SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall D. Eggert was recognized at a national awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., today for his role in the prosecution of a capital case involving inmates at the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Mo.
Eggert was among the recipients of the 2014 Criminal Division Assistant Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service. The award, which recognizes superior performance and service, was presented to the trial team of Eggert, Trial Attorney James D. Peterson of the Capital Case Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, and Special Agent Rick McLain of the FBI for the successful prosecution of Wesley Paul Coonce and Charles Hall.
“Randy Eggert has been an invaluable asset to this office for the past 17 years," Dickinson said. “His exemplary work in this case deserves this special recognition and reflects the same commitment to justice, diligent work ethic and astute professionalism he brings to every case he prosecutes on behalf of the United States."
Wesley Paul Coonce, Jr., 34, and Charles Michael Hall, 43, who were both inmates at the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners, were found guilty on May 7, 2014, of murdering another inmate. Coonce was also found guilty of murder by an inmate serving a life sentence. Coonce and Hall were both sentenced to death.
Attorney General Eric Holder addressed the 136 award recipients at today’s ceremony. “Your work is central to the mission of this department, and to the promise of our nation: the promise of equal justice under law," Holder said. “Your efforts help to protect, and to realize, the rights - of safety, security, opportunity, and justice - to which your fellow citizens are entitled. And all across the country - from our biggest cities, to our smallest towns; from rural areas to tribal lands - you play a crucial role in improving public safety, keeping dangerous criminals off the streets, cracking down on financial and health care fraud, and safeguarding the most vulnerable members of society from violence, exploitation, and abuse."
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
