Attorney General Eric Holder and Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs Mary Lou Leary announced several improvements to the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) Program following the completion of a comprehensive review of the program ordered by the Attorney General in May 2012.

Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of my colleagues – the nearly 116,000 dedicated men and women who serve in Justice Department offices around the world – I’m pleased to report that we’ve established a remarkable record of progress in expanding our nation’s founding promise of equal justice under law, and ensuring the safety and security of our citizens.

I want to take this opportunity not only to congratulate our honorees, but to thank all of you – everyone here – for your commitment to finding missing, abducted, and exploited children.

Our commitment to children – and to finding missing children – is stronger than ever.

These ongoing struggles are why Asian Americans and Pacific Islander leaders in our economic, academic, and social institutions are so important. These are the leaders who are working tirelessly each day to create positive change for the AAPI community, their neighbors, and our Country.

Attorney Mitchell J. Stein, 53, of Hidden Hills, Calif., was convicted by a jury in the Southern District of Florida for his role in operating a five-year, multimillion-dollar market manipulation and fraud scheme.

The Justice Department is committed to vigorously investigating allegations of wrongdoing at financial institutions and, along with our many law enforcement partners, holding individuals and corporations to account for their conduct.

We must work together — the government and the private sector — to build closer and even better partnerships. Only by doing this will be able to make the future Internet a place where we can be more confident that our businesses, our privacy, and our personal finances can operate safely.

There is, I am convinced, no higher honor nor greater privilege than to serve one’s fellow citizens. Four years ago, this Committee endorsed and the Senate confirmed my nomination to lead the Justice Department’s Civil Division.

Attorney General Eric Holder delivered keynote remarks after U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas administered the Oath of Allegiance to 70 new citizens today during a special naturalization ceremony at the Department of Justice’s Great Hall.

"All of you have become indispensable parts of your communities and your new nation. No matter your profession, your background, or your reason for immigrating to the United States – each of you has come to embody the very best of what it means to be an American."

"Today, we strike a severe blow against a professional money laundering enterprise charged with laundering over $6 billion in criminal proceeds," said Raman.

Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed Karol V. Mason as the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs (OJP).

We gather today to thank Medgar Evers for his vision, his leadership, and his enduring impact. In the eye of history he stands with Garvey, Malcolm, Wilkins and King.

Thanks to my dedicated colleagues – the nearly 116,000 employees serving in offices around the world – in recent years, the Department has made tremendous progress in protecting the safety, and the sacred rights, of the American people. Nowhere is this clearer than in our work to ensure America’s national security.

If this sounds like a tall order – or a tough assignment – that’s because it is. But the truth is that, throughout history, this country has always relied on the energy, the optimism, and the fresh ideas of our youngest citizens to drive positive change – and ensure our continued progress.

The Department of Justice today announced new guidelines for the payment of attorneys’ fees and expenses in large chapter 11 bankruptcy cases in order to enhance disclosure and transparency in the compensation process and to help ensure that attorneys’ fees and expenses are based on market rates.

It is estimated that more than 1.7 million children currently have a parent in prison, and many more have parents who are in local jails or lock-ups at any given time. As we’ve heard today, addressing these children’s needs requires a coordinated effort of multiple government agencies and social service entities to implement collaborative approaches. This Administration is committed to providing support to children of incarcerated parents and their caregivers.

Today’s agreement is about opportunity. It’s about growth. And it’s about human dignity. That’s because today’s agreement centers on integrating people with disabilities into the engine of the economic mainstream: the workplace.

It is an idea ACS strives to make real in the work this organization does in law schools, with law students, lawyers, policymakers and opinion leaders across the country. As the third-ranking official at the U.S. Department of Justice and one who oversees, among others, the Civil Rights Division, the Office of Justice Programs and the Access to Justice Initiative, I'm grateful for your commitment and honored by your invitation to contribute to today’s discussion about indigent defense.

These day-to-day efforts by the Justice Department and our counterparts around the world might not be visible to the public, but the fruits of these efforts are.

Especially this morning, we must recommit ourselves to the work that – however the cases are decided – will remain undone. We have traveled far together on the road to true equality and non-discrimination.

As an extraordinarily dedicated public servant, a talented national security and law enforcement executive, and a principled leader with extensive experience in government and the private sector, Jim Comey is uniquely qualified to serve as the next Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Significant strides have been made in expanding access to quality representation for more of those who need it. Yet – despite the undeniable progress our nation has witnessed over the last half-century – America’s indigent defense systems continue to exist in a state of crisis. And, as this film demonstrates, a great deal of work remains before us.

Attorney General Eric Holder today issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court’s decision in Fisher v. University of Texas.

