The Justice Department today announced a settlement of its lawsuit alleging that Equity Homes Inc, PBR LLC, BBR LLC and Shane Hartung violated the Fair Housing Act (FHA) by failing to provide features that would make their multi-family housing developments in Sioux Falls accessible to people with disabilities as required by the Fair Housing Act.

"OJP’s mission is to increase public safety and improve the fair administration of justice across America through innovative leadership and programs," said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.

Carlos Mario Jimenez-Naranjo, aka “Macaco,” a paramilitary leader and one of Colombia’s most notorious drug traffickers, has been sentenced to 33 years in prison.

"The Albert Schweitzer Awards are given in honor of one of the world’s great humanitarians, a man who defined “good” as the preservation and enhancement of life in all its forms. The work that these recipients have done embodies the soul of Schweitzer’s philosophy," said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.

"For those of you who’ve followed our work at OJP over the last nearly three years, you know that our work in this Administration to advance criminal justice social science research has been one of my top priorities," said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.

The Justice Department today announced an agreement with Upshur County, Texas, to improve access to all aspects of civic life for people with disabilities.

The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK), the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska and employees of UNK for violating the Fair Housing Act by discriminating against students with disabilities.

“Through this operation we are aggressively targeting those who are selling counterfeit goods for their own personal gain while costing our economy much-needed revenue and jobs,” said Attorney General Eric Holder.

The Justice Department announced today the launch of a live webinar series on avoiding workplace discrimination. The webinars coincide with the 25th anniversary of the passage of the Immigration Reform and Control Act, which created the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC).

Ronald James Davenport, of Chewelah, Wash., was convicted Tuesday of filing more than $20 billion in false liens against four federal government officials.

A Mobile, Ala., real estate investor has agreed to plead guilty today for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama.

“The tragedy at Upper Big Branch will never be forgotten, and the families affected by it will never be made completely whole again. Today’s agreement represents the largest-ever resolution in a criminal investigation of a mine disaster and will ensure appropriate steps are taken to improve mine safety now and will fund research to enhance mine safety in the future,” said Attorney General Holder.

The Justice Department today announced a settlement of its lawsuit against the owners, developers, architect and civil engineers of Park Place Apartments, a 276-unit complex in Louisville, Ky., resolving allegations that those involved in the design and construction of the complex discriminated against people with disabilities.

Gary Dodson, 32, of Waldron, Ark., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Little Rock, Ark., to one count of civil rights conspiracy, one count of interference with housing rights due to race and one count of possession of an unregistered firearm/destructive device for his involvement in the Jan. 14, 2011, racially motivated firebombing of the home of an interracial couple in Hardy, Ark.

A Virginia contractor pleaded guilty today to participating in a scheme to steer contracts to him for repair, maintenance and renovation work at healthcare and nursing home facilities owned by Medical Facilities of America Inc.

Three Korean Hitachi-LG Data Storage Inc. (HLDS) executives have agreed to plead guilty and to serve prison time in the United States for their participation in a series of conspiracies to rig bids and fix prices for the sale of optical disk drives.

The $3 billion total for fiscal year 2011 includes a record $2.8 billion in recoveries under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which is the government’s primary civil remedy to redress false claims for federal money or property, such as Medicare benefits, payments on military contracts, and federal subsidies and loans.

“This result is a victory for the millions of Americans who use mobile wireless telecommunications services,” said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

Kevin William Harpham, 37, of Colville, Wash., was sentenced to 32 years in prison for the placement of the improvised explosive device alongside the planned Martin Luther King Jr. Day Unity March held on Jan. 17, 2011, in Spokane, Wash,

The Department of Justice requires Exelon Corporation and Constellation Energy Group Inc. to divest three electricity generating plants in Maryland in order to proceed with their $7.9 billion merger.

A former agent for Innospec Inc., a U.S. company, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay a $250,000 fine for his participation in a conspiracy to defraud the United Nations Oil for Food Program (OFFP) and to bribe former Iraqi government officials in connection with the sale of a chemical additive used in the refining of leaded fuel.

The department filed a criminal information against Magyar Telekom and a two-year deferred prosecution agreement in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia today.

A Beverly Hills, Calif.,-based financial products and services firm, and its founder and owner 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 Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Laurie Robinson, announced today that she would be leaving her position at the end of February

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.

