Paul Schlesselman was sentenced today on federal charges for conspiring to murder dozens of African-Americans, including then-Senator and presidential candidate Barack Obama, because of their race.

"PERF has become a leading voice in establishing policies to reduce officer-involved shootings, to increase diversity in your ranks, and to bring a renewed focus on accountability and transparency within your departments," said Attorney General Holder.

"These days of reflection are an important opportunity for us to come together in support of victims, to give voice to their suffering and to light the way toward a hopeful future," said Attorney General Holder.

Two subsidiaries of Exxon Mobil Corporation – Mobil Oil Guam Inc. and Mobil Oil Mariana Islands Inc. – have agreed to pay $2.4 million for allegedly violating the federal Clean Air Act by failing to control emissions from their facilities.

The United States has filed suit asking the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia to permanently bar Saloum A. Njie and his company, MIAAS Associates LLC, from preparing federal tax returns for others.

The Justice Department will not pursue federal criminal civil rights charges against the eight Bay County, Fla., Boot Camp staff members involved in the incident that resulted in the death of 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson.

President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force today announced the launch of StopFraud.gov.

A one-count bill of information filed today in federal court charges New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) Officer Robert Barrios with conspiring with fellow NOPD officers to obstruct justice by covering up a police-involved shooting in the days after Hurricane Katrina.

The Attorney General’s annual victims’ service awards are presented as a prelude to the nation’s observance of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, April 18-April 24, 2010.

The Department has entered into a consent decree with Milne Enterprises Inc., d/b/a Milne, Nail, Power Tool &s complaint alleging violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994.

A federal jury in Houston today convicted Helen Etinfoh, 50, and Paula Whitfield, 43, for their roles in a Medicare fraud conspiracy involving, among other things, fraudulent claims of hurricane damage to power wheelchairs.

"We at the Justice Department have recommitted ourselves to this work. We’re strengthening civil rights protections in employment, housing, voting, and sentencing, and we’ve launched a new initiative aimed at expanding access to justice."

The United States has filed a civil suit on behalf of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in U.S. District Court in the Middle District of Florida, against Franck’s Compounding Lab Inc., dba Franck’s Lab, a compounding pharmacy located in Ocala, Fla.

Westward Seafoods Inc., the operator of a seafood processing plant in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, will pay a $570,000 civil penalty as part of a settlement agreement to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act.

Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., a national residential homebuilder, has agreed today to pay a $1 million civil penalty to resolve alleged Clean Water Act violations at 591 construction sites in 18 states and the District of Columbia.

Attorney General Eric Holder presented the 2010 John Sherman Award to Robert Pitofsky for his lifetime contributions to the teaching and enforcement of antitrust law and the development of antitrust policy.

Richard Humphrey, 22, of North Ridgeville, Ohio, was sentenced today in Cleveland to 29 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Lesley Wells for selling counterfeit copies of copyrighted movies through the Internet.

U.S. District Court Judge R. Bryan Harwell has sentenced three men in Florence, S.C., for their role in terrorizing an African-American man and two Caucasian men and for carjacking.

The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices today announced grant funding available for public education programs that provide workers or employers with information about immigration-related employment discrimination under the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The Antitrust Division today issued the first ever electronic-only version of its 2010 annual newsletter

"I also am personally committed to the restoration and transformation of the Civil Rights Division, as is the Attorney General, whose support of the Division has been unwavering and complete," said Assistant Attorney General Perez.

Today, the Antitrust Division of this Department of Justice continues to live up to Senator Sherman's exhortation. Now more than ever, we are committed to smart, fair, and aggressive antitrust enforcement across all sectors of our economy.

Christine Varney, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Antitrust Division, will participate in the ninth annual International Competition Network (ICN) conference in Istanbul, Turkey, from April 27-29, 2010.

Michael S. Sherfick, a former local law enforcement official, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana to a criminal information charging him with conspiracy to commit bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds.

Attorney General Eric Holder today met with commissioners of the African Union in an effort to underscore the United States government’s commitment to Africa, particularly efforts to promote rule of law and to combat transnational crime.

Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed the confirmation of Christopher H. Schroeder as the new Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Policy (OLP). Schroeder was confirmed today by the U.S. Senate.

