A federal grand jury in Montgomery, Ala., returned a superseding indictment charging Deatrice Smith Williams and Quentin Collick for their roles in a stolen identity refund fraud conspiracy.

EMH Regional Medical Center has agreed to pay the United States $3,863,857 and North Ohio Heart Center Inc. has agreed to pay the United States $541,870 to settle allegations that they submitted false claims to Medicare.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today the appointment of U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Loretta E. Lynch as chair of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee of U.S. Attorneys.

Jack Ray Carr, of Baton Rouge, La., was sentenced today to 78 months in federal prison for one count of corruptly interfering with the due administration of the Internal Revenue laws, four counts of filing false income tax returns and one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false income tax return.

A Romanian national was sentenced today to serve 21 months in prison for his role in an international, multimillion-dollar scheme to remotely hack into and steal payment card data from hundreds of U.S. merchants’ computers.

Mary Estelle Curran of Palm Beach, Fla., pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to filing false tax returns for tax years 2006 and 2007.

A federal inmate formerly held in Pennsylvania’s Allenwood Federal Correctional Complex pleaded guilty today in Harrisburg, Pa., before U.S. District Judge Yvette Kane, to first degree murder for stabbing and kicking a fellow inmate to death.

A Massachusetts man was sentenced today to serve 45 years in prison for his participation in an international criminal network, known as Dreamboard, dedicated to the sexual abuse of children and the creation and dissemination of graphic images and videos of child sexual abuse throughout the world.

A Canadian citizen was sentenced to 48 months in prison today for his role in a scheme to defraud consumers purchasing pharmaceuticals online, the Justice Department announced. Andrew J. Strempler was also ordered to pay a forfeiture of $300,000, a fine of $25,000 and restitution.

Montell Williams, of Chicago, pleaded guilty today in Hammond, Ind., to violating the Mann Act by transporting a woman across state lines for the purpose of having her engage in prostitution.

Today, the Justice Department announced that yesterday afternoon it filed in federal court a comprehensive agreement that will resolve long running litigation with the state of Tennessee originally concerning conditions of care at the former Arlington Developmental Center (ADC).

The Department of Justice filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today against Bazaarvoice Inc. challenging the company’s June 2012 acquisition of PowerReviews Inc.

Kenneth Jerome Blackmon Jr., a resident of Montgomery, Ala., pleaded guilty today to aggravated identity theft and access device fraud.

“Above all, our goal is to serve as practical problem solvers on the operational, legal, and policy questions we confront with our partners, and to keep pace with an evolving threat, while ensuring that we do so consistent with the rule of law and civil liberties,” said Assistant Attorney General Monaco.

The Justice Department announced that yesterday it reached an agreement with Illinois officials to help ensure that military service members, their family members and other U.S. citizens living overseas have an opportunity to participate fully in the upcoming Feb. 26, 2013, special primary election, and the April 9, 2013, special election to fill a vacated seat in the state’s 2nd Congressional District.

A Virginia man was sentenced today in federal court to serve one year and one day in prison for selling counterfeit General Motors (GM) automotive diagnostic devices used by mechanics to identify problems with and assure the safety of motor vehicles.

Roland Kaufmann, CEO of Axius Inc., pleaded guilty today in Brooklyn for conspiring to bribe stock brokers.

A New Zealand fishing company that owned and operated the tuna fishing vessel San Nikunau, and a former chief engineer on the ship, were sentenced in federal court today for environmental crimes and obstruction of justice.

Husband and wife John and Sandra Cote, both of Brooklyn, Conn., were arrested on tax charges, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service announced today.

A Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, jury convicted Michael George Fitzpatrick, 51, of Hope, Idaho, of two counts of income tax evasion after a four-day trial before U.S. District Judge Larry A. Burns.

Today, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana entered an order granting the joint motion of the United States and the city of New Orleans to enter the consent decree regarding the New Orleans Police Department.

"Over the last four years, we've generated tremendous momentum in our work to integrate evidence into our programs and activities. Our leadership – not only at BJS and NIJ, but across OJP – has demonstrated a strong scientific ethic," said Assistant Attorney General Leary.

The Justice Department today announced that property manager Rudy Ferrante agreed to a $15,000 civil judgment against him, to resolve allegations that he sexually harassed female tenants in Portland, Maine.

A Los Angeles check cashing store, its head manager and its designated anti-money laundering compliance officer were sentenced today in the Central District of California for failing to follow reporting and anti-money laundering requirements for over $8 million in transactions in violation of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).

"Our Declaration of Independence declared in 1776 that “all men are created equal,” but it took 100 years and a civil war that took hundreds of thousands of lives to end slavery; another hundred years to create legal equality for African Americans; and we struggle to this day to make equality a reality. I see this every day in my work as the chief civil rights law enforcement official for the United States," said Assistant Attorney General Perez.