"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.

The Justice Department today announced that it has entered into a comprehensive settlement agreement that will transform the Commonwealth of Virginia’s system for serving people with developmental disabilities, including intellectual disabilities, and will resolve violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The director of the school lunch program for the government of the U.S. Territory of American Samoa was convicted today in relation to his efforts to obstruct a federal grand jury and law enforcement investigation into a bribery scheme.

Barnwell, 37, of Evening Shade, Ark., was sentenced in Little Rock, Ark., for his involvement in firebombing the residence of an interracial couple.

Yazaki Corporation and DENSO Corporation have agreed to plead guilty and to pay a total of $548 million in criminal fines for their involvement in multiple price-fixing and bid-rigging conspiracies in the sale of parts to automobile manufacturers in the United States.

"And I want to thank all of you for your commitment to the ideals and principles represented by community courts. These principles – engaging the community, addressing offender behaviors, reducing crime, and ensuring fairness – these have become cardinal tenets of an effective system of justice," said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.

The Justice Department has reached a settlement with the Henry Ford Health System to ensure effective communication with individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing in the provision of medical services.

Teresa Witthar, 43, of Independence, Mo., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Kansas City to federal hate crime charges in connection with the vandalism and arson of a bi-racial man’s mobile home in 2006.

Detroit-area resident Tariq Mahmud, 55, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and six counts of health care fraud.

The Justice Department today announced an agreement with the city of Humboldt, Kan., to improve access to all aspects of civic life for individuals with disabilities.

The federal government and 49 state attorneys general today have reached a landmark $25 billion agreement with the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers to address mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure abuses.

Three Northern California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty today for their roles in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

Capmark Finance LLC in Horsham, Pa., has agreed to pay the United States $3.9 million, to settle a False Claims Act lawsuit, the Justice Department announced today.

The Antitrust Division closed its investigations into Google Inc.’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc., the acquisitions by Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Research in Motion Ltd. (RIM) of certain Nortel Networks Corporation patents, and the acquisition by Apple of certain Novell Inc. patents.

Attorney General Eric Holder and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today released a new report showing that the government’s health care fraud prevention and enforcement efforts recovered nearly $4.1 billion in taxpayer dollars in Fiscal Year (FY) 2011.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the so-called “underwear bomber,” was sentenced today to life in prison as a result of his guilty plea to all eight counts of a federal indictment charging him for his role in the attempted Christmas Day 2009 bombing of Northwest Airlines flight 253.

MOEX Offshore 2007 LLC has agreed to settle its liability in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in a settlement with the United States valued at $90 million, announced the Department of Justice, the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today.

Two financial investors pleaded guilty today for conspiring to rig bids for the sale of tax liens auctioned by municipalities throughout New Jersey.

" Here on this campus, my interest in the law, my understanding of its remarkable power for good, and my desire to serve our nation’s justice system first took hold. And although more than 35 years have passed since I completed my law degree – and started my “dream job” as a prosecutor in the United States Department of Justice – my time at Columbia shaped and enriched my life in ways that I am still realizing, and continue to appreciate," said Attorney General Holder.

The Justice Department today announced a $20,000 consent decree that resolves a lawsuit alleging that a Park City, Utah, condominium association and its management company violated the Fair Housing Act by refusing to grant a resident’s request for a reasonable accommodation.

A Houston federal jury today convicted Robert Allen Stanford, the former Board of Directors Chairman of Stanford International Bank (SIB), for orchestrating a 20-year investment fraud scheme in which he misappropriated $7 billion from SIB to finance his personal businesses.

The Justice Department announced today that Charles Wilhelm, 23, of Independence, Mo., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., to federal hate crime charges in connection with the vandalism and arson of a bi-racial man’s home in 2006.

The Justice Department announced today the launch of an educational video reminding employers that Salvadorans with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) may continue working beyond the March 9, 2012, expiration date of their Employment Authorization Documents.

The Justice Department, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and 49 state attorneys general announced today the filing of their landmark $25 billion agreement with the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers to address mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure abuses.

BizJet International Sales and Support Inc., a provider of aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services based in Tulsa, Okla., has agreed to pay an $11.8 million criminal penalty to resolve charges related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) for bribing government officials in Latin America to secure contracts to perform aircraft MRO services for government agencies.