The Criminal Division's involvement in criminal prosecutions is more limited than its title may suggest. The Division ordinarily has no involvement in criminal proceedings for state crimes prosecuted in state courts. Individuals seeking information regarding criminal activity prosecuted under state law should contact state authorities in the jurisdiction where the prosecution occurred for records relating to such prosecution. Cases primarily or exclusively involving violations of antitrust, civil rights, income tax or environmental protection laws are ordinarily handled by separate components of the Justice Department, the Antitrust Division, the Civil Rights Division, the Tax Division or the Environmental and Natural Resources Division, respectively.
Additionally, most Federal criminal proceedings are prosecuted by the local United States Attorney's Office. Requests for records pertaining to prosecutions undertaken by a United States Attorney's Office should be made to the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, which is also a component of the Justice Department. The Criminal Division does directly prosecute, supervise, or otherwise participate in the prosecution of certain cases, typically major investigations and prosecutions involving significant Federal criminal activity.
Aside from prosecutorial responsibilities, other responsibilities of the Criminal Division include those pertaining to the administration of the Division (such as personnel matters pertaining to Criminal Division employees, Criminal Division training programs, both internal and international, budget matters, etc.), the granting of immunity from Federal prosecution, approval of applications for electronic surveillance by Federal law enforcement authorities, protection of witnesses whose safety has been threatened (certain aspects of witness protection are also handled by the United States Marshal's Service, another component of the Justice Department), return of prisoners-pursuant to international treaties--to their native countries for serving of foreign criminal sentences, and denaturalization and deportation of individuals for Nazi War Crimes. International extradition matters and international assistance regarding investigations and prosecutions, for both state and federal investigations and prosecutions, are also handled by the Criminal Division. In a very limited number of areas the Criminal Division may be involved in civil proceedings, primarily those related to criminal matters such as Federal prison and parole matters, and civil litigation involving electronic surveillance.
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