Month: May 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

In recognition of National Police Week, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta joined law enforcement partners to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice to our nation.

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy proclaimed May 15 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day and the week in which May 15 falls as National Police Week. Established by a joint resolution of Congress in 1962, National Police Week is a collaborative effort of many organizations dedicated to honoring the service and sacrifice of America’s law enforcement community. This year, memorial events ran May 9 – 20.

Today, Attorney General Garland delivered remarks at the 2021-2022 Medal of Valor ceremony hosted by President Joseph R. Biden Jr., at the White House. The Medal of Valor is awarded to public safety officers who have exhibited exceptional courage, regardless of personal safety, in the attempt to save or protect others from harm. The Deputy and Associate Attorneys General also attended the ceremony.  

In his remarks, Attorney General Garland said, “Every day, in communities across the country, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emergency services officers are asked to respond to our most difficult moments. And every day, without hesitation, you answer that call. You are on the frontlines of our nation’s most pressing public safety challenges. And you are the Justice Department’s indispensable partners in our shared work to keep communities safe. From the bottom of my heart, and on behalf of the entire Justice Department – thank you.”

Earlier this week, Attorney General Garland delivered the keynote address at the Annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service, sponsored by the Grand Lodge Fraternal Order of Police and the Grand Lodge Fraternal Order of Police Auxiliary, on the west front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., honoring the officers who recently made the ultimate sacrifice and paying tribute to all the fallen. Deputy Attorney General Monaco and Associate Attorney General Gupta attended the service.

Last week, Attorney General Garland, Deputy Attorney General Monaco, and Associate Attorney General Gupta visited the National Law Enforcement Memorial and laid a wreath in honor of the men and women who have died in the line of duty. To recognize not only Justice Department employees who died in the line of duty but also their surviving family members and friends, Attorney General Garland and Deputy Attorney General Monaco attended memorial services for the Justice Department’s four law enforcement components: the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Deputy Attorney General Monaco also delivered remarks at a memorial service to honor fallen federal correctional officers from the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), during National Correctional Officers Week, which ran May 7 – May 13.

The Department’s leadership also convened a gathering of 10 law enforcement associations with whom they regularly meet, the four heads of the Justice Department’s law enforcement components, and representatives from other federal agencies to discuss the implementation of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, recruitment and retention of law enforcement, improving access to behavioral health services, and responding to people in crisis. Joined virtually by Secretary of Education Miguel A. Cardona and in-person by the Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services Andrea Palm, the discussion focused on whole of government approach federal agencies are taking to combat gun violence and violent crime.

Over the weekend, Attorney General Garland attended the annual candlelight vigil honoring the officers who lost their lives in 2022. Attorney General Garland and other high-ranking government officials, along with officials from local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, read the names of the fallen.

According to the FBI’s recent release of statistics, 118 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty in 2022. So far in 2023, 22 law enforcement officers have lost their lives in the line of duty.

A full list of the events attended on behalf of the Department include:

• National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund Wreath Laying

• FBI Memorial Service

• ATF Memorial Service

• DEA Memorial Service

• USMS Memorial Service

• BOP Memorial Service

• Law Enforcement Quarterly Meeting and Reception with partners

• National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund 35th Annual Candlelight Vigil

• National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service

• Medal of Valor Awards Ceremony

Source: United States Department of Justice News

A federal court in the Eastern District of New York has permanently enjoined a tax return preparer and her Brooklyn-based business from preparing federal tax returns for others and from owning, operating, or working for any tax return preparation business in the future.

The civil complaint filed in the case alleged that Melida Portorreal, through her tax return preparation company, International Travel Multi & Tax Corp., prepared fraudulent federal income tax returns for others. According to the complaint, Portorreal prepared and filed fraudulent federal tax returns for others that included the following schemes:

• reporting false filing statuses, including, in at least one instance, using one customer’s name and social security number to qualify another customer for Head of Household filing status without either customer’s knowledge or consent;
• fabricating erroneous itemized deductions to reduce taxable income, including false student loan interest deductions, false educator expense deductions, and false employee business expense deductions;
• fabricating business expenses; and
• claiming non-deductible expenses on customers’ tax returns in order to obtain entitlement to the earned income tax credit and the child tax credit.