A U.S. Army sergeant pleaded guilty today to accepting approximately $1.4 million in illegal gratuities from private contractors during his deployment to Kuwait in 2002 and 2003.

A U.S. Army contracting official pleaded guilty today to bribery and unlawful salary supplementation in connection with two schemes to solicit more than $17,000 in bribes and other payments from an Egyptian businessman in Kuwait.

Representatives of the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) met in Chicago today with community stakeholders to discuss national, state and local elements of the banking and housing crisis.

"The Civil Rights Division enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and we have a substantial role in implementing Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act."

Maria Volero Marrero, 48, Lawrence Edward Humes, 57, and Keith Earnest Humes, 53, each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with a $5.8 million Medicare fraud scheme stemming from their involvement with a Miami-area HIV/AIDS infusion clinic.

The task force, established by President Barack Obama in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes, is composed of representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement.

James G. Litz, 54, of the city of Tonawanda, N.Y., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Arcara, to a felony charge of deprivation of civil rights under the color of law.

Jack Barouh of Golden Beach, Fla., was sentenced today to 10 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan in Miami.

The focus of the workshop will be consolidation and contracting practices of the poultry sector.

The department said the proposed information exchange may reduce health care costs by improving competition among hundreds of hospitals in California and facilitating more informed purchasing decisions by group purchasers of health care services.

As part of the Department of Justice’s ongoing initiative to confront intellectual property (IP) crimes, Acting Deputy Attorney General Gary G. Grindler announced today the appointment of 15 new Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) positions and 20 FBI Special Agents to be dedicated to combating domestic and international IP crimes.

The Department announced an agreement with Shannon County, S.D., to ensure compliance with provisions of the Voting Rights Act that require the county to provide election materials and information in Lakota to Lakota-speaking American Indian voters, and to ensure compliance with certain provisions of the Help America Vote Act.

A former executive of an Iowa ready-mix concrete company has agreed to plead guilty and serve 19 months in jail for participating in three separate conspiracies to fix prices and rig bids for the sales of ready-mix concrete.

An Indian national was sentenced today to 81 months in prison on conspiracy and aggravated identity theft charges arising from an international fraud scheme to "hack" into online brokerage accounts in the United States and use those accounts to manipulate stock prices.

AstraZeneca LP and AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP will pay $520 million to resolve allegations that AstraZeneca illegally marketed the anti-psychotic drug Seroquel for uses not approved as safe and effective by the Food and Drug Administration.

A New York City federal grand jury returned an indictment against four individuals and three corporations for participating in mail and wire fraud conspiracies related to contracts for work performed at New York Presbyterian Hospital.

A Rosemount, Minn., man was sentenced today to 117 months in prison for his role in running a Ponzi scheme involving commodity pools.

This Administration is committed to recovering taxpayer money lost to health care fraud, whether it’s by bringing cases against common criminals operating out of vacant storefronts or executives at some of the nation’s biggest companies.

Juan Cortes-Meza, 33, of  Mexico; Raul Cortes-Meza, 22, of Mexico; Edison Wagner Rosa Tort, 71, of Cartersville, Ga.; and Otto Jaime Larios Perez, 27, of Guatemala were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard W. Story for participating in sex trafficking in an organization targeting young Mexican women.

David Ryder, a convicted felon who was dressed as a police officer on the day of a police-involved shooting on Sept. 4, 2005, in New Orleans, pleaded guilty today in federal court to lying to a federal agent and to illegally possessing a firearm.

Sophia Manuel and Alfonso Baldonado Jr. have been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges arising from a human trafficking scheme to hold Filipino nationals in forced labor in country clubs and hotels in Southeast Florida.

Former New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) officer Robert Barrios pleaded guilty today in federal court to conspiring with fellow officers to obstruct justice by covering up a police-involved shooting that occurred on the Danziger Bridge in the days after Hurricane Katrina.

Houston-area residents Doris Vinitski and John Lachman pleaded guilty today in connection with their roles in a durable medical equipment Medicare fraud scheme.

A 12-person federal jury in Charlotte, N.C., today voted unanimously to impose the death penalty against Alejandro Enrique Ramirez Umana, aka “Wizard,” 25.