Community State Bank of St. Charles, Mich., will open a loan production office in an African-American neighborhood in Saginaw, Mich., invest $165,000 in majority African-American areas in and around Saginaw and take other steps as part of a settlement to resolve allegations that it engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination on the basis of race.

A federal court has permanently barred Pete Escalante Gutierrez and Jeanette Gutierrez from preparing federal tax returns for others.

A federal grand jury in Nevada today returned an indictment against 11 individuals for their alleged roles in a scheme to fraudulently take control of homeowners’ associations in the Las Vegas area.

A Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty today for coercing and enticing a minor and possessing child pornography.

Today, Matthew E. Davidson, a former corrections officer of the Alabama Department of Corrections, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Montgomery, Ala., to two counts of violating the civil rights of a former inmate at Ventress Correctional Facility in Clayton, Ala., and to one count of conspiring with other corrections officers to obstruct justice by covering up the incident.

A Utah man was convicted late yesterday by a federal jury in Salt Lake City of possessing, receiving and distributing child pornography.

Isaacs, 61, of Los Angeles, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge George H. King in the Central District of California. In addition to his prison term, Isaacs was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine.

Ronald E. Burrell, former chief executive officer (CEO) of Caremerica Inc., and Michael R. Elliott, former chief financial officer (CFO) of Caremerica Inc., were sentenced today in Wilmington, N.C.

Two Brazilian nationals pleaded guilty today in Miami to smuggling undocumented migrants to the United States for profit.

"The United States was able to become more inclusive not because we changed our principles, which reflect universal and timeless values, but because we learned to apply our principles more consistently. Over time, we also developed tools that help us to better apply our principles," said Assistant Attorney General Perez.

In a settlement with the United States on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, automotive electronics manufacturer Edge Products LLC (Edge) has agreed to pay a $500,000 civil penalty for manufacturing and selling electronic devices that allowed owners of model year 2007 and later diesel pickup trucks to remove emission controls from their vehicles.

A former special agent of the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General (DHS-OIG) pleaded guilty today in a Southern District of Texas federal court to participating in a scheme to falsify records and to obstruct an internal field office inspection.

Assistant Attorney General Ignacia S. Moreno announced today the publication of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s (ENRD) Fiscal Year 2012 Accomplishments Report. The full report, which details the division’s work across the nation during FY2012, is posted at www.justice.gov/enrd/Current_topics.html.

The Justice Department announced today that a federal court has permanently barred Cash Management Systems, a Virginia corporation, from promoting two tax schemes that allegedly involve disguising wages as tool-reimbursement or tool-rental payments.

A Texas federal judge convicted the owner of two Texas-based durable medical equipment companies today on multiple health care fraud charges following a five-day bench trial.

"Although there’s no single solution that can bring a decisive end to this senseless violence, it’s incumbent upon each of us to try. And it’s time to consider what common-sense steps we can take – together – to save lives," said Attorney General Holder.

Jay Odom, 56, of Destin, Fla., was charged in federal court in the Northern District of Florida with one count of providing campaign contributions in the name of another and one count of causing another to make false statements to the FEC.

James M. Davis, 64, formerly of Baldwyn, Miss., the former chief financial officer of Stanford International Bank (SIB) and Houston-based Stanford Financial Group, was sentenced today to five years in prison for his role in helping Robert Allen Stanford perpetrate a fraud scheme involving SIB, and for conspiring to obstruct a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation into SIB.

Joseph McDaniels, 43, of Shoreline, Wash., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court for interstate transportation of a 22 year old woman for purposes of prostitution.

Billy James Hammett, 28, and Perry Sylvester Jackson, 27, were arrested today in Yuba County, Calif., on federal hate crime charges for their racially motivated attack on an African American woman and white man in Marysville, Calif., on April 18, 2011.

Linda Weston, her daughter and three co-defendants are charged in a 193-count indictment, unsealed today, with racketeering, murder in aid of racketeering, hate crimes, sex trafficking, forced labor, theft, fraud and other crimes.

A federal grand jury in Salt Lake City returned an indictment Wednesday afternoon charging Gerrit Timmerman III, 70, of Midvale, Utah, and Carol Sing, 73, of Henderson, Nevada, with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States.

Stephen Thomas of York, Penn., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for tax evasion.

Martina Montero-de-Ortiz, 52, formerly of Elizabeth, N.J., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gustavo A. Gelpí in the District of Puerto Rico.

"One of our top priorities is addressing youth violence. As I’m sure many of you would agree, this is one of the most complex and intractable problems in criminal justice. And because it is so complex, we’ve learned over time that tackling it involves many people – stakeholders from all sectors and from all levels of government," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Leary.