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• DOJ obtains wide set of AP phone records

  May 13, 2013 5:09 PM

  WASHINGTON - The Justice Department has secretly obtained two months of telephone records of journalists for The Associated Press in what AP's top executive says is an "unprecedented intrusion" into newsgathering. The records obtained by the Justice Department listed outgoing calls for the work and personal phone numbers of individual... more »

• Feds appeal Plan B ruling

  May 1, 2013 7:40 PM

  WASHINGTON- The Justice Department appealed a judge's ruling on lifting all age limits on the controversial Plan B morning-after birth control pill. The feds contend the judge exceeded his authority and his decision should be suspended while the appeal is on-going. U.S. District Judge Edward Korman of New York told... more »

• Group says Justice Dept. should supervise NOPD

  February 21, 2013 7:55 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A community group in New Orleans says the city should not be allowed to get out of a court-backed agreement to reform the police department. "Community United for Change" filed papers in federal court Wednesday opposing the city's move to vacate the agreement. Instead, the group... more »

• Judge grants preliminary OK for NO jail reforms

  January 23, 2013 6:36 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has granted preliminary approval of an agreement between the Justice Department and the city of New Orleans that's designed to clean up the city-funded jail. The consent decree with Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman calls for him to provide adequate medical and mental... more »

• Petraeus mistress won't face cyberstalking charge

  December 18, 2012 10:55 AM

  WASHINGTON - The Justice Department is dropping its investigation into whether David Petraeus' mistress, Paula Broadwell, stalked a romantic rival online. Broadwell's lawyer, Robert Muse, gave The Associated Press a letter from U.S. Attorney Robert O'Neill that says no federal charges will be brought in Florida related to "alleged acts... more »

• US names investigator in Danziger case

  December 6, 2012 12:30 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The Justice Department has appointed a veteran prosecutor to investigate allegations that the U.S. attorney's office conducted a smear campaign and leaked information to news organizations during the case against police officers accused of deadly shootings at a bridge shortly after Hurricane Katrina. John Horn, first assistant... more »

• Used car dealer sentenced in odometer fraud case

  November 30, 2012 10:31 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The Justice Department says Beau Michael Guidry of Baton Rouge has been sentenced in connection with an odometer tampering scheme that defrauded victims in and around Louisiana. U.S. District Judge James J. Brady sentenced Guidry Thursday to 20 months in prison and one year of supervised release... more »

• Environmental group says BP penalty isn't enough

  November 15, 2012 4:06 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Lawyers for two BP oil rig workers say the Justice Department is trying to make scapegoats out of them. The two were indicted today on federal charges including manslaughter, in the deaths of 11 workers in the rig explosion that led to the Gulf oil spill two... more »

• DOJ seeks to join lawsuit against Orleans prison

  September 24, 2012 5:20 PM

  BATON ROUGE - The U.S. Justice Department is asking to join a class action lawsuit that accuses Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman of overseeing a jail that routinely subjects prisoners to brutal, inhumane conditions. The federal agency filed a request Monday in federal court, asking to be included as a... more »

• Lawmakers to hear from 'gun-walking' investigator

  September 20, 2012 8:50 AM

  WASHINGTON - The report on the bungled federal gun-trafficking probe known as Fast and Furious is the subject today at a hearing by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The report faults the Justice Department for mistakes made in an operation that allowed hundreds of guns to reach... more »

• Feds vow to prove gross negligence by BP

  September 5, 2012 10:07 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - The Justice Department is urging a federal judge to ignore BP's assertion that the Gulf Coast's natural resources are making a "robust recovery" from its massive 2010 oil spill. In a strongly worded court filing, government lawyers also renewed their vow to prove BP engaged in... more »

• Suspect in 5 killings isn't facing death penalty

  July 16, 2012 4:58 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The Justice Department does not intend to seek the death penalty against a New Orleans man charged with having a role in five 2007 killings, including an off-duty police officer's fatal shooting. A two-page court filing Monday by U.S. Attorney Jim Letten's office didn't explain its decision... more »

• Charges for helping Iran's nuclear program

  July 13, 2012 7:36 PM

  The justice department charged two foreign nationals with trying to illegally export material to Iran that could help to enrich uranium in that country's attempt to build nuclear weapons. One of the men is also accused of conspiring to procure radioactive material from the U.S. for customers in Iran. Parvi... more »

• Newspaper: DOJ lawyer tried to stifle reporter

  July 10, 2012 2:41 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Two Louisiana congressmen are calling on the Justice Department to respond to a complaint that one of its attorneys tried to bar a newspaper reporter from quoting or recording her comments at a public hearing in New Iberia. The Daily Iberian contends Justice Department attorney Rachel Hranitzky... more »

