The Justice Department announced today that a federal district court judge in Jackson, Miss., approved a settlement of the department’s lawsuit against the original owners and developers of nine multifamily housing complexes located in Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee.

The Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan and the FBI announced today that they will not be pursuing federal criminal civil rights charges against the Saginaw Police Department officers who shot and killed Milton Hall on July 1, 2012.

Today, a federal jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma in Muskogee, Okla., convicted Raymond A. Barnes, 43, and Christopher A. Brown, 32, the former jail superintendent and assistant jail superintendent, respectively, of the Muskogee County Jail on multiple counts of civil rights offenses related to allegations of excessive force on inmates at MCJ on or between August 2009 and May 2011.

Attorney General Eric Holder and HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today released the annual Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control (HCFAC) Program report showing that for every dollar spent on health care-related fraud and abuse investigations through this and other programs in the last three years, the government recovered $8.10. This is the highest three-year average return on investment in the 17-year history of the HCFAC Program.

The United States has asked a federal court in McAllen, Texas, to permanently bar Melissa Alvarez and her companies, Best & Unique Income Services, Best & Unique Income Tax Melissa and Best & Unique Income Tax Services LLC, from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

Since 2009, the Department has publicly charged 73 account holders and 35 professionals with violations arising from their offshore banking activities, and 72 individuals have pled guilty or were convicted at trial. Just as importantly our enforcement efforts have driven over 43,000 taxpayers with secret offshore accounts to identify themselves to the IRS, disclose their offshore accounts, and to pay a total of over $6 billion in back taxes, penalties and interest. And that number is growing.

Today, the Justice Department released a new tool to help state and local courts assess and improve their language assistance services for limited English proficient litigants, victims and witnesses who need access to court services.

Gordon D. McDonald, a former project manager for a prime contractor at two U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund sites in New Jersey, was sentenced today to serve 14 years in prison for participating in multiple bid-rigging, fraud and kickback schemes.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that President Obama’s FY 2015 Budget proposal for the Department of Justice calls for $173 million in targeted investments for criminal justice reform efforts.

The United States has asked a federal court in Dallas, Texas, to permanently bar Ricia Daniels and her company, Ricia’s Convenience Tax Service, from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

"The unfinished struggle for equal opportunity and justice is one in which we all have a part. This year, as we mark the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Civil Rights Division remains committed to combating discrimination in all its forms."

The United States filed a complaint seeking to bar Kavivah Branson, aka Kavivah Bradley, and her Jackson, Miss., business, Branson Tax Service, from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

The Justice Department and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced today that they have entered into a consent decree that, if approved by the court, will resolve both agencies’ claims against Harmony Public Schools on behalf of Nicole M. Tuchscherer, a former teacher at Harmony Science Academy-Austin.

The Department of Justice announced the filing of a lawsuit today against the School District of Philadelphia alleging that the district discriminated against Siddiq Abu-Bakr, as well as other similarly-situated individuals, on the basis of religion in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels of the Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz of the District of Massachusetts announced today that they have entered into a consent decree with HRB Digital LLC and HRB Tax Group Inc., subsidiaries of H&R Block Inc., to remedy alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The United States filed a civil complaint asking a federal court in Fresno, Calif., to enjoin Ken Mendoza and Alice Mendoza from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

The United States has sued The Tax Helper Corp, a tax preparation business with a store located in Chicago, and seeks to permanently bar the company and its alleged co-owner, Johnnie Pernell Jr., from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

The Justice Department today announced a settlement under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Blair County, Pa., to greatly improve physical accessibility at the county’s polling places for individuals who use wheelchairs and other mobility aids and for individuals who are blind or have vision impairments.

Following a four-week trial, a federal jury today convicted two real estate investors for conspiring to rig bids at public real estate foreclosure auctions held in San Joaquin County, Calif. One of the investors was also convicted of obstruction of justice for destroying evidence related to the crimes

"As you know, this Sunshine Week we will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Attorney General’s FOIA Guidelines. Issued during Sunshine Week on March 19, 2009, those Guidelines address the presumption of openness that the President called for in his FOIA Memorandum, the necessity for agencies to create and maintain an effective system for responding to requests, and the need to improve timeliness and to work to reduce backlogs," said Pustay.

A federal jury in Houston today convicted two owners of a former Houston mental health care company, Spectrum Care P.A. (Spectrum), several of its employees and the owners of certain Houston group care homes for their participation in a $97 million Medicare fraud scheme.

Today, the Justice Department sought a federal court order temporarily restraining the Ohio Department of Youth Services (DYS) from unlawfully secluding boys with mental health needs in its juvenile correctional facilities.

Christopher Davis, of Montgomery, Ala., was sentenced today to serve 60 months in prison, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr. for the Middle District of Alabama.

Every March, we pause to honor the extraordinary contributions and innumerable sacrifices that American women have made throughout our history – and that they continue to make today – in order to move our nation, and this Department, forward. Leaders like Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Ada Kepley – the first woman to graduate from law school in the United States – have left indelible marks on the fabric of our country.

