PRIORITY IN FOCUS
National Security
"The Department has improved significantly its ability to identify, penetrate, and dismantle terrorist plots as a result of a series of structural reforms, the development of new intelligence and law enforcement tools, and a new mindset that values information sharing, communication and prevention… Working with our federal, state, and local partners, as well as international counterparts, the Department has worked tirelessly to safeguard America and will continue to do so." -- Attorney General Eric Holder Testifying Before the Senate Judiciary Committee, June 17, 2009
Op-Eds
No Higher Priority: Fighting Terrorism and Keeping Americans Safe
by Neil H. MacBride U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia
The Department of Justice has no higher priority than fighting terrorism and keeping the American people safe, while protecting and safeguarding civil liberties guaranteed under our Constitution. The Obama Administration has aggressively used every lawful tool at its disposal to keep Americans safe – military, intelligence, homeland security, law enforcement, diplomacy and financial disruption. Ten years after the September 11th attacks, the Holder Justice Department has played a key role in the U.S. counterterrorism framework and has a proven track record of identifying members of terrorist networks, detecting and disrupting their plots, incapacitating terrorists through successful prosecutions and convictions, collecting valuable intelligence and sharing information with our state and local partners, and creating a dialogue through outreach to our communities, including the American Muslim community.
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The Oklahoma City Bombing
![Sanford Coats, U.S. Attorney, Western District of Oklahoma](images/okw_coats_small.jpg)
by Sanford Coats
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma
As we pause to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the tragic events of September 11, 2001, I hope you will also remember the most deadly terrorist attack in United States history prior to September 11, 2001 – the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. Although the reasons and motivations of the perpetrators were markedly different, the Oklahoma City bombing, like the tragedies in New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, shocked the conscience of every American. The plot to kill innocent people in Oklahoma in 1995 was carried out by domestic terrorists, while those responsible for September 11 were radicalized foreigners. Although fundamentally different in philosophy, purpose and cause, Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols and the September 11 co-conspirators were all intent on destroying our American way of life.
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Anti-terrorism advisory committee
The ATAC Coordinators
![ATAC Coordinantors Map](images/atac_coordinators_map_small.jpg)
-- Attorney General Eric Holder at the National ATAC
Conference, October 1, 2009
Learn more about atac coordinators»
ATAC Training: FBI New Haven’s Indoor Post-Blast School
FBI New Haven’s Indoor Post-Blast School, an intensive, week long course taught by expert bomb technicians and federal prosecutors, has taken place in Connecticut twice a year for the past eight years and has hosted, each time, approximately 60 federal, state, and local law enforcement officials, bomb technicians, and other first responders who might respond to and investigate a bombing or other post-blast event. Until recently, Connecticut’s post-blast school was the only indoor post-blast school in the country.
Maryland Coordination and Analysis Center
One of the Attorney General’s key mandates when he instituted the Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council (ATAC) program (then, the Anti-Terrorism Task Force program) was to ensure that information relating to terrorism was efficiently shared with all necessary entities, public and private. In furtherance of this mandate, the Maryland ATAC, through its Executive Committee, decided in April 2002 to create what has now come to be commonly referred to as a “Fusion Center.”Emerging and Innovative National Security Efforts
Narco-terrorism is a growing area of concern in our counterterrorism efforts, as terrorists exploit drug cartels to provide funding, weapons, and other support for their terrorist activities. Global terrorists also have a substantial and growing presence on the Internet, where one can find radical anti-U.S. propaganda, tutorials on bomb-making, and elaborate religious justifications for the most despicable acts of violence against defenseless civilians. The Internet permits isolated actors to find and connect with one another, justify and intensify their anger, and mobilize resources to attack. Thus, terrorists continue to use the Internet to solicit funds and for recruitment, radicalization, training, and operational planning.Read more »
Counterespionage/Counter Proliferation Efforts
The U.S. Attorneys’ offices also work on the investigation and prosecution of cases affecting national security, foreign relations, the export of military and strategic commodities and technology, matters relating to espionage, sabotage, neutrality, atomic energy, and criminal cases involving the application of the Classified Information Procedures Act.Read more »
![Andre Birotte Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California](images/CAC_Birotte2_small.jpg)
by André Birotte, Jr.
U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California
The Export and Anti-proliferation Global Law Enforcement (EAGLE) Task Force was formed in January 2008 as an initiative of the National Security Section of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. The goal was to bring together the different federal agencies focused on counter-proliferation work and allow them to share resources and knowledge in this complex area, as well as to increase the number of prosecutions that could take place.