• Feds asked to review debate over La. chief justice

  July 9, 2012 4:42 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Several black Louisiana elected officials are asking the Justice Department's civil rights division to intervene in a dispute over whether state Supreme Court Justice Bernette Johnson is legally entitled to become the court's next chief justice. A letter sent Monday to the head of the division's voting... more »

• Federal hotline set up on Arizona immigration

  June 25, 2012 5:34 PM

  WASHINGTON - The Justice Department has set up a hotline for the public to report potential civil rights concerns regarding the Arizona law that requires police to check the immigration status of those they stop for other reasons. The hotline phone number is 1-855-353-1010. The email is: SB1070(at)usdoj.gov. The Supreme... more »

• 5 arrested in alleged bombing plot

  May 1, 2012 9:37 AM

  WASHINGTON- The Justice Department said five men were arrested in a plot to bomb a bridge outside of Cleveland. A department official said the five men are self-described anarchists and are not tied to international terrorism. The men were taken into custody as part of an undercover operation... more »

• States get online gambling go-ahead from feds Play Video

  December 27, 2011 10:09 PM

  BATON ROUGE- The federal government is giving the thumbs up to online gambling tonight, but it's up to states to take the next step in expanding the business or not. The Justice Department says a 50-year-old law does not prohibit Internet gaming. Online sports betting is still off the... more »

• Feds seek death penalty again for convicted killer

  October 11, 2011 1:55 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The U.S. Justice Department is trying again to secure a death sentence for a man convicted of killing an off-duty sheriff's deputy during a botched bank robbery in New Orleans. A jury had sentenced John Wayne Johnson to death for fatally shooting Lt. Sidney Zaffuto in... more »

• BP denied White House emails on oil spill response

  July 20, 2011 12:30 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal magistrate has refused to order the White House to provide BP with emails by a former top adviser to President Barack Obama about the administration's response to last summer's massive Gulf oil spill. A company lawyer said emails by Carol Browner, Obama's former adviser... more »

• CIA Interrogation Deaths Investigated

  June 30, 2011 7:26 PM

  The investigation of CIA interrogation tactics entered a new phase with the Justice Department saying it now includes the deaths of two men while they were in custody. Attorney General Eric Holder made that announcement on Thursday. The attorney general says he has accepted the recommendation of federal prosecutor John... more »

• La. House gets DOJ clearance on its remap

  June 20, 2011 6:32 PM

  BATON ROUGE - The redesign of the Louisiana House's 105 seats has received clearance from the U.S. Justice Department. House Speaker Jim Tucker made the announcement Monday on the House floor, to cheers. A DOJ letter confirms that the department "does not interpose any objection." Federal approval came... more »

• Obama: Justice Dept. will look for gas price manipulation

  April 21, 2011 4:41 PM

  RENO, Nev. - What's behind the four-dollar-a-gallon gasoline prices? President Barack Obama says a Justice Department team will try to find out. He says the team will be looking for any "fraud or manipulation" in oil markets that might be driving prices up. Obama told a town hall... more »

• Clinton: U.S. to look at Gadhafi for Pan Am bombing

  March 1, 2011 1:22 PM

  WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says the Obama administration may seek the prosecution of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi for the 1988 Lockerbie bombing. That follows claims from some ex-Libyan officials that Gadhafi personally ordered the airline attack that killed 270 people. Clinton tells Congress on... more »

• US to oil spill claims czar: loosen purse strings

  February 4, 2011 1:13 PM

  ATLANTA - The Justice Department is telling the administrator of the $20 billion fund for Gulf oil spill victims that his job is not to preserve money or return it to BP, and is insisting he loosen the purse strings to help people who are still suffering from last year's... more »

• Panel: Gulf oil spill could happen again

  January 6, 2011 10:15 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A presidential panel concludes that disasters like the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig could happen again without significant reform. The panel's conclusions have companies involved in the nation's largest offshore oil spill pointing fingers at each other again. A 48-page excerpt of the panel's report obtained... more »

• Swastika Branding Case

  November 22, 2010 7:30 PM

  A man in New Mexico pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges of branding a swastika on the arm of a disabled Navajo man with a hot metal clothes hanger. William Hatch of Fruitland and two others are the first to be prosecuted under a historic law passed in... more »

• Entergy: Justice Dept. opens civil investigation

  October 12, 2010 9:34 AM

  The Justice Department is conducting a civil investigation of competitive practices of Entergy's regulated power units. The New Orleans-based company disclosed the investigation prior to the opening of financial markets Tuesday. Entergy says the investigation involves Entergy Arkansas, Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Mississippi, Entergy Texas and Entergy... more »

