Introduction
The Department of Justice
As the Nation's chief law enforcement officer, the Attorney
General enforces the Federal laws and ensures the fair and
efficient administration of the Federal justice system. In
carrying out this mission, the Attorney General directs the
activities of the more than 101,000 attorneys, law enforcement
professionals, and other employees of the United States
Department of Justice (DOJ). This Annual Report summarizes the
major accomplishments of the Department during 1995.
The responsibilities of the Department are wide-ranging. They
include: detecting, apprehending, prosecuting, and incarcerating
criminal offenders; upholding the civil rights of all Americans;
enforcing laws to protect the environment; ensuring healthy
competition of business in our free enterprise system;
safeguarding the consumer from fraudulent activity; carrying out
the immigration laws of the United States; and representing the
American people in all legal matters involving the United States
government. As shown on the organization chart on page 4, these
responsibilities are discharged by the components of the
Department. Among these components are the major law enforcement
agencies (the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug
Enforcement Administration (DEA), the United States Marshals
Service (USMS), the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS),
and the Bureau of Prisons (BOP)), and the litigating components
(the legal divisions and the United States Attorneys).
Although the Department is headquartered in Washington, D.C.,
most of its work takes place outside of Washington. As a result,
most of its employees are located in any of roughly 2,000
installations of the Department around the country (ranging from
a one or two person border station to a large Division Office in
a major city) or in one of its nearly 100 overseas offices.
Overall, the Department of Justice had a budget of $13.8 billion
in 1995, a 27 percent increase over last year's budget of $10.9
billion. The increase was largely due to the Department
receiving targeted increases to expand detention facilities;
combat violent crime; control the illegal immigration of
individuals into the United States; and foster community policing
efforts.
Highlights of 1995 Accomplishments
- Utilized the new resources and tools available in the
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to
vigorously investigate and prosecute violent criminals to the
full extent of the law.
- Responded rapidly to the bombing of the Alfred Murrah
Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and in conjunction
with other Federal, State, and local law enforcement conducted
the investigation leading to the indictment of Timothy McVeigh
and Terry Nichols.
- Established the Violence Against Women Office to coordinate
and focus the Department's efforts to combat violence against
women.
- Strengthened efforts to dismantle violent street gangs
using Federal racketeering laws, Federal and State narcotics
laws, and outstanding warrants to remove gang members from the
streets.
- Supported the Colombian government in the dismantling of
the Cali cartel by arresting and incarcerating all but one of its
leaders.
- Continued to participate in State and local task forces, to
aggressively investigate and prosecute drug criminals, and to
offer specialized assistance when needed.
- Prevented the sale of handguns, through the use of
background checks, to an estimated 60,000 individuals who are
prohibited from possessing handguns under Federal or State law.
- Vigorously investigated and prosecuted individuals and
industries who victimized Federally insured financial
institutions and the health care industry. More than doubled the
number of health care fraud cases filed, and obtained convictions
in 89 percent of the terminated cases.
- Deposited $487.7 million into the Asset Forfeiture Fund,
sharing $217.3 million with State and local law enforcement
agencies and $5.8 million with international agencies.
Transferred nine forfeited properties to non-profit community
organizations for low income housing projects, teen crisis
centers, grief assistance programs, and drug treatment
facilities.
- Continued the expansion of Federal incarceration facilities
by activating facilities in Carswell Air Force Base, Texas;
Cumberland, Maryland; Greenville and Pekin, Illinois; Florence,
Colorado; and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
- Assisted in the expansion of Federal, State, and local home
confinement and other less costly alternative confinement options
and expanded the use of Comprehensive Sanctions Centers to assist
inmates returning to the community after extended periods of
incarceration.
- Put more than 25,000 officers on the streets as part of the
President's Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program.
- Continued to make the protection of children a top priority
of the Department by addressing issues confronting youths,
developing prevention programs, and prosecuting those who
victimize children.
- Implemented new measures to stop the flow of illegal aliens
into the United States, such as increasing the number of Border
Patrol agents, reforming deportation proceedings, and utilizing
state of the art technology.
- Streamlined the immigrant asylum process, resulting in
efficiencies that have reduced the average case processing time
more than 86 percent, from 477 days to 66 days.
- Reaffirmed the Department's commitment to enforce the civil
rights laws, as evidenced by a record number of criminal civil
rights cases handled in 1995.
- Continued to emphasize the enforcement of laws to protect
the environment and preserve economic competition.
- Collected $1.3 billion in cash in the recovery of both
criminal and civil debts owed the government.
- Improved the management of the Department through the
actions implementing the Justice Performance Review (JPR), the
Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) and other
performance and customer service initiatives. Received the Vice
President's Hammer Awards in 1995 for the FBI's Semi-Automated
Mailer (SAM); and the INS's Border Crossing Cards (BCC) program.
- Opened up the Department to the public through the
establishment of Internet and World Wide Web sites loaded with
information on and supplied by many of the DOJ components.
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