James Smiley, 27, Colton Partin, 21, and Kyle Montgomery, 21, all of Chattanooga, Tenn., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Chattanooga for launching fireworks at African-Americans who were congregated outside their apartment building.

Wayne A. Mounts, a resident of Mesa, Ariz., was sentenced yesterday to 63 months in prison for his role in conspiracies to commit money laundering and to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), announced the Justice Department and the IRS today. On July 25, 2011, a federal jury in Phoenix convicted Mounts and his co-defendant, Gino Carlucci, of both conspiracies after an eight-day trial.

The Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that Loretta Fergerson pleaded guilty today before Magistrate Judge Charles S. Coody in Montgomery, Ala., to conspiring to defraud the United States government, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Fergerson and a co-defendant were charged by a grand jury in a 22-count indictment that was unsealed on March 30, 2011.

Sergio Santiago de Leon Syjuco, aka “Yogi,” 25, of Muntinlupa City, Philippines; Cesar Paolo Inciong Ubaldo, aka “Arvi,” 26, of Paranaque City, Philippines; and Arjyl Revereza, 25, of Manila, Philippines, were charged in criminal complaint unsealed yesterday in the Central District of California with importing defense articles into the United States without a license, in violation of the Arms Export Control Act.

Judge Mark Fuller of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama sentenced Lutoyua N. Thompson and Melinda M. Lambert to prison today for their involvement in a fraudulent tax return preparation scheme, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.

Frederic Alan Gladle, 53, was charged on Dec. 9, 2011, in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles with one count of bankruptcy fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Kirby Dollar and Timothy Watford, former deputies with the Russell County, Ala., Sheriff’s Office, were sentenced in federal court in Montgomery, Ala., for their participation in the beating of a handcuffed man who had been taken into official custody.

"On behalf of a grateful nation – and America’s entire law enforcement community – it is a privilege to join you in paying tribute, as well as my last respects, to an extraordinary public servant, a key member of the federal law enforcement family, and a true patriot who was always proud to call Seaford his home," said Attorney General Holder.

Triad Mining Inc., the owner and operator of 31 surface mines in Appalachia and Indiana, has agreed to pay a penalty and to restore affected waterways for failing to obtain the required Clean Water Act (CWA) permit for stream impacts caused by its surface mining operation in Indiana.

Barry Nash, 69, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry L. Garber in Miami to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

An executive and a former executive of Rubin/Chambers, Dunhill Insurance Services, also known as CDR Financial Products, pleaded guilty today in the Southern District of New York for their participation in bid-rigging and fraud conspiracies related to contracts for the investment of municipal bond proceeds and other related municipal finance contracts.

The pastor of a now defunct Los Angeles church who owned and operated several fraudulent durable medical equipment (DME) supply companies was sentenced today to 180 months in prison for his role in a $14.2 million Medicare fraud scheme, the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.

Donny Eugene Mower, 38, of Madera, Calif., was sentenced in federal court today following his October 2011 guilty pleas to one count of arson, one count of damaging religious property and one count of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which makes it a federal crime to damage the property of a reproductive health services facility. These charges stem from Mower’s lighting a fire inside a Planned Parenthood clinic and throwing a brick at a mosque in Madera.

Carolyn Ann Vasquez, 47, was also ordered to pay $6.2 million in restitution by U.S. District Judge Consuelo B. Marshall of the Central District of California.

The Access to Justice Initiative today released Foreclosure Mediation: Emerging Research and Evaluation Practices, a report resulting from a March 7, 2011, workshop with dozens of foreclosure mediation program stakeholders and researchers.

Robert Rosenbeck, 49, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise J. Casper in Boston.

The United States alleged that BCSO denied detainees access to books, magazines, newspapers or other expressive materials and denied them the right to practice their religion, in violation of the First Amendment and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).

Keoje Marine was sentenced to pay a $1.15 million criminal penalty, $250,000 of which will go to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation as a community service payment for projects aimed at protecting and restoring marine resources in the District of Hawaii.

Phillip Oliver, 46, an inmate at the Muskogee County, Okla., Jail (MCJ) pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Muskogee to one count of conspiracy related to the orchestrated beating of a fellow inmate at the behest of an unnamed jailer on duty.

A federal jury today convicted Ladmarald Cates, 44, a former Milwaukee Police Officer, of a civil rights charge stemming from his July 16, 2010, sexual assault of a Milwaukee woman.

A federal grand jury in Chicago returned an indictment today charging Deputy U.S. Marshal Stephen Linder, 36, with violations of federal criminal civil rights law related to two separate incidents in which Linder assaulted a handcuffed civilian.

Douglas R. Madsen, a chiropractor from Ephraim, Utah, was convicted today after a jury trial in the U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City of income tax evasion, the Justice Department announced.

An owner and a patient recruiter for a Louisiana durable medical equipment (DME) company were sentenced today to 60 and 55 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in a $4.7 million Medicare fraud scheme.

A former Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy was charged today with agreeing to accept $20,000 in bribes in exchange for smuggling contraband into the Men's Central Jail.

