FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          AG
FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 1997                           (202) 616-2777
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888


ATTORNEY GENERAL ANNOUNCES ACTING ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR 
CIVIL RIGHTS, DIRECTOR FOR TRIBAL JUSTICE, AND HEAD OF INTERPOL


     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Attorney General Janet Reno today
announced that Isabelle Katz Pinzler will become the Acting
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Thomas L. LeClaire
will become the Director of the Office of Tribal Justice, and
John J. Imhoff will become the Chief of the U.S. National Central
Bureau of INTERPOL.

Isabelle Katz Pinzler

     Isabelle Katz Pinzler will become Acting Assistant Attorney
General for Civil Rights on January 21, after Assistant Attorney
General Deval L. Patrick steps down.  Pinzler will serve in that
role until a new Assistant Attorney General is appointed and
confirmed by the Senate.

     Pinzler has served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in
the Civil Rights Division since 1994.  In that role she helped to
coordinate the Division's review and reform of federal
affirmative action programs and supervised affirmative action
litigation.  She also helped formulate legal policy on issues of
school desegre-gation and discrimination in higher education.

     "Isabelle has been a tremendous force for civil rights,"
said Patrick, who is returning to Boston to be with his family.

     Pinzler, who is a national expert on women's rights law,
served as Director of the Women's Rights Project of the ACLU,
based in New York City, and founded by Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg.  She received her law degree from Boston University
School of Law.

     "Through her leadership, the Division will continue to build
upon its successes and defend the rights of all Americans," said
Reno.

     Pinzler resides in both Washington, D.C. and New York City. 


Thomas L. LeClaire  

     Thomas L. LeClaire will take over as head of the Office of
Tribal Justice on Monday, January 13.  The office, created in
January 1995, coordinates the Justice Department's policies on
Native American issues with the goal of improving services to
American Indians and Alaska Natives. 

     LeClaire, a member of the Mohawk Nation, most recently
served as an assistant U.S. Attorney in Phoenix.  As an
Assistant, he prosecuted criminal violations in Indian Country,
including violent crime and illegal trafficking in Indian
artifacts.

     "Under Tom's leadership, the Office of Tribal Justice will
continue to promote strong relations between Indian tribes and
the Justice Department," said Reno.

     LeClaire has also served as an assistant U.S. Attorney in
Washington, D.C., as Chief Defense Counsel in the Mediterranean
for the U.S. Navy, and as an Assistant District Attorney in New
York City.  In addition, he has worked as a staff attorney for
the Native American Rights Fund and as a litigator for the law
firm of Fredericks, Pelcyger, Hester & White in Boulder,
Colorado, which specializes in Indian law. 
     
     The position does not require Senate confirmation.

John J. Imhoff

     John J. Imhoff will become the Chief of the U.S. National
Central Bureau of INTERPOL, which promotes mutual assistance and
cooperation between various international law enforcement
agencies.

     Imhoff, who began his career with the FBI in 1976, most
recently served in the FBI's International Relations Branch. 
While in that role, Imhoff helped establish the FBI's new Legal
Attache (Legat) operation in Tallinn, Estonia, managed a unit
that oversaw Legat operations in the Americas and the Pacific
Rim, and served for a month in the Rome Legat office.

     Prior to his international work, Imhoff represented the
FBI's long term fiscal planning interests for six years in the
Finance Division.  He also has supervised the Organized
Crime/Drug and White-Collar Crime Squads in the Baltimore
Division, and served as an investigator in the Detroit Division.

     Imhoff is married and the father of two sons.  The position
does not require Senate confirmation.

                              # # #
96-013