"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.

Hospice of Arizona L.C., along with a related entity, American Hospice Management LLC, and their parent corporation, American Hospice Management Holdings LLC, have agreed to pay $12 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting or causing the submission of false claims to the Medicare program for ineligible hospice services.

The Justice Department announced that it has reached an agreement with the city of Wheatland, Calif., that, if approved by the court, will allow it to bail out from its status as a “covered jurisdiction” under the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act, and thereby exempt the city from the preclearance requirements of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

"When a bank allows its customers, and even its customers’ customers, access to the national banking system, it should endeavor to understand the true nature of the business that it will allow to access the payment system, and the risks posed to consumers and society regarding criminal or other unlawful conduct," said Executive Director Bresnick.

Two shipping firms based in Germany and Cyprus today pleaded guilty to felony obstruction of justice charges and violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships related to the deliberate concealment of vessel pollution from four ships that visited U.S. ports in New Jersey, Delaware and Northern California.

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a cooperative settlement agreement with the Arapahoe, Colo., County Sheriff’s Office under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This agreement is a companion to one reached on March 8, 2013, with the city of Englewood, Colo.

A federal grand jury in San Juan, Puerto Rico, returned an indictment against Thomas Farmer, a former executive of Jacksonville, Fla.-based Crowley Liner Services, for participating in a conspiracy to fix rates and surcharges for freight transported by water between the continental United States and Puerto Rico.

"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 Justice Department announced that, jointly with the Meridian Public School District in Meridian, Miss., and private plaintiffs, it has filed a landmark consent decree to prevent and address racial discrimination in student discipline in district schools.

The Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs is planning to invest more than $20 million to strengthen the firearm background check system by improving states’ abilities to share information with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

A superseding indictment against four Police of Puerto Rico (POPR) officers was announced today by Roy L. Austin Jr., Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division; Rosa Emilia Rodriguez-Velez, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico; and Carlos Cases, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office.

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 Justice Department announced today that Alabama-based Caddell Construction has agreed to pay to the United States $1,150,000 to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by falsely reporting to the Army Corps of Engineers that it hired and mentored a Native American-owned company to work on construction projects at Fort Bragg, N.C., and Fort Campbell, Ky.

The Justice Department announced today that it reached an agreement with Poulan Pecan, resolving allegations that the company violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Alexis Candelario-Santana, 41, faces life in prison following his conviction of murdering eight people and an unborn child and attempting to murder 19 others during a mass shooting at a Puerto Rico pub in 2009.

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.

Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs Mary Lou Leary announced that Robert L. Listenbee Jr. has assumed the role as administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

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.

The Department of Justice announced today that it has entered into a consent decree with Summit County, Ohio, and related parties, which if approved by the court, will resolve a sex discrimination lawsuit in which the United States intervened in June 2012.

The Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women today announced a new Mentor Court Initiative to support criminal and civil domestic violence courts across the country.

The Justice Department announced today that it reached an agreement with Forsyth County, N.C., and Sheriff William T. Schatzman of Forsyth County to resolve allegations that they violated the employment rights of North Carolina Army National Guard soldier Michael Russell under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994.

CDW-Government LLC has agreed to pay $5.66 million to resolve allegations that it submitted false claims in connection with a U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) contract.

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.

On March 14, 2013, a federal grand jury in Macon, Ga., returned an 18 count indictment alleging that Natashia and Detrick Tucker, a husband and wife couple who owned and operated a tax preparation business named T&T Express located in Pine Mountain, Ga., conspired to defraud the United States by preparing and filing fraudulent tax returns that illegally claimed inflated tax refunds for their clients.

The Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that Dominion Energy has agreed to pay a $3.4 million civil penalty and spend approximately $9.8 million on environmental mitigation projects to resolve Clean Air Act (CAA) violations.

A former U.S. Army Captain was sentenced today in Oklahoma City to serve 23 months in prison for conspiracy to accept thousands of dollars in gratuities from contractors during his deployment to Baghdad, Iraq.

The United States announced today that the Orange County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) has successfully implemented an agreement on the use of electronic control weapons, commonly referred to as Tasers.

Doreen Alexander has been extradited to the United States from Trinidad and Tobago to face charges related to her alleged role in the 2005 kidnapping of naturalized U.S. citizen Balram “Balo” Maharaj.

The Justice Department announced today that Fluor Hanford LLC has agreed to pay $1.1 million to settle allegations that Fluor violated the False Claims Act by using federal funds for lobbying.

The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a Clean Air Act (CAA) settlement with Tyson Foods Inc. and several of its affiliate corporations to address threats of accidental chemical releases after anhydrous ammonia was released during incidents at facilities in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska, resulting in multiple injuries, property damage and one fatality.

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.

The Justice Department announced today that, as part of its Barrier-Free Health Care Initiative, over the past year it has reached seven settlements with eight health care providers from across the United States to ensure that they are providing effective communication to people who are deaf or have hearing disabilities.

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.

The Department of Justice has reached a settlement that will require Ecolab Inc. and Permian Mud Service Inc. to divest assets used by Permian’s subsidiary, Champion Technologies Inc., to provide production chemical management services in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico in order to proceed with their proposed merger.

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.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced today that it has reached a settlement with Chiropractic Associates Ltd. of South Dakota (CASD), an association comprising approximately 80 percent of all practicing chiropractors in South Dakota. The settlement prohibits CASD from jointly determining prices and negotiating contracts with insurers on behalf of competing chiropractors.

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

The Justice Department today reached an agreement with Milestone Management Company, a nationwide residential property management firm headquartered in Dallas, resolving claims that the staffing company violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission issued a joint summary of the activities of the Accountable Care Organization Working Group, which took place between October 2011 and March 31, 2013.

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement with Lee County, Fla. that, if approved by the district court, will resolve allegations that the county discriminated against three Hispanic employees on the basis of race and national origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended.

The United States has filed a civil injunction lawsuit seeking to shut down Mo’ Money Taxes, a Memphis, Tenn., based tax-preparation chain that at one time operated as many as 300 offices in 18 states.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that President Obama’s FY 2014 Budget proposal totaling $27.6 billion for the Department of Justice identifies over $561.4 million in efficiencies, savings and rescissions while providing resources to increase critical national security programs, and uphold the department’s traditional missions with an increased focus on gun safety, cyber security, financial and mortgage fraud, immigration laws, civil rights, prisons and detention capacity, and assistance for our state, local and tribal law enforcement partners.

Thirty-four individuals and 23 entities have been indicted and accused of operating an illegal sports bookmaking business that solicited more than $1 billion in illegal bets.

"The Department of Justice continuously and rigorously seeks ways to operate more efficiently and cost effectively, so that our funds are available for the critical national security and law enforcement activities that impact the Nation," said Assistant Attorney General Lofthus.

"The prosecution of SIRF crimes is a national priority, and, together with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to look for the most effective ways to bring this conduct to an end and to punish these wrongdoers," said Assistant Attorney General Keneally.

Stephanie Charboneau, aka Stephanie Shankel, 34, of Fountain, Colo., formerly a Specialist in the United States Army, has been indicted in the District of Colorado for her alleged role in assisting the thefts of fuel in Afghanistan and laundering the proceeds of crime.

Derek Matthews, 46, of Harwood, Md., pleaded guilty today to accepting bribes from a government contracting company in exchange for using his position to help the company find and win contracts.