Month: May 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

TUCSON, Ariz. – Xochil Elizabeth Hernandez, 19, of Tucson, Arizona, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Jennifer G. Zipps to two concurrent terms of 36 months in prison, followed by 36 months of supervised release. Hernandez previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle aliens and possession of ammunition by a convicted felon. At the time of the offense, Hernandez was serving a term of supervised release for a prior alien smuggling conviction. Her supervised release in the prior case was revoked, and she was sentenced to serve six months in addition to the 36 months for the new charge.

On November 6, 2021, an Arizona Department of Public Safety Officer pulled over Hernandez’s vehicle for a traffic infraction near Amado, Arizona. The DPS officer, assisted by nearby Border Patrol agents, discovered the front seat passenger was an undocumented noncitizen. The DPS officer and agents discovered two more undocumented noncitizens hidden in the trunk of the vehicle. They also discovered a bag of .45 caliber ammunition in Hernandez’s purse and a pellet gun designed to look like a Glock handgun in the glove compartment.

Customs and Border Protection’s U.S. Border Patrol and the Arizona Department of Public Safety conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.

CASE NUMBER:           CR-21-3238-TUC-JGZ; CR-20-1543-02-TUC-JGZ
RELEASE NUMBER:    2022-068_Hernandez

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

The Justice Department today released the following statement from spokesman Anthony Coley:

“Attorney General Garland continues to be briefed on security matters related to the Supreme Court and Supreme Court Justices. The Attorney General directed the U.S. Marshals Service to help ensure the Justices’ safety by providing additional support to the Marshal of the Supreme Court and Supreme Court Police.”

Source: United States Department of Justice News

U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland met yesterday in Washington, D.C. with Colombian Attorney General Francisco Barbosa Delgado. In the meeting, Attorney General Garland expressed his appreciation for the extraordinary law enforcement partnership between the United States and Colombia and thanked the Attorney General for his leadership during the first two years of his four-year term in office.

“The Department of Justice works every day to keep the American people safe. Fulfilling that obligation depends upon our cooperation with partners – both here at home and around the world,” said Attorney General Garland. “When it comes to law enforcement, Colombia is an indispensable partner to the United States. Over the past two years, Attorney General Francisco Barbosa Delgado and his office have been the cornerstone of our law enforcement efforts with Colombia. I hope that under his leadership our partnership will continue to grow even stronger in the years ahead.”

Both leaders committed to strengthening the close law enforcement relationship between the United States and Colombia, which has led to the successful investigation and prosecution of drug traffickers, transnational crime, human smuggling, money laundering, and malicious cyber activities, among others.

Attorney General Garland was joined by DEA Administrator Anne Milgram and Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

In honor of National Police Week, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland recognizes the service and sacrifice of federal, state, local, territorial, and Tribal law enforcement. This year, the week is observed Wednesday, May 11 through Tuesday, May 17, 2022.

“This week, we gather to pay tribute to the law enforcement officers who sacrificed their lives in service to our country,” said Attorney General Garland. “We remember the courage with which they worked and lived. And we recommit ourselves to the mission to which they dedicated their lives. On behalf of a grateful Justice Department and a grateful nation, I extend my sincerest thanks and gratitude to the entire law enforcement community.”

In 1962, President Kennedy issued the first proclamation for Peace Officers Memorial Day and National Police Week to remember and honor law enforcement officers for their service and sacrifices. Peace Officers Memorial Day, which every year falls on May 15, specifically honors law enforcement officers killed or disabled in the line of duty. Based on data submitted to and analyzed by the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial Fund (NLEOMF), over 67% of the law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty in 2021 succumbed to COVID-19.

Additionally, according to 2021 statistics reported by the FBI through the Law Enforcement Officer Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA) Program, 73 law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty in 2021 were killed as a result of felonious acts, whereas 56 died in accidents.  Deaths resulting from felonious acts increased in 2021, rising more than 58% from the previous year. In 2021, unprovoked attacks^[1] were the cause of 24 deaths, significantly outpacing all other line of duty deaths resulting from felony acts and reaching the highest annual total in over 30 years of reporting. Additional LEOKA statistics can be found on FBI’s Crime Data Explorer website for the LEOKA program. 

The names of the 619 fallen officers added this year to the wall at the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial will be read on Friday, May 13, 2022, during a Candlelight Vigil in Washington, D.C., starting at 8:00 p.m. ET. Those who wish to view the vigil live online can watch on the NLEOMF YouTube channel found at https://www.youtube.com/TheNLEOMF. The schedule of National Police Week events is available on NLEOMF’s website.

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[1] An unprovoked attack is defined as an attack on an officer not prompted by official contact at the time of the incident between the officer and the offender.  Source:  Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) through the Law Enforcement Officer Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA) Program.