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![Ronald Machen, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia](images/dc-machen-small.jpg)
by Ronald Machen
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia
In the District of Columbia, we have devoted significant resources to combating the national security threat posed by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the procurement efforts by and for state sponsors of terrorism. The stakes could not be higher, particularly regarding nuclear proliferation.
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![Michael J. Moore, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia](images/gam_moore_small.jpg)
by Michael J. Moore, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia
The Iran trade embargo prohibits the sale or export of any goods, technology or services from the United States to Iran without prior authorization from the Treasury Department. This is true regardless of whether these goods or services are military or civilian in nature. While many of the technologies sought by Iran may appear harmless, they can pose significant threats. For example, electronic components with primarily civilian uses have been recovered from roadside bombs used against U.S. troops in Iraq.
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intelligence specialists Program
The Intelligence Specialists play a vital role in the prosecution and disruption of terrorism suspects by using their experience to incorporate intelligence information into lawful investigations. Because the primary goal of the counterterrorism community is to stop attacks before they happen, intelligence support can be essential to disrupting, arresting and prosecuting terrorist suspects or isolating suspects as they attempt to carry out attacks and related terrorist activities. Read more »
Press Releases
Former FARC Guerrilla Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 130 Months in Prison for Providing Material Support to a Foreign Terrorist Organization Southern District of New York — December 7, 2011 Kirkland Man Sentenced to 40 Months in Prison for Threatening Public Officials
Western District of Washington — December 2, 2011 San Diego Woman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracay to Provide Material Support to al-Shabaab
Southern District of California — December 2, 2011 Pakistani National Living in Woodbridge Pleads guilty to Providing Material Support to Terrorist Organization
Eastern District of Virginia — December 2, 2011 Talladega County Man Sentenced to 51 Months for Mailing Series of Hoax Anthrax Letters
Northern District of Alabama — December 1, 2011 Dallas Man Sentenced to more than 22 Years in Federal Prison for Crashing a Stolen truck Through a Gate and Onto Secured Area at Love Field Airport
Northern District of Texas — November 30, 2011 Exporter Pleads Guilty to Selling Sensitive Technology to China
Northern District of California — November 17, 2011
![More DOJ Priorities](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20120925080223im_/http://www.justice.gov/usao/images/more-doj-priorities.gif)
Calendar of 9/11 Memorial Events
Listing of events held across the country in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of September 11
major courtroom achievements
United States v. Zacarias Moussaoui
United States v. Najibullah Zazi and Zarein Ahmedzay
United States v. Tahawwur Hussain Rana and David Coleman Headley
- Central District of California
- Southern District of California
- District of Connecticut
- District of Columbia
- Central District of Illinois
- Northern District of Illinois
- District of Maryland
- Eastern District of Michigan
- District of New Jersey
- Eastern District of New York
- Southern District of New York
- Western District of New York
- Eastern District of Virginia
Piracy Cases
Foreign Agents Cases
Iraqi Agents in Eastern District of Michigan
More Cases:
- Russian Agents in the Southern District of New York
- Iraqi Agents in the Northern District of Illinois
Counterespionage & Counter Proliferation Cases
Hassan Abu-Jihaad was an enlistee in the U.S. Navy who betrayed his shipmates and his country by leaking then-classified information about the upcoming movements of his battle group to a terrorism support cell.More Cases Nationwide:
- Southern District of Alabama
- Central District of California
- Southern District of California
- District of Columbia
- Middle District of Florida
- Northern District of Illinois
- Eastern District of Michigan
- District of New Jersey
- Eastern District of Tennessee
counterterrorism Efforts
Counterterrorism work at the U.S. Attorneys’ offices involves investigation and prosecution, as well as other efforts aimed at preventing and disrupting acts of terrorism anywhere in the world where United States interests and persons are impacted. In this effort, the U.S. Attorneys' offices prosecute cases involving torture, genocide, and war crimes that are linked to terrorist groups and individuals, material support of terrorism, air craft sabotage, and sea piracy, among other areas. Domestic Terrorism Efforts
To further protect America from the threat of terrorism on our home soil from disaffected Americans, members of domestic terrorism and extremist groups, and from homegrown violent extremists who are inspired by and seeking to emulate international terrorists, the U.S. Attorneys’ offices work to identify, disrupt, prevent and defeat domestic terrorist operations before they occur and to vigorously prosecute those who commit or intend to commit such acts.Read more »
useful links
Ten Years Later: The Justice Department After 9/11
Assistance for U.S. Victims of Overseas Terrorism and Their Families
The Criminal Justice System as a Counterterrorism Tool
Ten Years After: The FBI Since 9/11
9/11 A Decade Later: Healing and Remembrance Program