• Justice Department sues three major credit card companies

  October 4, 2010 2:33 PM

  The Justice Department is suing credit card companies American Express, Visa and MasterCard for anticompetitive practices. The lawsuit says the card companies are impeding merchants from promoting the use of competing credit or charge cards with lower acceptance fees. In papers filed in federal court in Brooklyn, the department and... more »

• Congressman: BP, feds in talks over oil spill fines

  September 28, 2010 1:22 PM

  A congressman says BP and the Obama administration are in talks about a possible settlement over fines for the company's massive Gulf oil spill. Louisiana Republican Rep. Steve Scalise told The Associated Press on Tuesday that members of his staff got information about the talks while working on oil... more »

• Settlement resolves probe of McNeese State

  September 10, 2010 5:21 AM

  A settlement with the Justice Department calls for McNeese State University to improve access to its Lake Charles campus for disabled students, employees and visitors. The settlement resolves an investigation the Justice Department launched in 2008 to review the school's compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Justice Department... more »

• Feds to outline anti-fraud efforts after spill

  August 24, 2010 5:15 AM

  Justice Department officials are outlining their efforts to curb fraud in the aftermath of the Gulf oil spill. The Justice Department launched a similar effort to combat fraud after Hurricane Katrina. After the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig leased by BP PLC, the company set aside $20... more »

• Deadline extended for death penalty decision

  August 18, 2010 5:34 AM

  The deadline for the Justice Department to decide whether to seek the death penalty against four current or former New Orleans police officers charged in deadly shootings on a bridge after Hurricane Katrina has been extended. Prosecutors now have until Sept. 10 to announce a decision instead of Aug. 31.... more »

• Lawyer says DOJ ends criminal probe of Tom DeLay

  August 16, 2010 9:25 AM

  A lawyer for former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay says the Justice Department has ended a probe of the Texas Republican and will not file any criminal charges. The six-year criminal investigation focused on DeLay's ties to disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who was released from a minimum-security prison camp... more »

• DOJ official reflects on NOPD probes

  August 9, 2010 2:50 PM

  The head of the Justice Department's civil rights division says a "cloud" hanging over the New Orleans Police Department amid a wide-ranging federal probe of alleged police misconduct makes it tougher for law-abiding officers to do their jobs. Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez told a gathering of lawyers in... more »

• IG: FBI's backlog reaches 3,200 forensic DNA cases

  August 9, 2010 11:58 AM

  The Justice Department's inspector general says the FBI laboratory has a backlog of more than 3,200 forensic DNA cases. The IG says such backlogs can delay legal proceedings and prevent the timely capture of criminals. The backlog has grown 130 percent in a single year to 276 cases... more »

• DOJ says negotiations completed for $20B fund

  August 9, 2010 10:06 AM

  The Justice Department and BP announced Monday that they have finished negotiations to implement a $20 billion fund for victims of the Gulf oil spill and that BP has made a $3 billion initial deposit. Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli says the department is pleased that BP made an... more »

• Death penalty isn't sought against ex-N.O. cop

  August 6, 2010 1:31 PM

  The Justice Department doesn't intend to seek the death penalty against a former New Orleans police officer charged with fatally shooting a man in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath. A court filing Thursday discloses that decision in the case against David Warren, who allegedly shot and killed 31-year-old Henry Glover before... more »

• La. company pleads guilty dumping oil

  July 30, 2010 11:12 AM

  The Justice Department says a Louisiana company has pleaded guilty to discharging waste oil from one of its vessels on the high seas. Offshore Vessels LLC entered the plea Friday in U.S. District Court in New Orleans. Federal prosecutors say the company admitted that crew members of the... more »

• 2 New Orleans cops charged in man's death

  July 29, 2010 12:45 PM

  Two New Orleans police officers have been indicted on federal civil rights charges in the beating death of a 48-year-old man. An indictment handed up Thursday against the officers, Melvin Williams and Matthew Dean Moore, includes charges of deprivation of rights under color of law and obstruction of justice... more »

• BP says SEC, DOJ looking at securities matters

  July 28, 2010 4:37 AM

  Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department are conducting informal inquiries into securities matters arising from the Gulf oil spill. BP disclosed the investigation in a filing with the SEC, marking the latest development in the evolving government investigations following the devastating April 20 spill. The oil company's disclosure... more »

