Divisions
Criminal | Civil | Administration
Criminal Division
John Vincent, Chief
There are four units in the Criminal Division in the Sacramento office. The criminal AUSAs assigned to the Fresno branch office prosecute a wide variety of criminal cases, but are not divided into units.
Appellate Unit
Thomas E. Flynn, Chief
The Appellate Unit reviews all criminal appellate filings, supervises moot courts before oral arguments in appellate cases, provides legal advice to other AUSAs, acts as liaison on appellate matters with the Appellate Section of the Criminal Division and the Solicitor General in Washington, D.C., writes briefs and argues cases in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and provides training for newly hired attorneys.
White Collar Crime Unit
Laura Ferris, Chief
The White Collar Crime Unit is responsible for prosecuting a wide range of crimes including health care fraud, financial institution fraud, bankruptcy fraud, benefits fraud, corporate fraud, enforcement of state court ordered child support, counterfeit currency, counterfeit securities, government contracts, tax fraud, money laundering, mail fraud, and wire fraud. Prosecutors assigned to the White Collar Crime Unit also handle child exploitation cases, including crimes involving child pornography, child prostitution, and travel for the purpose of having sex with minors.
Special Prosecutions Unit
Ben Wagner, Chief
The Special Prosecutions Unit handles a diverse array of criminal matters, including public corruption, securities fraud, civil rights violations, hate crimes, arson, and immigration law offenses. Prosecutors in this unit also focus on the investigation and prosecution of sophisticated economic crime cases in the areas of money laundering, tax evasion, identity theft, and investment fraud. Some prosecutors in the unit also work on cases involving the cultivation of marijuana on public lands.
- Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property (CHIP) Section
The Special Prosecutions Unit also includes the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Section, which investigates and prosecutes federal computer crimes, including computer intrusions, denial of service attacks, virus and worm proliferations, Internet fraud, and telecommunications fraud. The CHIP Section also prosecutes intellectual property offenses including criminal copyright and trademark infringement, software piracy, theft of trade secrets and economic espionage.
Narcotics and Violent Crime Unit
Robert Twiss, Chief
The Narcotics and Violent Crime Unit is primarily responsible for investigating and prosecuting organized crime, major narcotics, money laundering, violent crime and firearm cases. Attorneys in this unit specialize in prosecuting large scale sophisticated drug trafficking organizations. The unit also handles many of the most significant violent crime cases including cases involving terrorism, national security offenses, murder, kidnaping, Hobbs Act extortion, carjacking, assault, and bank robbery.
- Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF)
The Narcotics and Violent Crime Unit also includes the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) section. The OCDETF group is staffed with six Assistant United States Attorneys in Sacramento and three Assistant United States Attorneys in Fresno, along with four legal assistants and paralegal assistants split between the two offices. The OCDETF group handles the largest narcotics conspiracies in the district, generally involving criminal operations in a number of different judicial districts in several states and foreign countries.