WASHINGTON - Debra Breneman, Chief of the Appellate Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Tennessee, was one of 179 members of the Department of Justice recognized by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys (EOUSA) Director Monty Wilkinson at the 33rd Director’s Awards Ceremony today in Washington D.C.
The Eastern District of Tennessee was one of 35 districts represented at the ceremony, which was held in the Great Hall at the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building.
In his prepared remarks, Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein told the awardees, “These 179 award recipients embody the best of the Department of Justice.… Today’s honorees have earned the esteem of their colleagues. But most importantly, you have earned the gratitude of your fellow citizens - whose communities you have made safer, whose lives you have improved, and whose trust you have rewarded. "
Breneman is a graduate of Harvard Law School and has served in the Appellate Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee for eight years, three as Appellate Chief. Prior to that, she served four years as an appellate attorney in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.
During her tenure with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, she has consistently served at a level that can only be described as extraordinary. As evidence of her work ethic, in fiscal year (FY) 2016 Appellate Chief Breneman worked over 1000 hours of uncompensated overtime and was exceptionally productive. Under her leadership, in FYs 2014, 2015, and 2016, the appellate section handled 146, 118, and 101 defendant appeals respectively. During these years, Breneman either wrote or edited practically every brief filed by the district. Despite this volume, she unfailingly maintained the highest standards.
“The extraordinary volume and quality of the work done by Appellate Chief Brenneman has earned her the great and uniform admiration of her fellow Assistant U.S. Attorneys. Last year, she was recognized by her coworkers as AUSA of the Year, an award that has only been given once in the district," said U.S. Attorney Nancy Stallard Harr.
EOUSA provides oversight, general executive assistance, and direction to the 94 United States Attorneys’ offices around the country. For more information on EOUSA and its mission, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
