A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging former Fresno, Calif., Police Department (FPD) Officers Christopher Coleman, 42; Paul Van Dalen, 44; and Sean Plymale, 41; and current FPD Sergeant Michael Manfredi, 50, with civil rights and obstruction of justice offenses related to the assault of a man in their custody in October 2005.

California-based companies Quicksort Inc., Quicksort LA Inc. and Quicksort Sacramento Inc. have agreed to pay the United States $4.2 million to settle allegations that Quicksort violated the False Claims Act by falsely representing the level to which it had pre-sorted mailings in order to obtain discounted postage rates from the U.S. Postal Service.

Lindsey Manufacturing Company, an Azusa, Calif., company and two of its executives were indicted today for their alleged roles in a conspiracy to pay bribes to Mexican government officials at the Comisión Federal de Electricidad, a state-owned utility company.

Craig Shaber, a practicing attorney from San Diego County, Calif., pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Anthony J. Battaglia to one count of tax evasion for the 2000 tax year.

Tyrone L. Ellis, a former civilian employee of the Department of Defense (DoD), was arrested yesterday and has been charged with conspiracy, conversion and false statements related to his alleged theft of Army Emergency Relief (AER) funds while he was employed at Camp Humphreys in the Republic of Korea.

David C. Kernell, 23, today was sentenced to one year and one day in prison for intentionally accessing without authorization the e-mail account of former Alaska governor Sarah Palin and obstruction of justice.

Fang Ping Ding was sentenced in federal court late yesterday to 37 months in prison for confiscating the passport, visa and other documents of a woman from the People’s Republic of China in order to maintain control over the victim and force her to work as an unpaid, live-in domestic servant.

Jeffrey Chatfield of San Diego pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nita Stormes to a criminal information charging him with filing a false tax return related to a Swiss bank account that he maintained at UBS.

The Justice Department today announced that it has filed a lawsuit alleging that Titan Laboratories Inc., and its owner Harvey Berger willfully violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 by discriminating against and failing to reemploy U.S. Army reservist Miguel Orozco Garduño.

On Monday, after a one-week trial in federal court in Los Angeles, a jury found Donna K. Wells, 52, guilty of one count of health care fraud.

The Department of Justice announced today the filing of a lawsuit against the Policía de Puerto Rico alleging the PRPD retaliated against Agent Investigator Sofía Figueroa Rossy for complaining about a hostile work environment based on sex, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended.

U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle also ordered Heliber Toro Mejia, 52; Humberto Toro Mejia, 60; and Luz Elena Acuna Rios, 53; all of Bogotá, to serve three years of supervised release following their prison terms.

A federal jury convicted Clark Alan Roberts, 47, and Sean Edward Howley, 39, both former engineers with Wyko Tire Technology Incorporated, located in Greenback, Tenn., of stealing trade secrets from the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.

A comprehensive Clean Water Act settlement with the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (NEORSD) will address the flow of untreated sewage into Cleveland area waterways and Lake Erie.

A judge sentenced Feliciano Sanchez, a former officer with the Bell, Calif., Police Department, to nine years in federal prison and three years of supervised release for sexually assaulting a female motorist and violating her civil rights.

Brian Lewis of Modesto, Calif., and Abel Mark Gonzalez of Morgan Hill, Calif., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill to conspiring to violate the civil rights of congregants of Congregation Beth Shalom, a synagogue in Modesto, Calif.

The Justice Department today announced that it has reached a settlement on behalf of U.S. Army reservist Miguel Orozco Garduño (Orozco) in its lawsuit against Titan Laboratories Inc., and its owner Harvey Berger.

Stephen Sims was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Gustave Diamond in the Western District of Pennsylvania to 17 years in prison for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.

Andrew Kerber, 22, of Chico, Calif., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill in Fresno, Calif., to violating the civil rights of congregants of Congregation Beth Shalom, a synagogue in Modesto, Calif.

Milad Jafari, 36, a citizen and resident of Iran has been indicted for illegally exporting and attempting to export specialized metals from the United States through companies in Turkey to several entities in Iran, including some entities that have been sanctioned for involvement in ballistic missile activities.

An employee of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, was found guilty today by a jury in Alexandria, Va., of stealing nearly $250,000 intended for the payment of shipping and customs services for the embassy.

A federal jury in Baton Rouge, La., today convicted a former research scientist of stealing trade secrets from Dow Chemical Company and selling them to companies in the People’s Republic of China, as well as committing perjury.

An executive of a U.S. distributor has agreed to plead guilty and serve jail time for his participation in a global conspiracy to fix the prices of aftermarket auto lights.

Tan Nguyen, 35, from Oceanside, Calif., was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge David O. Carter to one year and one day in federal prison for his conviction last year on a federal obstruction of justice charge stemming from lies he told California investigators about his involvement in a letter sent to Latino voters during his 2006 campaign for U.S. House of Representatives.

