US Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Announces Efforts to Enhance the District's Civil and Criminal Civil Rights Work

DALLAS — John Parker, the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, announced today that his office is bolstering its efforts in the protection of civil rights by hiring an Assistant U.S. Attorney who will be dedicated exclusively to his office’s work in that area.  This new Assistant U.S. Attorney will enhance the work already being done by his office in both its criminal and civil prosecutions.     

“Through a combination of criminal and civil enforcement, my office is committed to safeguarding the civil rights of each and every one of the more than seven million residents of the Northern District of Texas,” said U.S. Attorney Parker.  “I’m delighted to have this added resource to further expand our ability to ensure those protections.”

The FY 2016 Appropriations Act provided funds for U.S. Attorneys to hire additional Civil Rights Assistant U.S. Attorneys.  The Northern District of Texas was one of 42 federal districts and the only one in Texas selected to receive funding for the position.  Parker has selected a candidate for the position who is currently undergoing the standard pre-employment adjudication process. 

The U.S. Attorney’s Office, in its partnership with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, has historically worked to advance civil rights through a variety of affirmative civil enforcement practice areas, such as housing and fair lending, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) enforcement, allegations related to the Civil Right of Institutionalized Persons Act, voting rights, service members’ rights, pattern and practice policing investigations, and employment discrimination.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office also protects vulnerable populations through its criminal civil rights work, including human trafficking, hate crimes, and color of law prosecutions.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas is the principal federal prosecution authority for the North Texas area with staffed offices in Dallas, Fort Worth, Lubbock, and Amarillo.  The Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecutes all federal crimes in our jurisdiction including acts of terrorism, public corruption, white-collar crime, organized crime, narcotics trafficking, firearms crimes, internet-related crimes, civil rights violations, and many other criminal offenses.  The Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office is charged with defending agencies of the United States, enforcing regulatory agency authority and affirmative civil rights enforcement, and recovering funds from violators of U.S. statutes and other regulations.

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