• 31 indicted by Feds in Baton Rouge

  July 16, 2010 11:13 AM

  Federal authorities say 31 people have been charged in Baton Rouge in connection with the largest Medicare fraud bust ever including four doctors. Drs. Dahlia Kirkpatrick, Sofjan Lamid, Anthony Jase, Jo Ann Francis and 27 others have been indicted by the Justice Department alleging fraudulent claims involving about $32... more »

• Court to rule next week on drilling moratorium

  July 8, 2010 5:23 PM

  A federal appeals court says it will rule by early next week on a Justice Department bid to delay a lower-court decision overturning a six-month deepwater drilling moratorium. A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals didn't rule Thursday after hearing from lawyers on both sides... more »

• Appeals court to hear drilling moratorium case

  July 8, 2010 5:37 AM

  A federal appeals court is set to hear the Justice Department's bid to delay a judge's decision to overturn a six-month deepwater drilling moratorium. The Interior Department said it halted any new permits for deepwater projects and suspended drilling on 33 exploratory wells to protect the Gulf of Mexico from... more »

• 10 alleged Russian secret agents arrested in US

  June 28, 2010 4:08 PM

  Ten people are under arrest, accused of serving secretly as agents of the Russian government in the United States. Court papers say their assignment was to "search and develop ties in policymaking circles." Under federal law, people can't act as agents of foreign governments in the United States... more »

• DOJ urges appeals court delay on oil spill ruling

  June 25, 2010 5:39 PM

  The Justice Department on Friday urged a federal appeals court to delay a judge's ruling that overturned a drilling moratorium in the Gulf. In court papers filed Friday, the Obama administration said the suspensions in deepwater drilling are crucially important to protect human health and the environment from another... more »

• Judge refuses to delay ruling on Gulf drilling ban

  June 24, 2010 12:58 PM

  A federal judge who overturned a six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling imposed after Gulf oil spill refused Thursday to delay his ruling while the government appeals. The Justice Department had asked U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman to stay his ruling until the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in... more »

• Salazar creates new agency to oversee drilling

  June 21, 2010 4:26 PM

  Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has sworn in a former federal prosecutor as director of a new government agency to oversee offshore drilling and other oil and gas development. A former assistant U.S. attorney and Justice Department inspector general, Michael R. Bromwich will lead a reorganization of the agency formerly... more »

• Katrina burned body case: ex-officer's arraignment

  June 17, 2010 3:28 PM

  A federal prosecutor says the justice department has not decided whether to seek the death penalty against a former New Orleans police officer charged with fatally shooting a man in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath. Assistant U.S. attorney Jared Fishman says he hopes for a decision within two weeks in the... more »

• Justice Department says nearly 500 arrested in mortgage fraud probe

  June 17, 2010 3:21 PM

  The federal government is cracking down on mortgage fraud. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that nearly 500 people have been arrested since March in a nationwide effort called Operation Stolen Dreams. He says investigators uncovered more than $2.3 billion in losses in cases involving more than 1,200 criminal defendants.... more »

• Ex HUD chief may not be charged

  May 3, 2010 8:42 PM

  A lawyer for former housing secretary Alphonso Jackson says Jackson won't be charged for tilting the agency toward Republican contractors and cronies. Lawyer Jim Martin says he got a call from the Justice Department's public integrity section "specifically saying that the file was being closed." Jackson was HUD secretary in... more »

• Justice looks at proposed Continental-United deal

  May 3, 2010 12:39 PM

  The Justice Department is examining the competitive effects of a proposed merger between Continental and United Airlines. The department routinely examines airline deals, which may affect services and prices for consumers. Justice Department spokeswoman Gina Talamona said Monday that the department's antitrust division "is looking at the proposed... more »

• Justice Department heads to Louisiana

  April 30, 2010 2:09 PM

  Another federal agency is making its way to the Louisiana gulf coast. Attorney General Eric Holder has announced says he's sending a team of Justice Department lawyers to New Orleans to meet with the U.S. attorney and response teams. Holder says the department will enforce laws protecting those... more »

• Justice Dept. investigating BRPD

  March 26, 2010 12:03 PM

  The Justice Department is investigating complaints made by New Mexico State Police against the Baton Rouge Police Department. Troopers from New Mexico and Michigan came to Baton Rouge to help police deal with an influx of evacuees after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The troopers assert that BRPD officers routinely harassed... more »

• Report says prison violates inmates' rights

  September 22, 2009 10:20 PM

  A New Orleans jail may be faced with a law suit by the Justice Department if conditions worsen. A report released by the Justice Department on Monday states the conditions at the Orleans Parish Prison violates inmates' constitutional rights. The announcement came after reports stated inmates were subjected to... more »