A former research scientist was sentenced late yesterday to 60 months in prison for stealing trade secrets from Dow Chemical Company and selling them to companies in the People’s Republic of China, as well as committing perjury.

Two Baton Rouge, La., residents have pleaded guilty for their role in a Medicare fraud scheme, which allegedly involved more than $21 million.

The investigation focused on whether WPD engages in unconstitutional or unlawful policing through the use of excessive force.

The U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington announced today that they are closing the federal criminal civil rights investigation of a former Seattle Police Department Officer for the fatal shooting of the late Native American woodcarver John T. Williams, and that charges will not be filed.

A Maryland man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Indianapolis to seven counts of child pornography production and was sentenced to 33 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Hogsett of the Southern District of Indiana.

"More than half a century has passed since Dr. King traveled from Atlanta to Salt Lake City – to spread his message of hope and unity, and to sound his call for change," said Attorney General Holder.

"Each year, we are provided with an opportunity to rededicate ourselves to Dr. King’s vision of racial and social equality; to revitalize his efforts to expand economic opportunity and promote civil engagement; and to reaffirm our commitment to the values that were at the heart of his sermons, the root of his actions, the core of his character, and the center of his life: tolerance; non-violence; compassion; love; and – above all – justice," said Attorney General Holder.

Steve Kinder, along with his wife, Cornelia Joyce Kinder, both of Owenton, Ky., owned and operated Kinder Caviar Inc. and Black Star Caviar Company. Those companies were in the business of exporting paddlefish eggs as caviar to customers in foreign countries.

Marubeni Corporation has agreed to pay a $54.6 million criminal penalty to resolve charges related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) for its participation in a decade-long scheme to bribe Nigerian government officials to obtain engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts.

A Rockford, Ill., grand jury today indicted a former residential sales manager and two former contractors of a Florida property management company in connection with housing repair contracts for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

A New Jersey industrial pipe supply company and its owner were sentenced today for participating in a conspiracy to commit fraud and pay bribes to a purchasing manager at Consolidated Edison of New York (Con Ed) in return for the manager’s efforts to steer contracts to the company.

Sandra Jimenez, 38, admitted to participating in a fraud scheme that was orchestrated by the owners and operators of American Therapeutic Corporation (ATC); its management company, Medlink Professional Management Group Inc.; and the American Sleep Institute (ASI).

The United States has sued Larry Carnell Dixon Sr., seeking to bar him and his business, Dixon’s Tax Service, from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

Ricardo Gonzalez, 44, aka “Cuate,” of El Paso, Texas, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Magistrate Judge Norbert J. Garney in the Western District of Texas, El Paso Division, to racketeering conspiracy.

The U.S. Department of Justice today announced that the comprehensive grant solicitation for funding to support improvements to public safety, victim services and crime prevention in American Indian and Alaska Native communities will be posted at 3:00 p.m. EST today.

The Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that Tracey Fergerson pleaded guilty today before Magistrate Judge Charles S. Coody in Montgomery, Ala., to conspiring to defraud the United States government.

Philip Butcher pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Patricia Seitz in Miami to filing a false claim for a tax refund, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.

A federal grand jury in Muskogee, Okla., has indicted Jerrod Porter Lane, 26, former detention officer at the Muskogee County Jail (MCJ) in Oklahoma, on six charges related to two separate assaults of an inmate housed at MCJ and the subsequent attempts to cover up his behavior, all during October 2011.

Thomas Gleason, 24, was sentenced today in federal court for his role in the arson of the predominately African-American Macedonia Church of God in Christ just hours after the election of President Barack Obama.

The Justice Department announced today that a federal grand jury in Houston has indicted Charles Cannon, 26; Michael McLaughlin, 40; Brian Kerstetter, 32; and Joseph Staggs, 49, on federal hate crime charges related to a racially motivated assault of a 29-year-old African-American man.

Seven individuals and two corporations have been charged in the United States with running an international organized criminal enterprise allegedly responsible for massive worldwide online piracy of numerous types of copyrighted works, through Megaupload.com and other related sites, generating more than $175 million in criminal proceeds and causing more than half a billion dollars in harm to copyright owners.

Karen Rayburn, 47, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James J. Brady of the Middle District of Louisiana to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

"At the Department of Justice, we know protecting communities falls on your shoulders. Most crime, we know, is handled by local law enforcement, local prosecutors, and local judges, not to mention their local allies outside the justice system," said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.

Rudolf L. Cheung, 57, a resident of Massachusetts, pleaded guilty today in federal court in the District of Columba to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act in connection with the unlawful export of 55 military antennae from the United States to Singapore and Hong Kong.

Matthew David Howard Smith, 24, of Raleigh, N.C., was sentenced today in Alexandria, Va., to 14 months in prison for his role in founding NinjaVideo.net, a website that provided millions of users with the ability to illegally download high-quality copies of copyright-protected movies and television programs.

Thomas B. Evans, 47, of Centennial, Colo., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Christine M. Arguello in Denver to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.