The complaint alleges the IRS estimated that Portorreal filed returns due for the 2018, 2019, and 2020 tax years that caused losses to the United States exceeding $1 million in each year.

According to the court’s order, Portorreal and her company consented to entry of the injunction, which permits the United States to conduct post-judgment discovery to monitor compliance with the injunction. The order requires that they (1) send notice of the injunction to each person for whom Portorreal and her company prepared federal tax returns, amended tax returns, or claims for refund from February 25, 2021 through May 31 2022, and (2) post an electronic copy of the injunction on any business social media profile currently maintained or created over the next five years.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

Shady tax return preparers remain a concern of the IRS, which recently warned taxpayers about unscrupulous tax return preparers are part of the IRS’s Dirty Dozen series. Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers 10 tips to avoid tax season fraud and ways to safeguard their personal information.

In the past decade, the Department of Justice Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

The Department of Justice filed a proposed amended complaint and consent decree today in the District of Maryland with George’s Inc. and George’s Foods LLC (George’s) that would resolve claims that George’s conspired with other poultry processors for years to suppress workers’ wages by exchanging compensation information. George’s provided significant and voluntary cooperation to the Justice Department’s investigation. The department previously reached proposed consent decrees in this matter with poultry processors Cargill, Sanderson Farms, and Wayne Farms, as well as with a data consultant, Webber, Meng, Sahl and Company, and its president, G. Jonathan Meng.

“Today’s action is another important milestone in the Justice Department’s efforts to hold poultry processors accountable for antitrust violations that harm workers,” said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The antitrust laws protect American workers from information exchanges, like these, that damage competition and the competitive process.”

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, George’s must cease sharing competitively sensitive information about poultry processing plant workers’ compensation. If approved by the court, the proposed settlement also:

• Imposes a court-appointed compliance monitor who, for the next seven years, will ensure George’s compliance with the terms of the proposed decree;
• Grants the court-appointed monitor authority to ensure George’s compliance with all federal antitrust laws as they relate to its poultry processing facilities, workers at its poultry processing plants, chicken growers, integrated poultry feed, hatcheries, transportation of poultry and poultry products, and the sale of poultry, and to submit regular reports on George’s antitrust compliance;
• Prohibits George’s from retaliating against any employee or third party for disclosing information to the monitor or to government authorities;
• Permits the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division to inspect George’s facilities and interview employees to ensure George’s compliance with the consent decree; and
• Commits George’s to pay $5.8 million in restitution for poultry processing plant workers who were harmed by the conspiracy.

These terms would expire seven years after the consent decree is approved by the court.

As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed consent decree, along with the competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register. Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed consent decree during a 60-day comment period to Chief, Civil Conduct Task Force, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street NW, Suite 8600, Washington, D.C. 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland may enter the final judgment upon finding it is in the public interest.

Today’s actions are part of a broader investigation into anticompetitive labor market abuses in the poultry processing industry. Anyone with information about poultry industry collusion, competitors sharing non-public compensation information, anticompetitive conduct violations against workers, or any other violations of the antitrust laws is encouraged to contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 1-888-647-3258 or antitrust.complaints@usdoj.gov. The division will forward complaints about the settling processor defendants to the court-appointed antitrust monitor, where appropriate. Information about anticompetitive practices in livestock and poultry markets can also be submitted to the USDA and Justice Department’s Agricultural Markets Enforcement Partnership at www.farmerfairness.gov.

The Justice Department thanks the U.S. Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General for its assistance with this investigation.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Remarks as Delivered

Good morning. Please be seated. Thank you.

Today, we recognize a group of heroes deserving of our nation’s highest award for public service officers: the Medal of Valor.

These extraordinary individuals were nominated by public safety leaders from across the country because of their acts of bravery and heroism in 2021 and 2022.

I am grateful to the Justice Department’s Medal of Valor Review Board, Bureau of Justice Assistance, and Office of Justice Programs for their review and recommendations of this year’s recipients.

And I am honored to be here alongside President Biden as he confers these awards.

