9-76.010
Overview
This chapter focuses on civil and criminal litigation conducted
under the transportation provisions of Title 49, United States Code
including the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, the Motor Carrier
Safety Regulations, the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act, and
a number of railroad safety statutes.
9-76.050
TransportationGeneral Policy
District Court litigation, both civil and criminal, under
various transportation provisions contained in Title 49, United
States Code, is infrequent. The requisite expertise for the
interpretation of these statutes resides with attorneys and other
personnel within the agency or department responsible for securing
compliance with the applicable statute. Accordingly, the United
States Attorney should find it helpful to rely on the agency or
departmental attorney for assistance with any referral, and should
consider the views, both legal and factual, of the agency or
department. A request for assistance from the Criminal Division
should be solicited only in: (1) substantial cases; (2) cases in
which there is a disagreement with agency personnel regarding
whether or not to proceed; and (3) cases involving a national
policy decision.
9-76.110
TransportationAviation PolicySettlement Authority
United States Attorneys are authorized to effect settlement of
the civil penalties provided in 49 U.S.C. § 46301 et
seq. (formerly 49 U.S.C. § 1471) without the prior
approval of the Criminal Division (Fraud Section). In place of the
previously required prior approval of the Criminal Division, United
States Attorneys are directed to consult with the FAA or its parent
organization, the United States Department of Transportation (DOT),
as appropriate, regarding settlement proposals. The FAA or DOT may
seek Criminal Division review if it believes such review would be
helpful to the settlement of the case.
The relatively small amount of money involved in many FAA civil
penalty cases must not be a consideration in evaluating the merits
of such cases. A civil penalty action is not one to collect a
trivial amount owed to the government, but rather it is an
important part of the federal enforcement effort to ensure aviation
safety.
For additional information on this section, see the
Criminal Resource Manual at 2004. | | | | | | | | |