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.

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the appointment of Robin C. Ashton to serve as head of the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) at the Department of Justice.

The Justice Department today announced a $1.25 million agreement with Warren Properties Inc., Warren Village (Mobile) Limited Partnership, and Frank R. Warren, to settle allegations that the defendants violated the Fair Housing Act by refusing to grant a tenant’s requests for a reasonable accommodation.

Marc Velasquez pleaded guilty today to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Video Relay Service (VRS) program.

"Each year, this time provides an opportunity for each of us to rededicate ourselves to Dr. King’s dream of racial, social, and economic justice. It is also a reminder of the power and importance of service to others."

Guidant LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Boston Scientific Corporation, was formally convicted and sentenced today in St. Paul, Minn., for criminal violations relating to its interactions with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Nicholas J. Faranso of Farmington Hills, Mich., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Court Judge John Corbett O’Meara in the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.

Northern Indiana Public Service Co. (NIPSCO) has signed a settlement agreement in which it has agreed to invest approximately $600 million in pollution control technology to resolve violations of the Clean Air Act.

"In this time of inexplicable loss, the power of Dr. King’s example – and the importance of his commitment to, and pursuit of, justice – are brought into stark focus."

The Department of Justice announced today a settlement with Comcast Corp. and General Electric Co.’s subsidiary NBC Universal Inc. (NBCU) that allows their joint venture to proceed conditioned on the parties’ agreement to license programming to online competitors to Comcast’s cable TV services, subject themselves to anti-retaliation provisions and adhere to Open Internet requirements.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today the creation of a new Professional Misconduct Review Unit to handle disciplinary actions for career attorneys at the Department of Justice that arise from Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) investigations and appointed Kevin Ohlson to be its Chief.

The president and the auditor of a Costa Rican company selling reinsurance bonds to life settlement companies were arrested and charged, along with the company itself, in a seven-count indictment unsealed today for their alleged role in a $670 million fraud scheme involving victims throughout the United States and abroad.

The Department of Justice announced today that it is accepting applications from Native American and Alaska Native tribal communities for funding to improve public safety in Indian country via the Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS).

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the formation and inaugural meeting of the Violence Against Women Federal and Tribal Prosecution Task Force.

A Michigan businessman pleaded guilty to wire fraud in connection with the federal E-Rate program.

The Justice Department today released a proposed rule that aims to prevent and respond to sexual abuse in incarceration settings, in accordance with the Prison Rape Elimination Act.

Two individuals pleaded guilty today for their participation in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Video Relay Service (VRS) program.

Karen L. Blyth and David H.M. Phelps pleaded guilty today in federal court in Mobile, Ala., to 13 felony offenses for their roles in purchasing and selling farm raised Asian catfish and Lake Victoria perch falsely labeled as grouper; selling foreign farm-raised shrimp falsely labeled as U.S. wild caught shrimp, selling shrimp that falsely claimed to be larger, more expensive shrimp than they actually were; and for buying fish they knew had been illegally imported into the United States

Noshir S. Gowadia, 66, of Maui, Hawaii, was sentenced late yesterday to 32 years in prison for communicating classified national defense information to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), illegally exporting military technical data, as well as money laundering, filing false tax returns and other offenses.

N.I. Teijin Shoji Co. Ltd., aka N.I. Teisho of Japan, and an American subsidiary, N.I. Teijin Shoji (USA) Inc., have agreed to pay the United States $1.5 million to resolve potential claims under the False Claims Act in connection with the companies’ importation and sale of defective Zylon fiber which was used as the key ballistic material in bulletproof vests.

An Illinois food processing company has agreed to pay a $390,000 civil penalty to the United States to settle allegations that its Baxter Springs, Kan., processing facility overloaded the city’s wastewater treatment system with millions of gallons of industrial wastewater, at times causing pollution along a 22-mile-long section of the Spring River in southeast Kansas and northeast Oklahoma.

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas ordered that Juan Antonio Gaona must adhere to a 25-foot buffer zone around a Planned Parenthood Reproductive Health Services Clinic in San Antonio, Texas.