It is a pleasure to be with you today. And it’s an honor to join so many distinguished jurists, dedicated public servants, devoted members of the private bar, hardworking students, and good friends in discussing the challenges we face – and the opportunities now before us – to expand access to justice; to strengthen the rule of law; and to improve America’s legal system across the board – so we can move our nation closer to its founding ideals of equality, opportunity, and justice for all.

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached an agreement in principle with the city of New York and intervening plaintiffs to settle an employment discrimination lawsuit involving the New York City Fire Department.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara, Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation Calvin L. Scovel, III, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Acting Administrator David Friedman, and FBI Deputy Assistant Director Joe Campbell announced a criminal wire fraud charge against Toyota Motor Corporation, an automotive company headquartered in Toyota City, Japan, that designs, manufactures, assembles, and sells Toyota and Lexus brand vehicles.

Schools must support children as they learn expectations about behavior and conduct. But a routine school discipline infraction should land a student in a principal’s office – not in a police precinct.

In a new step to further the Justice Department’s efforts towards enhancing reentry among formerly incarcerated individuals, Attorney General Eric Holder announced Monday that the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) will impose new requirements on federal halfway houses that help inmates transition back into society.

The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit today against Con-Way Freight Inc. alleging that the company violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act.

More funding will be available this year, and I am also pleased that President Obama’s budget request for next year includes $11 million for programs to support responses to child maltreatment. This funding will potentially provide critical operational assistance to child advocacy centers and valuable training and technical assistance that will further strengthen the multidisciplinary response to child abuse cases.

Five men have been charged in the Eastern District of New York with conspiring to defraud the Newspaper and Mail Deliverers’ Union (NMDU) and Hudson News newsstands to obtain a union card and employment at Hudson News newsstands for the son of the alleged underboss of the Colombo family.

The Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against Sairam Enterprises Inc. LLC alleging that it discriminated against Jeffrey Crockett and his family on the basis of disability in violation of Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The Transgender Day of Remembrance is a day to recommit ourselves to breaking the cycle of violence that affects far too many transgender Americans.

“Earlier this year in a speech at the Department of Justice, President Obama announced a transition that would end the Section 215 bulk telephony metadata program as it existed, and that the government would establish a mechanism that preserves the capabilities we need without the government holding this bulk data," said Attorney General Holder and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.

The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division today announced a new streamlined procedure that will lower the costs and expedite the review process for parties seeking to modify or terminate old antitrust settlements and litigated judgments.

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the retirement of H. Marshall Jarrett, Director for the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys (EOUSA) as well as the appointment of Monty Wilkinson as the new Director for EOUSA.

The calculus that many businesses make today is similar to the decisions that the mom and pop stores had to make several decades ago: Does the cost of paying out – that is, failing to tell the authorities about cyber attacks – outweigh the costs of potential retaliation?

The Department of Justice filed a civil lawsuit today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada to stop Bill Sunga Modina, who allegedly does business as 5M Financial and 6M Financial, from preparing federal tax returns.

Attorney General Eric Holder released the following statement today after the confirmation of John P. Carlin to serve as Assistant Attorney General for National Security.

The Department of Justice announced the filing of a lawsuit today against Clark County, Nev., alleging that the county discriminated against Therese Scupi, an African-American woman, on the basis of race and sex and retaliated in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended.

A U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan issued a judgment against the law firm Hatchett, DeWalt & Hatchett PLLC for unpaid federal employment and unemployment taxes and penalties for late filing partnership income tax returns for various tax periods from 2003 to 2012.

As we convene this morning, I know we’re all mindful of yesterday’s mass shooting at Fort Hood. I am being regularly briefed on the situation and have directed that the full resources of the Department of Justice and the FBI be made available to ensure the security of everyone on base. We will work with local officials and the Department of Defense to provide assistance to those who need it and to help conduct a full and thorough federal investigation.

A co-owner of a Middlesex, N.J., industrial pipes, valves and fittings supply company pleaded guilty today to one count of making a false statement.

J. Keith McCray, a criminal investigator with the Macon County, Ala., Sheriff’s Office, pleaded guilty in federal court today to assaulting a handcuffed man at the county jail, resulting in bodily injury to the victim.

Despite significant challenges, the past year has been characterized by remarkable progress – from expanding civil rights for all Americans to holding private corporations accountable for wrongdoing. In the financial sector, concerns have been raised recently about a practice called “high-frequency trading.”

The United States filed a complaint today seeking to bar Joyce Bougere-Keyes, and her business, Joyce Tax & Financial Service LLC, from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced.

The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a statewide settlement agreement that will resolve violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act for approximately 3,250 Rhode Islanders with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The United States filed a civil lawsuit today in Pittsburgh federal court to permanently bar Larry E. Snow, of Seward, Pa., from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service announced today.

"Unnecessary segregation of people with disabilities is harmful to people with disabilities and to our communities. We cannot wait another day to change. And we won’t. Because today, the Justice Department, the state of Rhode Island and the business community, together, embrace real integration of people with disabilities – committing to make Rhode Island a model for other states to follow."