The United States Department of Justice Criminal Division is a federal agency of the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...

that develops, enforces, and supervises the application of all federal criminal laws in the United States. Criminal Division attorneys prosecute many nationally significant cases and formulate and implement criminal enforcement policy. Division attorneys also provide advice and guidance to the

Attorney General of the United States The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government. The attorney general acts as the principal legal advisor to the president of the ...

, the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

, and the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

on matters of

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It proscribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and Well-being, welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal l ...

. The Division was founded in 1919.

Leadership

The Criminal Division is headed by an Assistant Attorney General, appointed by the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

with the

advice and consent Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in List of enacting formulae, enacting formulae of bill (proposed law), bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive ...

of the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. Kenneth Polite was appointed by President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

and sworn in as Assistant Attorney General on July 21, 2021. Nicholas McQuaid was appointed Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General on January 20, 2021, and served as Acting Assistant Attorney General until Polite's confirmation. Polite's tenure ended on July 28, 2023 after it was announced he would step down to enter the private sector.

Organization

The Criminal Division is headed by an Assistant Attorney General, who is a political appointee. The Assistant Attorney General is assisted by six Deputy Assistant Attorneys General, four of whom are career attorneys, who each oversee two or more of the Criminal Division's 16 sections. * Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General * Chief of Staff and Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General ** Office of Administration ** Office of Policy and Legislation * Deputy Assistant Attorney General US-dept-of-justice-criminal-division-org-chart

US-dept-of-justice-criminal-division-org-chart

** Public Integrity Section created after Watergate in 1976 ** Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (MLARS) * Deputy Assistant Attorney General ** Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section ** Office of Enforcement Operations * Deputy Assistant Attorney General ** Office of International Affairs ** International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program formed in 1990 ** Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development Assistance and Training * Deputy Assistant Attorney General ** Fraud Section established in 1955 ** Appellate Section * Deputy Assistant Attorney General ** Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section formed in 1996 ** Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Created in 1987, the section comprises approximately 15 attorneys who prosecute defendants who have violated federal child exploitation and obscenity laws and also assist the 93 United States Attorney Offices in investigations, trials, and appeals related to these offenses. The section also has a number of Computer Forensic Specialist (CFS) within the High Technology Investigative Unit (HTIU) and, under the direction of a section manager, they conduct analysis of Internet technologies used to distribute obscene materials and child pornography. * Deputy Assistant Attorney General ** Capital Case Section ** Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section ** Violent Crime and Racketeering Section (Formerly known as the Organized Crime and Gang Section) The Criminal Division does not supervise the 94 U.S. Attorney's Offices, but rather works alongside the U.S. Attorney offices as subject matter experts.

Reorganization

The Criminal Division's Counterterrorism and Counterespionage Sections were transferred to the newly created United States Department of Justice National Security Division in 2006.

References

External links

* * Detailed description o
each of the 16 sections
(17 September 2019) Criminal Division {{US-law-stub

Leadership

Organization

Reorganization

See also

References

External links