Attorney General Eric Holder today released the following statement regarding the case of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Jason McGuire of Detroit, Mich., and Delvin Davis of Saint Clair Shores, Mich., were found guilty by a jury sitting in Detroit in the Eastern District of Michigan of conspiracy and filing $3.4 million in false claims in the form of false individual income tax returns and false trust tax returns, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.

"I want to talk with you today about the crisis we have in our criminal justice system. A crisis that is fundamental and has the potential to continue to swallow important efforts in the fight against crime. This crisis is the crushing prison population."

A federal district judge in the Atlanta Division for the Northern District of Georgia permanently barred Joan Leger and her company from preparing federal income tax returns for others on Jan. 31, 2014, the Justice Department announced today.

A Las Vegas attorney pleaded guilty today for his role in multiple schemes to defraud his clients, to defraud the IRS and to fraudulently gain control of condominium homeowners’ associations.

Steven Joshua Dinkle, 28, former Exalted Cyclops of the Ozark, Ala., chapter of the International Keystone Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, pleaded guilty in federal court today to hate crime and obstruction of justice charges for his role in a 2009 cross burning, the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama announced.

The fact that we cannot compel other federal, state, and local laboratories and units to adopt this Commission’s guidance does underscore the need to be mindful of the diversity of practice and resources across the country. We must delicately balance the desire to develop meaningful policy with the reality of limited funding at the federal, state, and local levels. And we must do so without taking shortcuts.

Today, a federal court in the Eastern District of North Carolina permanently barred Sharon D. Rhodes and her businesses, R&S Freedom Tax Service and Changing Faces Annoited Tax Services, from preparing tax returns for others.

At the same time, our Civil Rights Division is fighting to achieve justice for victims of hate crimes, and to safeguard those who are targeted just because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. And countless Americans from all backgrounds and walks of life are proudly standing alongside Sweden and other democratic nations in calling for the protection of our LGBT citizens; in working to secure recognition for the equal love and equal humanity of all people; in supporting local advocates in other countries so they can bring about change from within; and in speaking out for the fundamental truth that no matter where you live, who you love, or who you are – whether you’re a public servant or a businessperson; an educator, a scientist, or an athlete competing at the highest level and on a world stage – every human being is, and must be, free and equal in both dignity and rights.

We have benefited from the consideration of these difficult issues by the PCLOB and the PRG and it is a pleasure to appear with them today. In his speech on January 17th, the President laid out a series of measures to reform our surveillance activities that draw upon many of the core recommendations issued by the PCLOB and Presidential Review Group.

At the Department of Justice, we are devoting significant resources and energy to fighting computer hacking and other types of cybercrime. The recent revelations about the massive thefts of financial information from large retail stores have served as a stark reminder to all of us about how vulnerable we are to cyber criminals who are determined to steal our personal information. The Justice Department is more committed than ever to ensuring that the full range of government enforcement tools is brought to bear in the fight against cybercrime.

A federal jury in Miami today convicted a South Florida resident for her role in an international fraudulent lottery scheme that targeted U.S. citizens.

U.S, District Judge D. Lowell Jensen sentenced Noemi Rubio Baez, of Salinas, Calif., to serve 30 months in prison for her involvement in a stolen identity tax refund fraud scheme, Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally for the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag for the Northern District of California announced that today.

The Department of Justice filed a civil lawsuit in the federal court in Delaware today to enjoin Carmen J. Martinez and her business, CJM Bookkeeping and Taxes LLC, from preparing federal tax returns.

Sanborn Map Company Inc. has agreed to pay $2.1 million to the U.S. government to resolve allegations that it submitted false claims in connection with U. S. Army Corps of Engineers contracts.

SelfRefind, a chain of addiction treatment clinics, PremierTox LLC, a clinical laboratory that performs urine testing and Drs. Bryan Wood and Robin Peavler, the owners of SelfRefind and PremierTox, have agreed to pay $15.75 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims to Medicare and Kentucky’s Medicaid program for tests that were medically unnecessary, more expensive than those performed or billed in violation of the Stark Law.

In a video message released today, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that, due to the budget agreement approved by Congress last month, the Justice Department is able to lift the hiring freeze that has been in place for just over three years.

Since the founding of the Human Rights Campaign more than three decades ago, this organization has brought people together to make a profound, positive difference in the lives of millions of Americans.

Today, the Justice Department announced the results of its ongoing efforts to combat fraudulent tax-return preparers and promoters of tax-fraud schemes.

Today, the White House released the National Strategy for Combatting Wildlife Trafficking. The Department of Justice, along with the Departments of State and the Interior, are co-chairs of the U.S. Task Force established by President Obama to lead the implementation of this strategy. On Thursday, Associate Attorney General Tony West will lead the U.S. Delegation’s participation at the London Conference on the Illegal Wildlife Trade.

From its earliest days, our Republic has been bound together by its extraordinary legal system, and by the enduring values that define it. These values – of equality, opportunity, and justice under law – were first codified in our founding documents. And they are put into action every day by leaders like you – and the talented men and women who learn, at great institutions like Georgetown, what it means to be a steward of the law – and an advocate for those whom it protects and empowers.

Six decades ago, with the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, our nation took a historic step toward ending the injustice of “separate but equal” – and building the momentum of a modern Civil Rights Movement.

Let us reaffirm our commitment to the safety and health of tribal communities. And let us rededicate ourselves to giving native children a future unclouded by violence and brightened by hope. This is the responsibility of every one of us.

