The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a proposed consent decree with class plaintiffs and Orleans Parish Prison (OPP) Sheriff Marlin Gusman following a comprehensive investigation and extensive settlement negotiations regarding unlawful conditions at the prison. The consent decree outlines remedial measures to address the allegations in the complaints filed by class plaintiffs and by the United States in Jones v. Gusman, including deficiencies in prisoner safety from physical and sexual assaults, medical and mental health care, suicide prevention, environmental and life safety and limited English proficiency (LEP) services for Spanish-speaking prisoners.

The Department of Justice and New York State Attorney General filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today against a tour bus joint venture formed by Coach USA Inc. and City Sights LLC alleging that the joint venture, known as Twin America LLC, has resulted in higher prices for hop-on, hop-off bus tours in New York City.

The Department of Justice today announced the opening of their comprehensive grant solicitation period for funding to support public safety, victim services and crime prevention improvements for American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments.

The United States has sued a Las Vegas-based CPA and two others to stop an alleged tax-fraud scheme, the Justice Department announced today. Named as defendants in the civil injunction suit were CPA Wayne Reeves, Reeves’ wife, Diane Vaoga, and their alleged co-promoter, James Stoll. The government complaint was filed last month in Las Vegas with the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. Announcement of the court filing was delayed until Reeves was served with court papers this week.

Former FBI agent John Robert “Bob” Graves and his wife Sara Turberville Graves were sentenced today in federal court to serve 135 months in prison and 36 months in prison, respectively, for their participation in an investment fraud scheme.

A Las Vegas man was sentenced today to 37 months in prison for operating a foreclosure rescue scam that defrauded distressed homeowners who were struggling to pay their mortgages.

Attorney General Eric Holder’s Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence today presented its final report and policy recommendations gathered from public hearings held across the country over the past year.

Kevin L. Groom Sr, 45, a correctional officer with the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge James J. Brady for the Middle District of Louisiana for his role in covering up an incident in which correctional officers used excessive force against an inmate. Groom admitted filing a false report and subsequently providing false information to the FBI about the incident. Investigation of the incident is ongoing.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a consent order of forfeiture today ordering the civil forfeiture of $6,976,924 traced to international money laundering of the proceeds from an offshore Internet gambling operation that illegally targeted U.S. residents.

A Swedish credit card payment processor was sentenced today to 48 months in prison for his role in an international cybercrime ring that netted $71 million by infecting victims’ computers with “scareware” and selling rogue antivirus software that was supposed to secure victims’ computers but was, in fact, useless.

The United States and the city of Portland, Ore., have jointly filed in federal court a proposed court enforceable settlement agreement to remedy constitutional claims that the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) engages in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional uses of force in response to “low-level offenses” against persons with actual or perceived mental illness. The agreement addresses the allegations described in a civil action also filed today by the United States, under provisions of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 for alleged violations of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The owner of a string of community mental health centers pleaded guilty today in connection with a health care fraud and money laundering scheme involving defunct health care provider Health Care Solutions Network Inc. (HCSN).

The Department of Justice today announced that it has entered into a comprehensive memorandum of agreement with the Juvenile Court of Memphis and Shelby County, Tenn., to resolve findings of serious and systemic failures in the juvenile court that violate children’s due process and equal protection rights.

The Department of Justice announced today that it has reached a settlement with Penguin Group (USA) Inc.–one of the largest book publishers in the United States–and will continue to litigate against Apple Inc. and Holtzbrinck Publishers LLC, which does business as Macmillan, for conspiring to raise e-book prices to consumers.

The Justice Department announced today that it reached a settlement agreement with R-Tronics LLC, a company based in Rome, N.Y., which manufactures custom and prototype cables, wire harnesses and electro-mechanical assemblies. The agreement resolves allegations that the company violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by limiting its hiring practices to U.S. citizens.

The Justice Department announced today that it reached an agreement with Holliswood Hospital, a hospital in Queens, N.Y., resolving claims that the hospital violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), when it required newly hired lawful permanent residents to provide more or different documents during the Form I-9 employment eligibility verification process.

The former owner of a road and parking lot painting and striping business in Anchorage, Alaska, was sentenced today for illegally disposing of more than 200,000 pounds of highly flammable hazardous waste in Anchorage.

The Justice Department today filed a civil rights lawsuit against Terry S. Johnson, in his official capacity as head of the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) in North Carolina.

The Department of Justice today announced that it will not challenge a proposal by STARS Alliance LLC (STARS), a group of seven nuclear power plant operators, to procure jointly certain goods and services.

The Justice Department today announced an agreement with Lesley University in Cambridge, Mass., to ensure that students with celiac disease and other food allergies can fully and equally enjoy the university’s meal plan and food services in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The United States has asked a federal court in Atlanta to bar Larry J. Heath, who operates Heath’s Income Tax II in Cartersville, Ga., and his brother Andrew R. Heath, who operates Excellent Tax Service of Acworth, Ga., from preparing tax returns for others.

The Justice Department today entered into a sweeping agreement with the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and Governor Luis Fortuño to resolve its civil investigation of the Puerto Rico Police Department.

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached an agreement with the State of New Hampshire that will allow for all 10 of the towns in that state that are covered jurisdictions under the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act to bail out from coverage by these provisions.