The nine individuals we recognize today have demonstrated “extraordinary valor above and beyond the call of duty” while acting to save or protect another person’s life.

They have acted with great courage, and at great risk to themselves. 

They have shown uncommon decisiveness and presence of mind. 

Two of them made the ultimate sacrifice – giving their lives in service to their communities.

To the families and loved ones of Detectives Wilbert Mora and Jason Rivera:

We know it is impossible to understand the grief you endure, or to fully comprehend your loss.

You have our deepest condolences and our unending gratitude. Through our work to keep our communities safe, we will honor the legacies of Detectives Mora and Rivera.

And to all of the family members and loved ones who are with us today – thank you for supporting these heroes as they have pursued their careers in public safety.

At the end of every shift, you are there. It is your care and encouragement that makes it possible for our public safety officers to do their jobs. 

We are so grateful to you.

Every day, in communities across the country, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emergency services officers are asked to respond to our most difficult moments.

And every day, without hesitation, you answer the call.

You are on the frontlines of our nation’s most pressing public safety challenges.

And you are the Justice Department’s indispensable partners in our shared work to keep our communities safe.

From the bottom of my heart, and on behalf of the entire Department of Justice – thank you.

I am now honored to introduce President Biden, who will confer these well-deserved awards.

Thank you, Mr. President, for bringing us together today, and for your support of the extraordinary heroes who keep our communities safe.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

The Justice Department today filed a complaint and proposed consent decree with Cumberland County, New Jersey and the Cumberland County Department of Corrections to resolve allegations that conditions at the Cumberland County Jail violate the Constitution.

The proposed consent decree resolves the department’s claims that the jail fails to provide adequate mental health care to incarcerated individuals at risk of self-harm and suicide, and fails to provide medication-assisted treatment, where clinically indicated, to incarcerated individuals experiencing unmedicated opiate withdrawal. The proposed consent decree requires the jail to provide adequate mental health care and medication-assisted treatment in those circumstances.

“The Justice Department is committed to protecting the civil rights of everyone in our country, and under our Constitution, jails and prisons must provide adequate medical care to incarcerated individuals,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Today’s proposed consent decree is a significant step toward improving the care of individuals incarcerated in Cumberland County who are struggling with serious mental health disorders, and toward protecting the civil rights that are guaranteed by our Constitution.”

“This consent decree marks a significant milestone in the Justice Department’s efforts to combat discrimination against those with opioid use disorder and to protect the civil rights of people in our jails and prisons,” said Assistant Attorney General for Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Under this agreement, Cumberland County must provide adequate medical and mental health care, including access to life-saving medications, treatment for opiate withdrawal, and protection for those with a heightened risk of self-harm and suicide. We commend Cumberland County for working collaboratively with us to implement the reforms in this decree to protect the safety and constitutional rights of incarcerated people at Cumberland County Jail.”

“The opioid epidemic is a public health emergency that plagues too many communities across the country,” said U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger for the District of New Jersey. “Medications are a critically important tool in combatting the opioid crisis, and they save lives.  By providing medication-assisted treatment to incarcerated individuals experiencing opiate withdrawal, officials at jails and prisons can take significant steps to both combat the opioid epidemic and protect the constitutional rights of their populations.”

In June 2018, following suicides at the jail by six incarcerated people denied medication-assisted treatment, the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey initiated the investigation under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act.  That statute authorizes the Justice Department to address a pattern or practice of deprivation of constitutional rights of individuals confined to state or local government-run correctional facilities.  In January 2021, the Department found reasonable cause to believe that Cumberland County’s failure to provide medication-assisted treatment to incarcerated people with opioid use disorder, together with its failure to offer adequate mental health and suicide prevention measures, violated the rights of incarcerated individuals.  The Department also identified measures necessary to remedy the unlawful conditions.

Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at https://www.justice.gov/crt/special-litigation-section.  Additional information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey’s Civil Rights Division is available at:  https://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/civil-rights-enforcement.  Individuals with relevant information about compliance with the agreement are encouraged to contact the Department by phone at 833-223-1547, or by email at Cumberlandcounty.jail@usdoj.gov.