Attorney General Eric Holder and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper released the following joint statement Wednesday.

Earlier today at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, N.Y., Akbar Ahmad Sherzai, 49, of Centreville, Va., an independent contractor for a trucking company operating in Afghanistan that was responsible for delivering fuel to U.S. Army installations, pleaded guilty to his role in offering a U.S. Army serviceman $54,000 in bribes to falsify documents.

Monajem Hakimijoo, of Beverly Hills, Calif., pleaded guilty on Feb. 13, 2014, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to filing a false federal income tax return for tax year 2007, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.

Irene Tamika Smith, a former professional tax-return preparer, was sentenced yesterday to serve 33 months in prison for conspiring with her co-workers to defraud the United States by filing false tax returns in order to receive fraudulently-inflated refunds for clients.

Today, the Department of Justice issued a letter of findings describing problems in the Missoula County, Mont., Attorney’s Office’s response to sexual assault, and concluding that there is substantial evidence that the County Attorney’s response to sexual assault discriminates against women.

The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a settlement agreement with the Ganado Unified School District in Ganado, Ariz., to ensure that its English Language Learner (ELL) students have equal opportunities to participate in its educational programs, as mandated by federal law.

The government has intervened in a False Claims Act lawsuit against Tenet Healthcare Corp. (Tenet) and four of its hospitals in Georgia and South Carolina, as well as a hospital in Monroe, Ga., owned by Health Management Associates Inc. (HMA), alleging that the hospitals paid kickbacks to obstetric clinics serving primarily undocumented Hispanic women in return for referral of those patients for labor and delivery at the hospitals.

The Department of Justice filed a civil lawsuit today in the federal court in Nashville, Tenn., to stop Gilberto Cortes and his business, Mundo Hispano Services, from preparing federal tax returns.

Each and every day, the award recipients before me – and their colleagues throughout the Division – have helped to advance this Department’s efforts to ensure justice; to promote public safety; to empower victims; to strengthen international alliances; and to uphold the rule of law. You’ve worked closely with foreign allies, as well as state and local law enforcement partners, to identify and investigate emerging national security challenges that know no geographic boundaries – and implicate American interests within the United States and across the globe.

Through their hard work, each of our awardees has helped to leverage vital resources and improve the way we do business. You have shown the power of innovation, energy, and creativity by uniting a broad array of partners to streamline the Department’s operations and bolster information-sharing. Some of you have worked to identify and implement opportunities for savings through mail processing, facilities, and technology enhancements – as well as a wide range of consolidation projects.

The government has asked a federal court in California to issue an injunction shutting down the importation and sales activities of four California companies and six individuals in connection with their imports of illegal children’s products containing, among other things, lead, phthalates and small parts inappropriate for children under age three.

In a video message released today, Attorney General Eric Holder called on Congress to create a strong, national standard for quickly alerting consumers whose information may be compromised by cyberattacks. This legislation would strengthen the Justice Department's ability to combat crime, ensure individual privacy, and prevent identity theft, while also helping to bring cybercriminals to justice.

There can be no doubt that we share a common goal to hold accountable those whose actions contributed to the last financial crisis, which was felt not just at the national or global level, but in the countless communities you represent, as well.

A Northern California real estate investor has agreed to plead guilty for his role in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division announced her departure from the department today, effective as of March 21, 2014.

Since 2009, the Department has publicly charged 73 account holders and 35 professionals with violations arising from their offshore banking activities, and 72 individuals have pled guilty or were convicted at trial. Just as importantly our enforcement efforts have driven over 43,000 taxpayers with secret offshore accounts to identify themselves to the IRS, disclose their offshore accounts, and to pay a total of over $6 billion in back taxes, penalties and interest. And that number is growing.

Director of Public Affairs Brian Fallon released the following statement this morning.

Director of Public Affairs Brian Fallon released the following statement this afternoon.

Omnicare Inc., an Ohio-based long-term care pharmacy, has agreed to pay the government $4.19 million to settle allegations that it engaged in a kickback scheme in violation of the False Claims Act.

The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced that they have entered into a comprehensive settlement agreement with the Stamford Public School District in Stamford, Conn., that requires the district to provide language services and other supports to the more than 2,000 English Language Learner students enrolled in the district’s 20 schools.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that President Obama’s FY 2015 Budget proposal for the Department of Justice calls for $173 million in targeted investments for criminal justice reform efforts.

The United States has asked a federal court in Dallas, Texas, to permanently bar Ricia Daniels and her company, Ricia’s Convenience Tax Service, from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

"The unfinished struggle for equal opportunity and justice is one in which we all have a part. This year, as we mark the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Civil Rights Division remains committed to combating discrimination in all its forms."

Attorney General Eric Holder released the following statement on the Senate’s procedural vote on Debo Adegbile to serve as the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.

It’s a special privilege to share the stage with Deputy Marshal [Kirk] Bowden, who, as we’ve just heard, stood on the literal front lines of this fight during a critical moment in the Civil Rights Movement – at a time when young students, law enforcement officials, National Guardsmen, and brave citizens risked their lives to integrate historic institutions across the Deep South.

Ranti Azeez-Taiwo of Staten Island, N.Y., was sentenced to serve 18 months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.

A former owner and operator of a Florida-based airline fuel supply service company pleaded guilty today to participating in a kickback scheme to defraud Illinois-based Ryan International Airlines, a charter airline company located in Rockford, Ill.