Oklahoma Criminal Defense Blog

So many federal agents were moved to counter-terrorism investigations after the 9/11 attacks that the prosecution of more traditional crimes could not be given much attention.  Carter Stewart, newly-appointed United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio is going to change that.

Stewart’s district includes Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton and all of southern Ohio.  “I would like to have more resources go back to our bread-and-butter cases,” Stewart said.  By “bread-and-butter,” Stewart referred to his priorities: financial crime, mortgage fraud, public corruption, environmental crime and the exploitation of children.  Criminal defense lawyers know those are traditional areas of federal prosecution because local law enforcement usually do not have the expertise or resources to pursue crimes in those areas.

Financial crimes and mortgage frauds obviously require experts in tracking down long, often sophisticated paper trials, sometimes in dealings local law enforcement personnel have never heard of.  Public Corruption focuses on the wrong-doing of state and local politicians, so state and local prosecutors have an obvious conflict, assuming they even want to pursue the wrong-doers in any given case.  Environmental crimes require specific expertises and can cross state lines.  Exploitation of children, most commonly prostitution of children, often requires investigations across state lines as the prostitutes are moved to locations like truck stops in various cities.

In Oklahoma, federal prosecutors have continued to prosecute the crimes they traditionally pursued, in addition to national security/counter-terrorism: more commonly those in the areas of drug distribution conspiracies, violent crimes, public corruption, and white collar crimes, child computer crimes, and gun possession charges on previously-convicted felons.

The headquarters of the F.B.I. for years after 9/11 decreed that counter-terrorism shall dominate all resources.   What was surprising was how much withdrawal there was from other areas of investigation in some districts.  In those years after 9/11, Ohio had several cases of alleged terrorism since 2001, including the case involving three men from Toledo convicted last year of plotting to recruit and train terrorists.  Authorities also prosecuted three loosely-linked terrorists over four years, including Iyman Faris, also known as Mohammad Rauf and sometime F.B.I. double agent, was convicted of helping in a plot to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge at the request of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged architect of the 9/11 attacks.

Carter Stewart is following the lead of U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, who has instructed new U.S. Attorneys to return to basic areas of prosecution.  Stewart’s top priority is still counter-terrorism but he has not decided on this next most important emphasis. But he is taking a close look at financial crimes.  “With today’s economy and the issues that we’re facing, I think that’s a direct result from fraudulent activity,” he said.