FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
Justice Department Co-Hosts Second Meeting of the Counterterrorism Law Enforcement Forum in Norway
The Justice Department’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Counterterrorism (State CT) co-hosted the second annual meeting of the Counterterrorism Law Enforcement Forum (CTLEF) with the Government of Norway in Oslo from June 6 to 7. The CTLEF, which focuses on countering the global threat of racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism (REMVE), brought together law enforcement, prosecutors, and other criminal justice practitioners from Europe and North and South America, as well as specialists from INTERPOL, Europol, the International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law and other multilateral organizations to discuss how to effectively address and counter REMVE threats.

Assistant Attorney General (AAG) Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Depar..

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
Statement from Director Rachel Rossi of the Office for Access to Justice on the Adoption of the Equal Access to Justice Resolution at the United Nations Crime Commission
The Office for Access to Justice today issued the following statement from Director Rachel Rossi following the adoption of the “Equal Access to Justice for All” resolution at the 32nd Session of United Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) in Vienna, Austria:

“The Office for Access to Justice is pleased to have played a role in the recent adoption by consensus of the first UN-CCPCJ resolution on access to justice. This resolution recognizes that when access to justice is limited or restricted in criminal justice systems, the rule of law is undermined. The resolution emphasizes the importance of United Nations Member States taking ‘all necessary steps to provide fair, transparent, effective, non-discriminatory and accountable services that ..

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
Former Texas Sheriff’s Office Sergeant Sentenced for Using Unlawful Force on an Inmate
A former Van Zandt County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office jail sergeant was sentenced today to 42 months in prison for violating a jail detainee’s civil rights by using unlawful force against him.

According to court documents, David Yager, 30, previously pleaded guilty and admitted that on or about Feb. 28, 2021, while he was serving in his official capacity, he repeatedly punched detainee M.H. in the chest with a taser with the trigger held down, even though M.H. did not pose a threat to anyone. Yager admitted that the detainee was confined to a restraint chair at the time Yager used unlawful force against him. Yager also admitted that his acts caused bodily injury to the detainee, and that he used force on the detainee despite knowing that there was no legitimate, law enforcement need to use force.

“This defendant abused his authority as a jail sergeant..

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
Two Federal Bureau of Prisons Employees Charged with Violating the Civil Rights of an Inmate Resulting in His Death
A federal grand jury indicted a Bureau of Prisons (BOP) lieutenant and a BOP registered nurse yesterday with violating the civil rights of an inmate by showing deliberate indifference to the inmate’s serious medical needs, resulting in his death.

The indictment alleges that on Jan. 9, 2021, Lieutenant Shronda Covington, 47, of Chesterfield, Virginia, and Registered Nurse Tonya Farley, 52, of Chesterfield, Virginia, were on duty and working in their official capacities at the Federal Correctional Institution at Petersburg, Virginia. On that day, they allegedly each willfully failed to ensure that the inmate, a 47-year-old man identified as W.W., was provided with necessary medical care, resulting in W.W.’s death, even though each knew that W.W. had serious medical needs. Farley is also charged with writing a false report ..