Caddell Construction Company Inc., a major commercial and industrial federal government construction contractor based in Montgomery, Ala., has entered into an agreement with the Department of Justice to resolve criminal fraud violations arising from Caddell’s intentional overstating of developmental assistance provided to a disadvantaged small business as part of a Department of Defense (DoD) program.

The Department of Justice and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced today – Dec. 28, 2012 – a settlement of the United States’ federal court lawsuit against Custer County and the State of Idaho concerning county action on roads and trails on federal land in Custer County.

The Justice Department announced that the state of Delaware has fully complied with the parties’ amended memorandum of agreement (MOA) which was reached after an investigation of three Delaware state prisons. The MOA, which includes reforms in mental health care, medical care and suicide prevention, was entered into after an investigation of the conditions at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center, the Howard R. Young Correctional Institution and the Sussex Correctional Institution.

The Justice Department announced that it has reached an agreement with the Browns Valley Irrigation District, a special district in California, that, if approved by the court, will allow for the district to bail out from its status as a “covered jurisdiction” under the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act, and thereby exempt the district from the preclearance requirements of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. The district covers part of Yuba County, which is a jurisdiction subject to Section 5. The agreement is in the form of a consent decree filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The Department of Justice today announced that it will not challenge a proposal by Columbia Fuel Services Inc. and Lanmar Aviation Inc., the only providers of flight support services at the Groton-New London Airport, in Groton, Conn., to combine their fuel and hangar resources into a newly formed joint venture, Mystic Jet Center.

Transocean Deepwater Inc. has agreed to plead guilty to violating the Clean Water Act (CWA) and to pay a total of $1.4 billion in civil and criminal fines and penalties, for its conduct in relation to the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the Department of Justice announced today

The Justice Department today announced a settlement agreement with Peroutka and Peroutka P.A., a debt collection law firm based in Pasadena, Md., to resolve allegations that the law firm violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by discriminating against people who are deaf.

A former financial services broker was sentenced today in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, for his participation in conspiracies related to bidding for contracts for the investment of municipal bond proceeds and other municipal finance contracts.

The Wisconsin Public Service Corporation (WPS) will invest approximately $300 million in pollution control technology, pay a civil penalty of $1.2 million, and spend $6 million on environmental mitigation projects to resolve violations of the Clean Air Act (CAA), according to the terms of a settlement with the United States.

Richard R. Whatley, a former owner of Alliance Staffing Management Inc., pleaded guilty today for willfully failing to account for and pay over employment taxes.

The Justice Department announced today that it will monitor the municipal special election on Jan. 8, 2013, in Branchville, S.C., to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The Voting Rights Act prohibits discrimination in the election process on the basis of race, color or membership in a minority language group.

The Justice Department announced today that it reached an agreement with Centerplate Inc., resolving allegations that the company violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

A Romanian national was sentenced today to serve 21 months in prison for his role in an international, multimillion-dollar scheme to remotely hack into and steal payment card data from hundreds of U.S. merchants’ computers.

The United States Justice Department and U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced today the filing of a complaint alleging that the Jerome County Sheriff’s Office willfully violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 by failing to reemploy and terminating Idaho Army National Guard Member Mervin Jones while he was recuperating from a knee injury that he sustained while performing military service.

Today, the Justice Department announced that yesterday afternoon it filed in federal court a comprehensive agreement that will resolve long running litigation with the state of Tennessee originally concerning conditions of care at the former Arlington Developmental Center (ADC).

The Department of Justice filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today against Bazaarvoice Inc. challenging the company’s June 2012 acquisition of PowerReviews Inc.

The Department of Justice announced today that it has reached a settlement that will require the Oklahoma State Chiropractic Independent Physicians Association (OSCIPA) and its executive director to stop jointly determining prices and negotiating contracts with insurers on behalf of competing chiropractors in Oklahoma.

Three men, including two former officers with the Police of Puerto Rico, were convicted today by a federal jury in San Juan, Puerto Rico, for their roles in providing security for drug transactions.

Two men employed by a machine products vendor in Albany, Ga., have pleaded guilty to bribing a public official working for a military organization at the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany (MCLB-Albany) to secure contracts for machine products

The Justice Department announced that yesterday it reached an agreement with Illinois officials to help ensure that military service members, their family members and other U.S. citizens living overseas have an opportunity to participate fully in the upcoming Feb. 26, 2013, special primary election, and the April 9, 2013, special election to fill a vacated seat in the state’s 2nd Congressional District.

A Virginia man was sentenced today in federal court to serve one year and one day in prison for selling counterfeit General Motors (GM) automotive diagnostic devices used by mechanics to identify problems with and assure the safety of motor vehicles.

A New Zealand fishing company that owned and operated the tuna fishing vessel San Nikunau, and a former chief engineer on the ship, were sentenced in federal court today for environmental crimes and obstruction of justice.

The Justice Department announced today that it has sued a Kissimmee, Fla., tax return preparer, seeking to bar him permanently from preparing federal tax returns for others.

The Justice Department announced today that a settlement has been reached with David Hamilton for violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.

Today, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana entered an order granting the joint motion of the United States and the city of New Orleans to enter the consent decree regarding the New Orleans Police Department.

The Justice Department today announced that property manager Rudy Ferrante agreed to a $15,000 civil judgment against him, to resolve allegations that he sexually harassed female tenants in Portland, Maine.

The Department of Justice today settled a civil complaint against Richard A. Retta, of Rockville, Md, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, for violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.