Largest Increase in AUSAs in Decades Allocates Prosecutors to Focus on Violent Crime, Civil Enforcement, and Immigration Crimes
Roanoke, VIRGINIA -Attorney General Jeff Sessions and U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia Thomas T. Cullen announced that the Department of Justice is taking a dramatic step to increase resources to combat violent crime, enforce our immigration laws, and help roll back the devastating opioid crisis.
In the largest increase in decades, the Department of Justice is allocating 311 new Assistant United States Attorneys to assist in priority areas. Those allocations are as follows: 190 violent crime prosecutors, 86 civil enforcement prosecutors, and 35 additional immigration prosecutors. Many of the civil enforcement AUSAs will support the newly created Prescription Interdiction & Litigation Task Force which targets the opioid crisis at every level of the distribution system.
“Under President Trump's strong leadership, the Department of Justice is going on offense against violent crime, illegal immigration, and the opioid crisis-and today we are sending in reinforcements," said Attorney General Jeff Sessions. “We have a saying in my office that a new federal prosecutor is 'the coin of the realm.' When we can eliminate wasteful spending, one of my first questions to my staff is if we can deploy more prosecutors to where they are needed. I have personally worked to re-purpose existing funds to support this critical mission, and as a former federal prosecutor myself, my expectations could not be higher. These exceptional and talented prosecutors are key leaders in our crime fighting partnership. This addition of new Assistant U.S. Attorney positions represents the largest increase in decades."
The Western District of Virginia will receive funding to hire one AUSA to focus on violent crime and a second AUSA to focus on civil enforcement. It is expected that these positions will be based in the Roanoke office, however the additional allocation of prosecutorial resources will extend throughout the Western District of Virginia. The new positions will soon be open to qualified applicants and are in addition to the three pending job openings in the Western District of Virginia for prosecutors dedicated to the prosecution of violent offenders and prolific drug dealers.
“Reducing violent crime is my first priority and the addition of this Assistant United States Attorney will go a long way in making the communities of the Western District of Virginia safer," U.S. Attorney Cullen stated today. “Human capital is our most important resource in fighting crime and today’s action bring much needed resources to our district."
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