The Department of Justice will continue to carefully monitor jurisdictions around the country for voting changes that may hamper voting rights. Let me be very clear: we will not hesitate to take swift enforcement action – using every legal tool that remains available to us – against any jurisdiction that seeks to take advantage of the Supreme Court’s ruling by hindering eligible citizens’ full and free exercise of the franchise.

Attorney General Eric Holder today issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act.

Attorney General Eric Holder today issued the following statement regarding the United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance to Federal agencies.

After conducting a rigorous review of internal Justice Department guidelines governing investigations and other law enforcement matters that involve journalists, Attorney General Eric Holder today released a report outlining several key reforms to the department’s protocols.

While incarceration is a necessary part of the strategy for ensuring public safety, we know it is not the only answer in every case -- especially for the low-level drug offender. If any of us hope to change the behavior of our criminal population – and make our communities safer – we must make the investment to treat individuals with substance use disorders and others in need of help as a part of the criminal justice system.

Since that moment – thanks to the work of groups like this one, and the dedication of passionate advocates like all of you – our nation has experienced remarkable, once-unimaginable progress.

Today – starting here and now – it’s time to commit ourselves to a respectful, responsible dialogue about issues of justice and equality – so we can meet division and confusion with understanding, with compassion, and ultimately with truth.

Today, the Justice Department and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico filed an historic and court-enforceable agreement to ensure that local police services will be delivered in a manner that is both highly effective and consistent with the Constitution, the laws of the United States and our most treasured values.

Thank you, Governor, for that kind introduction. You and your administration – particularly, Secretary Sánchez Betances – have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the safety and welfare of the people of Puerto Rico

Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed the confirmation by the U.S. Senate of Tony West as the Department of Justice’s Associate Attorney General.

Just as it always has been, the American dream is founded – today – on the fundamental promise of equal protection, and equal justice under law, for everyone in this country.

Building on the work of the original and successful Defending Childhood Task Force and efforts across the Department of Justice in Indian country, the American Indian and Alaska Native Task Force will consist of two groups – an Advisory Committee and a Federal Working Group.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder released the following statement Monday night after the U.S. Senate voted 93-1 to confirm James Comey as the next director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed the confirmation by the U.S. Senate of Stuart F. Delery as the Department of Justice’s Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division.

As Attorney General, the highest award I can bestow within the Justice Department is the Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Service – which is typically presented only once each year. Today, in recognition of Bob Mueller’s leadership of the FBI, his contributions over the course of his career, and his exemplary service to the American people, it is my privilege to present him with this year’s Exceptional Service Award.

These three principles — data-driven innovation, effective collaboration, and meaningful reentry — certainly are not the only approaches to smarter policing in this new century, but they are important as we continue to build the bridge to justice and equality in this challenging climate of contraction, subtraction, and sequestration.

"Today, a vicious cycle of poverty, criminality, and incarceration traps too many Americans and weakens too many communities. And many aspects of our criminal justice system may actually exacerbate these problems, rather than alleviate them," said Attorney General Holder.

Consumers will also pay more on routes where US Airways and American today offer competing nonstop service. We know from prior mergers that elimination of head-to-head competition on nonstop routes results in substantial price increases for consumers.

Attorney General Eric Holder issued the following statement today on the resignation of U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Neil H. MacBride:

Each of these brave men and women displayed a profound love of country that must always be appreciated. It is to these people that we owe the greatest debt – Americans of all races, genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and backgrounds who risked everything in order that their fellow citizens, and their children, might truly be free.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) will provide $2.5 million in funding to the Connecticut State Police, the Newtown, Conn., Police Department and their partner agencies that provided assistance in response to the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School last year.

In the Obama administration’s latest step to ensure equal treatment for same-sex married couples following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down a key section of the Defense of Marriage Act, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced Wednesday that President Obama has directed the Executive Branch to take steps allowing for same-sex spouses of military veterans to collect federal benefits.

“We’re pleased that the court has issued an order supporting the Department of Justice’s efforts to address Apple’s illegal price fixing conduct. Consumers will continue to benefit from lower e-books prices as a result of the department’s enforcement action to restore competition in this important industry," said Assistant Attorney General Baer.

Attorney General Eric Holder met with Mexican Attorney General Jesús Murillo Karam today to discuss the release by the Mexican government of Rafael Caro Quintero, who was convicted of murdering Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena in February 1985.

Our updated guidance also makes one overarching point clear: the Department of Justice expects that states and local governments that have enacted laws authorizing marijuana-related conduct will implement effective regulatory and enforcement systems to protect federal priorities and the health and safety of every citizen.