The United States has sued two Southern California attorneys and a Kentucky financial professional to bar them from promoting an allegedly abusive tax shelter known as an “intermediary transaction.”

Edward Lee Sullivan, of Oakland, Calif., was convicted on Feb. 25, 2011, of one count of producing and one count of possessing child pornography.

A jury in Natchez, Miss., yesterday convicted a Natchez Police Department officer of violating the civil rights of an arrestee by stealing credit and debit cards from the arrestee.

American Education and Travel Services Inc. (AETS) in Antioch, Calif., has agreed to pay $10,000 in back pay and compensatory damages to a lawful permanent resident who was denied a residential counselor position because he was not a U.S. citizen or native English speaker.

The Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against the state of California, Governor Jerry Brown and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for violating the right of an inmate to practice his religion.

A former executive of a California aftermarket auto lights distributor has agreed to plead guilty for his participation in a global conspiracy to fix the prices of aftermarket auto lights.

The Justice Department today filed suit against Rawland Leon Sorensen, the owner and manager of more than 50 residential rental properties in Bakersfield, Calif., alleging a pattern or practice of sexual harassment in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

Charles Douglas Johnson, 47, of Garden Valley, Calif., was sentenced today to 10 years and one month in prison for receiving child pornography.

Paul Schwartz, 49, of Lathrop, Calif., was sentenced today to seven years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute and receive child pornography.

A Santa Clarita, Calif., resident was convicted today of five environmental charges related to the improper renovation of a San Fernando Valley, Calif., apartment complex – work that caused asbestos to be released into the complex and the surrounding community.

The founder and treasurer of the National Association of Special Police and Security Officers (NASPSO) was charged today in a superseding indictment with mail fraud, theft from a labor organization, obstruction of justice, criminal contempt and various recordkeeping offenses related to his operation of a pension plan for NASPSO members.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Italian Minister of Justice Angelino Alfano today met at the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., to re-affirm the joint commitment of the United States and Italy to strengthen cooperation in the ongoing fight against terrorism and transnational organized crime.

A former employee of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., to 42 months in prison for stealing nearly $250,000 intended for the payment of shipping and customs services for the embassy.

Four corporations involved in owning and operating a fleet of vessels regularly visiting New Orleans pleaded guilty today and agreed to pay a $1 million penalty and be banned from doing business in the United States for the next five years under the terms of a proposed plea agreement.

A federal court in Los Angeles has permanently barred William Alexander of Pasadena, Calif., and his two companies, Retirement Plan Services Inc. and Lyons Pensions Inc., from selling or administering pension plans or employee welfare-benefit plans.

"President Obama and Attorney General Holder recognize that civil rights enforcement is about protecting individual rights and helping entire communities," said Assistant Attorney General Perez.

The United States has asked a federal court to bar Dennis Giroud of Victorville, Calif., from preparing federal tax returns for others.

An Oakland, Calif., woman was sentenced today to 57 months in prison for her role in a scam to bill Medicare for more than $1.2 million in claims for expensive, high-end power wheelchairs and other durable medical equipment (DME) that were not medically necessary.

Flavio Ricotti, a former executive of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.-based valve company Control Components Inc. (CCI), has pleaded guilty for his participation in a conspiracy to secure contracts by paying bribes to officials of foreign state-owned companies as well as officers and employees of foreign and domestic private companies.

The Justice Department announced today that Brian Lewis, Abel Mark Gonzalez and Andrew Kerber were sentenced for their roles in violating the civil rights of congregants of several houses of worship in Modesto, Calif.

Richard Franco Montejano, 29, of Harbor City, Calif., pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit criminal copyright infringement, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division.

GWC Valve International Inc., a company headquartered in Bakersfield, Calif., and its chief executive officer, David Meador, 52, were sentenced today in the Eastern District of California for conspiracy to export services related to industrial valves to Iran.

Lindsey Manufacturing Company, an Azusa, Calif., company, two of its executives and a Mexican intermediary today were convicted by a federal jury on all counts for their alleged roles in a scheme to pay bribes to Mexican government officials at the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), a state-owned utility company.

"IP crime is a serious threat. It jeopardizes the health and safety of consumers. It stifles creativity. And it has a negative effect on the American economy. Attorney General Holder and I and other leaders in the Justice Department are 100 percent committed to aggressive IP enforcement. And we want and need you to work with us in this fight. We face real challenges in this area. But we have taken significant strides in the last two years, and I look forward to expanding on those efforts in the months and years ahead."

Six individuals located in South Florida and Pakistan have been indicted in the Southern District of Florida on charges of providing financing and other material support to the Pakistani Taliban, a designated foreign terrorist organization.

The Justice Department today announced a settlement agreement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with a state-funded private preschool program, Beginning Montessori Academy, located in Baldwin Park, Calif.