#427: 09-16-98 - ATTORNEY GENERAL APPOINTS NEW MEXICO U.S. ATTORNEY JOHN KELLY AS SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR SOUTHWEST BORDER REGION

USA WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1998 (202) 616-2771 WWW.USDOJ.GOV TDD (202) 514-1888 ATTORNEY GENERAL APPOINTS NEW MEXICO U.S. ATTORNEY JOHN KELLY AS SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR SOUTHWEST BORDER REGION Reno also Appoints Kelly to Her Advisory Committee of U.S. Attorneys Washington, D.C. - Attorney General Janet Reno appointed John J. Kelly, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, to be her Special Representative for the Southwest Border Region, the Justice Department announced today. Kelly will replace former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California, Alan Bersin. Reno also appointed Kelly to serve as a member of her Advisory Committee for United States Attorneys. Kelly will be only the second person to become Special Representative for the Southwest border. The position was created in October 1995 after the Attorney General, in consultation with INS Commissioner Doris Meissner, decided that the fight against illegal immigration, border crime and drug trafficking would be strengthened by having one person coordinate the efforts of all the Justice Department agencies. Kelly's responsibilities as the Attorney General's Special Representative include: Working with the INS Commissioner to recommend strategies to the Attorney General to improve operation of the immigration laws along the Southwest Border; and Serving as Chair of the Southwest Border Council which consists of U.S. Attorneys from the districts bordering Mexico, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern and Central Districts of California, and senior Justice Department Criminal Division, DEA, FBI, Customs, and INS representatives. "John's tenure as U.S. Attorney has been impressive," said Reno. "He launched a number of new federal law enforcement initiatives resulting in the first narcotics and violent crime racketeering prosecutions in New Mexico's history, and a stepped up program to prosecute crimes against women and children on the state's Indian reservations. He also has been a moving force in leading the Department's efforts on Southwest border issues," The Attorney General's Advisory Committee, created in 1973, advises the Attorney General on law enforcement issues and gives the U.S. Attorneys a key voice in Department policy. As a Committee member, Kelly will Chair the Border Law Enforcement Subcommittee. "Along with managing his district so well, John has successfully chaired the Native American Issues Subcommittee," said Reno. "And, we will continue to utilize his strong leadership skills as he Chairs the Border Law Enforcement Subcommittee." Kelly became U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico in December 1993. Under his direction, the office substantially increased prosecution of violent crimes and immigration cases, as well as multi-defendant and complex drug cases. In addition, Kelly sits on subcommittees and working groups devoted to the environment, organized crime and violent crime, juvenile justice, border law enforcement, domestic safety, and Indian gaming. In 1996, Kelly was selected for an interdepartmental executive committee of senior officials from the Departments of Justice and Interior to study law enforcement in Indian Country. Kelly also sits on the Executive Committee of the New Mexico High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Board and the New Mexico Drug Enforcement Advisory Council. Recently, he oversaw the establishment of the first two New Mexico Weed and Seed sites, which are programs designed to organize communities to eradicate drugs and violence and develop safer neighborhoods. Prior to becoming U.S. Attorney, Kelly was a partner-in-charge of the Albuquerque office of Hinkle, Cox, Eaton, Coffield & Hensley, where he practiced civil, banking and commercial lending, environmental, and real property law, and was involved in administrative practice before local, state and federal agencies. He has practiced law for 24 years. Kelly graduated from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and the Cornell University Law School. He is a member of the Management Committee of the Bar Associations for the U.S. District Court, District of New Mexico, and a former member of the Advisory Committee of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. He is published in the Cornell Law Review and the University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform.
Kelly is married to Suedeen Gibbons Kelly, a professor of Law at the University of New Mexico. They have two teenage children. ###
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