News and reports from the Department of Justice.

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The Justice Department announced today that it has filed statements of interest in federal courts in Ohio and Alabama to promote the correct and uniform interpretation of voting laws protecting the rights of voters with disabilities. These statements are part of the department’s ongoing efforts to ensure that the voting rights of all individuals, including those with disabilities, are safeguarded.
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Justice Department finds Missouri violated ADA by institutionalizing adults with mental health disabilities

The Justice Department announced today its findings that the State of Missouri violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by unnecessarily institutionalizing adults with mental health disabilities in nursing facilities. The investigation also examined the role of guardianships in such institutionalization.
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Six MS-13 gang members sentenced for racketeering conspiracy involving four murders

The last defendant of the six La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang members who were convicted at two separate federal trials was sentenced today. The six defendants were sentenced for racketeering conspiracy, narcotics conspiracy, and offenses related to the murders of four men in 2019.
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Club Q shooter sentenced to life for hate crimes and firearm offenses

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division announced that Anderson Lee Aldrich, 24, formerly of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to 74 hate crimes and firearms charges related to the November 19, 2022 mass shooting at Club Q, an LGBTQI+ establishment in Colorado Springs.
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Justice Department files suit against Adobe over alleged consumer protection violations

The Justice Department, together with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), announced a civil enforcement action against Adobe Inc. and two Adobe executives, Maninder Sawhney and David Wadhwani, for alleged violations of the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA). The lawsuit alleges that the defendants imposed a hidden “Early Termination Fee” on millions of online subscribers and that Adobe forced subscribers to navigate a complex and challenging cancellation process designed to deter them from canceling subscriptions they no longer wanted.
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Justice Department secures settlements on ADA compliance for Texas county election websites

The Justice Department announced today that the Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern, Northern, Southern, and Western Districts of Texas have secured settlement agreements with Colorado County, Runnels County, Smith County, and Upton County. These settlements resolve findings that the counties violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by maintaining election websites that discriminate against individuals with vision or manual disabilities.
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Consulting firms pay $11M over failed cybersecurity measures

Guidehouse Inc., headquartered in McLean, Virginia, has paid $7.6 million and Nan McKay and Associates (Nan McKay), headquartered in El Cajon, California, has paid $3.7 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by failing to meet cybersecurity requirements in contracts intended to ensure a secure environment for low-income New Yorkers to apply online for federal rental assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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DOJ official reaffirms commitment to LGBTQI+ rights at pride event

Acting Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer delivered remarks at the DOJ Pride 30th Anniversary Celebration and Awards Ceremony on June 17, 2024. In his speech, Mizer highlighted the Department of Justice's ongoing commitment to protecting civil rights, particularly for the LGBTQI+ community.
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Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco celebrates 30 years of DOJ Pride

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco delivered remarks at the DOJ Pride 30th Anniversary Celebration and Awards Ceremony on June 17, 2024. Her speech highlighted the significant contributions of DOJ Pride members over the past three decades.
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Merrick Garland: ‘We will continue to be relentless in our fight to protect American communities from the cartels’

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced that the Department of Justice successfully executed an operation aimed at disrupting the Sinaloa Cartel’s American drug distribution network. He made this statement in a press release on June 5.
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Tacoma firm pleads guilty for false declarations on timber imports

Tip the Scale LLC, a company based in Tacoma, Washington, pleaded guilty and was sentenced today for making false declarations regarding the species and harvest location of timber used in wooden cabinets and vanities.
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Georgia CPA pleads guilty in syndicated conservation easement tax scheme

A Georgia man pleaded guilty today to conspiracy and filing a false personal tax return related to his participation in the promotion and sale of abusive syndicated conservation easement tax shelters.
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Director Rosie Hidalgo addresses elder abuse awareness

Rosie Hidalgo, Director of the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), delivered a message for World Elder Abuse Awareness Day 2024. The event aims to raise awareness about the abuse and neglect faced by older adults.
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Justice Department announces $940M distribution for victims fund

On June 14, 2024, Special Master Mary Patrice Brown announced that she will authorize fifth-round payments for all eligible claims in the U.S. Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund (the Fund) by January 1, 2025. The Fund, which continues to collect deposits, anticipates that the fifth distribution will be at least $940 million. The amounts available for this distribution come from qualifying federal enforcement actions, including United States v. Binance Holdings Limited.
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Florida residents plead guilty in conspiracy targeting pregnancy resource centers

Three Florida residents pleaded guilty today to conspiring to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate employees of pregnancy resource centers in the free exercise of the right to provide and seek reproductive health services. The defendants targeted reproductive health facilities that provided and counseled abortion alternatives and vandalized those facilities with threatening messages.
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Indiana man sentenced for role in $5.6M international fraud scheme

An Indiana man was sentenced today to three years in prison for his role in an international advance-fee scheme orchestrated from Nigeria that defrauded victims worldwide of over $5.6 million.
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Justice Department repatriates $156M misappropriated 1MDB funds

The Justice Department announced today the repatriation of an additional $156 million in misappropriated 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) funds to Malaysia, bringing the total returned by the department to approximately $1.4 billion.
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Nigerian national convicted for involvement in business email compromise scheme

A federal jury in Alexandria, Virginia, convicted a Nigerian national today for operating a business email compromise scheme targeting victims in the United States and elsewhere.
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Justice Department finds civil rights violations by Phoenix Police

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke announced the findings of the Justice Department’s civil rights investigation into the Phoenix Police Department and the City of Phoenix. The investigation revealed a pattern or practice of conduct violating the First, Fourth, and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, as well as violations of the Safe Streets Act, Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Americans with Disabilities Act.
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Minnesota man sentenced for providing material support to ISIS

A Minnesota man was sentenced to 120 months in prison followed by 15 years of supervised release for providing material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization. Based on the defendant’s cooperation, the government asked the court to give the defendant credit for providing substantial assistance.
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