims. Talk alone isn’t going to stop rival gangs from shooting up our streets, or drug dealers from peddling dope in our schools, or terrorists from attacking our cities. Indeed, we all know that the best ideas in the world are worth little without the resources to implement them."

Travis Dardenne and Jeffery Brown of Plaquemine, La., each pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Baton Rouge, La., to a violation of the Lacey Act for knowingly attempting to acquire an American alligator in violation of the federal Endangered Species Act and Louisiana law.

A federal district court in Texas has permanently enjoined Ludivina Salinas of Mission, Texas, from preparing federal income tax returns for others.

“One of my highest priorities as Attorney General has been to ensure that the Civil Rights Division will again continue to advance the interests of justice and equal protection for all Americans. Tom is an exceptional lawyer and both the Department and the nation will benefit from his leadership and legal expertise,” said Attorney General Eric Holder.

The United States has asked a federal court in Denver to bar Curtis Morris, an Elizabeth, Colo., tax return preparer, and his business, Numbers & Beyond, from preparing tax returns.

“Youth violence isn’t a Chicago problem, any more than it is a black problem or a white problem. It’s something that affects communities big and small, and people of all races and colors. Today is the beginning of what will be a sustained, national effort on behalf of this entire administration to address youth violence and to make our streets safe for everyone,” Holder said.

A Moldovan national pleaded guilty today in federal court in Kansas City, Mo., for his role in a forced labor trafficking scheme that victimized workers in 14 states.

"We simply cannot stand for an epidemic of violence that robs our youth of their childhood and perpetuates a cycle in which today’s victims become tomorrow’s criminals."

“It is critical that Medicare providers base their DME purchasing decisions on what is in the best interests of their patients,” stated Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division.

“The Justice Department today renews its vigilance to fairly and judiciously enforcing federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of a disability. By protecting the rights of all individuals so that they can contribute to our society, we strengthen our communities and our nation as a whole." said Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez.

Donald Collier, 45, was sentenced today to nine years in prison for mailing child pornography.

"Under the visionary leadership of Secretary General Noble, INTERPOL is already at the forefront of the battle against globalized crime. To highlight just one of the many critical steps he has taken: he has modernized the ‘I-24/7’ network, which is used thousands of times each day and millions of times each year to conduct the cross-border police work necessary to find and arrest wanted persons, and to solve and prevent crimes."

AT&T Missouri (formerly known as Southwestern Bell Telephone L.P.) has agreed to pay the United States $1.4 million as part of a settlement of a civil lawsuit alleging that the company violated the False Claims Act in connection with the Federal Communications Commission's E-Rate program.

The Department will require AT&T Inc. to divest assets in eight areas in Louisiana and Mississippi in order to proceed with its $944 million acquisition of Centennial Communications Corp.

A Louisiana man pleaded guilty today to firing three shots from a shotgun at the home of three Hispanic men and, after they fled, entering the home and setting a fire that burned it to the ground.

Marcel J. Toto-Ngosso of Silver Spring, Md., was sentenced to 70 months in prison today for preparing and filing false tax returns in connection with a scheme to generate fraudulent tax refunds for his clients.

Arctic Glacier International Inc., headquartered in St. Paul, Minn., has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $9 million criminal fine for allocating customers. Three of the company’s former executives pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy.

Gunther Wenzek, a German national, pleaded guilty today before District Judge Anna J. Brown, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, to one count of smuggling coral into the United States at the port of Portland, Ore.

"Listening to the complex needs of the communities, and recognizing their unique responses, is perhaps the most important thing we can do at the Department."

Panagiotis Lekkas, the captain of the cargo ship, M/V Theotokos, was sentenced today in federal court in New Orleans to 10 months confinement.

Roy W. Bradford of Ludlow Falls, Ohio, was indicted on two counts of filing a false tax return and one count of corruptly endeavoring to impede the IRS.

A federal judge in St. George, Utah, has permanently enjoined Kent Bickmore, the founder of a so-called asset-protection business, from helping customers file fraudulent liens and create hidden nominee bank accounts

A federal district court in Richmond, Va., ruled yesterday that Virginia violated the voting rights of American military personnel and other overseas citizens by failing to mail absentee ballots in sufficient time for them to be counted in the Nov. 4, 2008, general election.

David H. Safavian was sentenced today to one year in prison on charges of obstruction of justice and making false statements in connection with the investigation into the activities of former Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

“It will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana, but we will not tolerate drug traffickers who hide behind claims of compliance with state law to mask activities that are clearly illegal,” Holder said.

Mylan Pharmaceuticals, UDL Laboratories, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals and Ortho McNeil Pharmaceutical have entered into settlement agreements for a total of $124 million to resolve claims that they violated the False Claims Act by failing to pay appropriate rebates to state Medicaid programs for drugs paid for by those programs.

Solomon Nathaniel of Sterling Heights, Mich., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Detroit to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program.

“With the nation’s focus on health care, this settlement demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to ensuring that federal health care dollars are spent appropriately,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division.

A federal grand jury in Denver returned a 15-count felony indictment yesterday charging two individuals with conspiracy, wildlife trafficking and firearms violations stemming from the illegal trapping, killing and selling of bobcats and their pelts.

Attorney General Holder recognizes 247 department employees and 39 other individuals outside of the department for their distinguished public service today at the 57th Annual Attorney General Awards Ceremony.

“Members of the military who put their lives on the line to protect our nation deserve to know they will not be penalized for their service and their bravery,” said Thomas Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.

Twenty defendants have been charged in seven cases for allegedly participating in Medicare fraud schemes that resulted in more than $26 million in fraudulent bills to the Medicare program.

A Panamanian company that operated a 40,000-ton oil tanker ship pleaded guilty today for deliberately concealing pollution discharges from the ship directly into the sea.

"The recipients we honor here today could all be making a lot more money working somewhere else, and could certainly spend more time with their families doing other jobs. But they have all answered the call to duty, the call to service that binds us together."

Today Attorney General Eric Holder announced the arrest of nearly 1,200 individuals on narcotics-related charges and the seizure of more than 11.7 tons of narcotics as part of a 44-month multi-agency law enforcement investigation known as “Project Coronado.”