The FBI and Department of Justice response to the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences report, "Review of the Scientific Approaches Used During the FBI’s Investigation of the 2001 Anthrax Letters."

Twenty individuals, including three doctors, were charged today in the Southern District of Florida for various health care fraud, kickback and money laundering charges related to their alleged participation in a fraud scheme involving approximately $200 million in Medicare billing for purported mental health services.

"Central to our mission is the recovery of taxpayer dollars that are lost to fraud, waste and abuse," said Assistant Attorney General West

The Justice Department today announced a settlement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME), a private, non-profit organization that administers the U.S. Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE), a standardized examination related to medical licensing.

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.”

Zachary Adam Chesser, 21, of Fairfax County, Va., was sentenced today to 25 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for communicating threats against the writers of the South Park television show, soliciting violent jihadists to desensitize law enforcement, and attempting to provide material support to Al-Shabaab, a designated foreign terrorist organization.

As part of continued efforts to close the chapter on allegations that discrimination occurred at U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in past decades.

The Department of Justice reached a settlement today with United Regional Health Care System of Wichita Falls, Texas, that prohibits it from entering into contracts that improperly inhibit commercial health insurers from contracting with United Regional’s competitors.

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

"Today, I come to you on behalf of my colleagues – the more than 117,000 dedicated men and women who serve our nation’s Justice Department in positions and offices all around the world. Above all, I come to you on behalf of my fellow citizens."

Barrett C. White was originally charged in U.S. District Court in New Orleans on Nov. 18, 2010, for his role in the conspiracy to defraud the E-Rate program.

Andrew Warren, 43, a former official with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), was sentenced today to 65 months in prison on charges of abusive sexual contact and unlawful use of cocaine while possessing a firearm.

A federal court in Detroit has ordered Ypsilanti, Mich., property owner and Washtenaw County Commissioner Ronnie Peterson, and his former manager Glen E. Johnson to pay a total of $82,500 in civil penalties in a sexual harassment case.

Jamie Paulin Ramirez, 32, a U.S. citizen and former resident of Colorado, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.

Richard A. Murdoch of Florida was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for immigration fraud and tax evasion charges related to his role in a scheme to fraudulently procure visas from the U.S. Embassy in London through a Florida property development company called Royal Development.

"As I have said often, no aspect of our work is more important – or more urgent – than protecting the safety of the American people and strengthening our national security."

Former Senior U.S. District Court Judge Jack T. Camp Jr., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Atlanta to one month in prison for unlawful possession of controlled substances charges and unlawful conversion of government property.

A federal court has issued a preliminary injunction barring Gwenn Wycoff and Frank Ozak, both of Los Angeles, from promoting so-called “common-law trusts” that help individuals evade taxes.

The former administrative assistant to a U.S. senator was charged today by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia with violating criminal conflict of interest laws.

The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today entered into a settlement agreement with the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) to ensure that Arizona’s English Language Learner (ELL) students receive the educational services that they need.

The Department of Justice today filed a lawsuit on behalf of Jon Fultz, a U.S. Marine Corps reservist, against the city of Winchester, Va., alleging that it violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) by failing to properly reemploy Fultz in September 2009 when he returned from military service during which he sustained a knee injury.

A federal court has permanently barred Gerald A. Poynter II of Kansas City, Mo., from preparing federal tax returns for others and from promoting a fraudulent tax scam.

A former owner of an Illinois-based technology company has pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the federal E-Rate program.

A Joint statement on behalf of the United States and the European Union:

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.

According to charges filed today in U.S. District Court in New York City, Brian Scott Zwerner engaged in a conspiracy to falsify bank records related to the marketing profits for an investment agreement and other municipal finance contracts, including derivative contracts.

Chairman Wolf, Ranking Member Fattah and distinguished Members of the Subcommittee, I’m very pleased to be here to discuss the President’s 2012 budget request for the Office of Justice Programs.

The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today issued a joint statement about how the agencies will enforce U.S. antitrust laws in regard to new Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs).