Attorney General Eric Holder announced today the launch of a public awareness campaign at a Federal Interagency Drug Endangered Children (DEC) Task Force event to bring attention to the challenges faced by children and families affected by drug abuse and highlight the work being done across the country to address these issues.

The Justice Department announced today a comprehensive settlement agreement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Wells Fargo &s services nationwide, including its nearly 10,000 retail banking, brokerage and mortgage stores, over 12,000 ATMs, and its telephone and website services.

The Justice Department today reached a settlement agreement with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), an organization of 60,000 pediatricians based in Elk Grove Village, Ill., resolving allegations that the organization impermissibly allowed postings on its www.PedJobs.org website that limited applications to U.S. citizens and certain visa holders.

A Kansas man who previously resided in Rwanda was convicted today of visa fraud, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton.

On behalf of the Federal Interagency Drug Endangered Children Task Force and its members and supporters – and, more importantly, the millions of voiceless children across this Nation who are forced to survive unimaginable home lives – I want to thank you all for coming to this Public Awareness Event.

"Each of you has been invited because of your experience, your expertise, and your influence within your constituencies. What we have in this room today is a gathering of many of the most influential criminal justice stakeholders in the nation and we’re going to really try to leverage that influence."

Laura Barel of Lauderhill, Fla., has been charged with one count of filing a false claim and two counts of aiding and abetting the filing of a false claim.

A Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty today in federal court to charges of conspiring to conduct a racketeering enterprise related to his membership in a Pittsburgh Crips criminal enterprise.

The Justice Department announced that Matthew Nestor and William Moyer were sentenced today for falsifying information related to the investigation into the beating death of Luis Ramirez.

The Justice Department today filed a civil complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado against Kenneth and JoAnn Scott for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.

A Florida physician was sentenced today to four years in prison for his role in a fraud scheme involving lobbying and fund raising for political candidates and organizations.

The Justice Department today announced a settlement agreement with the Alexandria Country Day School in Alexandria, La., to resolve allegations that the school denied a six-year-old girl with Type I diabetes admission to the school after her parents requested that the school supervise her in daily diabetes care practices.

As we can all agree, our sentencing policies must be tough, predictable and aimed at: enhancing public safety; reducing crime; reducing recidivism; eliminating unwarranted disparities; minimizing the negative, often devastating effects of illegal drugs; and inspiring trust and confidence in the fairness of our criminal justice system.

"Every day in the Civil Rights Division presents me, my staff, and our outstanding team of dedicated career attorneys and professionals a new opportunity to protect and defend the rights of individuals who might not be able to assert those rights on their own. We are proud to carry the torch of the great civil rights pioneers who fought for laws that would ensure equal opportunity and equal justice – and we honor their legacy by enforcing those laws aggressively and evenhandedly. "

"I know that you are dedicated to your clients, and to defending them as vigorously as you can, while at the same time recognizing the importance of criminal prosecution to society. And in representing clients who would not have the means to defend themselves without you, you are essential to our adversary system."

"As we rededicate ourselves to this work, I can’t help but feel optimistic about where we’ll arrive – and what we will achieve – together. Not only do I look forward to hearing about the discussions that you will have – and the recommendations that you will develop – during this symposium, I look forward to our continued partnership, our continued progress, and our continued pursuit of security, opportunity, and justice for all."

"This evidence-based approach to public safety issues is important across the criminal justice spectrum. I’ve made it a top priority at OJP. Shortly after taking office in 2009, I launched my Evidence Integration Initiative – we call it E2I, for short. Our goal is to both improve the quantity and quality of research and other evidence that we generate and get that information out to the field in a useable format."

Newark, N.Y.-based Ultralife Corporation, formerly known as Ultralife Batteries Inc., has agreed to pay $2.7 million to resolve allegations that the battery manufacturer violated the False Claims Act.

A federal court in Ft. Meyers, Fla., has barred Gregory Boone of Riverview, Fla., from promoting an alleged tax fraud scheme

A Pasadena, Texas, man pleaded guilty today to charges related to a homicide that took place in Atascosa County, Texas, in May 2008.

A Trenton, N.J., jury Wednesday found Paterson, N.J.-based dietary supplement companies Quality Formulation Laboratories Inc. and American Sports Nutrition Inc., as well as their owner, Mohamed S. Desoky, and managers Ahmad Desoky Esq. and Omar Desoky, guilty of multiple counts of criminal contempt of court for violating a consent decree.

A former owner of two Illinois-based technology companies has pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the federal E-Rate program by providing bribes and kickbacks to school officials in Arkansas, Illinois and Louisiana.

The Justice Department today announced that it has entered in to a court-enforceable agreement with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio resolving a longstanding dispute over access to information related to the department’s Title VI investigation of the sheriff’s office.

A federal grand jury today returned a six-count indictment against former U.S. Senator and Presidential candidate John Edwards for allegedly participating in a scheme to violate federal campaign finance laws.

The owner of a New Jersey solid waste management company and three of his associates were arrested today on federal charges that they conspired to transport and dump thousands of tons of asbestos contaminated debris at an upstate New York farm containing wetlands.

Wesley William Brandt, 46, of Davenport, Fla., pleaded guilty today to three counts of production of child pornography.

Friday James, who according to the government complaint is from Landsdowne, Pa., and his business agreed to the permanent injunction order without admitting the allegations against them.

The case originated when a lawful permanent resident responded to a Canvas Corporation job advertisement seeking U.S. citizen applicants for vendor positions.

Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed Denise O'Donnell as the Justice Department's Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

David R. Bostic, of Bloomington, Ind., pleaded guilty today to multiple charges of sexual exploitation of children relating to his participation in an international conspiracy to sexually exploit children through the trading of child pornography.

The owner and manager of a California condominium complex were sentenced today for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act’s asbestos work practice standards during the renovation of a 204-unit apartment building in Winnetka, Calif., in 2006 – work that caused asbestos to be released into the complex and the surrounding community.

Chinua Shepperson, 28, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today in Greenbelt, Md., by U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams to life plus 10 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise known as the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation (Latin Kings), murder in aid of racketeering, robbery, using a gun during a crime of violence and murder resulting from use of a gun during a crime of violence.

Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed Donald B. Verrilli Jr. as the next Solicitor General of the United States.

"I’m proud to say that – today, when it comes to protecting and empowering LGBT citizens – our nation is on a path of progress. And in the months and years to come, let us strive to build upon the hard-fought victories of so many leaders and allies – both in our Department, through the critical work of organizations like DOJ Pride, and beyond – and to honor the promise of “equal justice under law.”

Miami resident Reynel Betancourt, 51, was sentenced today to 77 months in prison for his participation in a $9 million Medicare fraud scheme.

A Cincinnati man pleaded guilty yesterday to selling more than $1 million worth of counterfeit financial and tax preparation software through an Internet auction site.

Zakariya Boyd, aka “Zak,” pleaded guilty today in federal court in New Bern, N.C., to one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.

Jarell Sanderson, of New Britain, Conn., was sentenced today to 310 months in prison on child sex trafficking charges.

Thanh Viet Jeremy Cao of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., pleaded guilty today in Las Vegas before Judge Kent J. Dawson to six counts of filing false liens against employees and officers of the federal government.

A ship management company headquartered in Greece that operated a 29,414 - ton cargo ship that made calls in multiple ports in Texas pleaded guilty and was sentenced late yesterday in federal court in Corpus Christi for deliberately concealing pollution discharges from the ship directly into the sea and for failing to notify the U. S. Coast Guard of numerous safety hazards on board the vessel.

Midtown Imaging LLC, a radiology clinic, and its former owners Midtown Imaging P.A. and PBC Medical Imaging have agreed to pay $3 million to resolve allegations that the clinic violated the False Claims Act.

Daniel B. Birkbeck, 46, of North Stonington, Conn., was charged today in federal court with trafficking in and falsifying records for illegally harvested Atlantic Striped Bass.

The Justice Department announced today that it has opened a civil investigation into allegations of use of excessive force by members of the Portland, Ore., Police Bureau (PPB), in accordance with the pattern or practice provision of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.

A federal grand jury in Greenbelt, Md., indicted Alfred Edwards and Gloria Edwards, both of Upper Marlboro, Md., on charges arising from a scheme to compel the labor and domestic service of a Filipina national.

Daniel B. Birkbeck, 46, of North Stonington, Conn., was charged today in federal court with trafficking in and falsifying records for illegally harvested Atlantic Striped Bass.

"Effective, accountable policing is critical for any healthy community, and we are here today because we all share the goal of ensuring that the Portland Police Bureau is the best law enforcement agency that it can be."

The Justice Department has reached an agreement with the city of Bedford, Va., that, if approved by the court, will allow for the city’s bailout from its status as a “covered jurisdiction” under the special provisions of Voting Rights Act, and thereby exempt the city from the preclearance requirements of Section 5 of the act.

A Romanian national pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia for leading a money laundering network for a transnational criminal group based in Eastern Europe.

This initiative targets immigration scams involving the unauthorized practice of immigration law (UPIL), which occurs when legal advice and/or representation regarding immigration matters is provided by an individual who is not an attorney or accredited representative.

The U.S. subsidiary of Belgian pharmaceutical manufacturer UCB SA. pleaded guilty today to the off-label promotion of its epilepsy drug Keppra and will pay more than $34 million to resolve criminal and civil liability arising out of its illegal conduct.