United States Attorneys Office

Sheldon J. Sperling was nominated by President George W. Bush to fill the vacant position of United States Attorney on September 4, 2001.

Mr. Sperling's nomination was sent to the Senate for confirmation the next day, and Mr. Sperling was confirmed on December 5, 2001.

On January 15, 2002, Mr. Sperling was formally sworn as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

As United States Attorney, Mr. Sperling is responsible for the prosecution of all violations of federal law within the jurisdiction of the district, as well as full civil representation in legal matters for all federal agencies within the district. He appears in all legal proceedings as the representative for the United States of America in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, protecting the interests, security, and laws of the nation.

Mr. Sperling graduated with a Juris Doctorate from the University of Tulsa College of Law in 1979. He received a B.A. in education from Northeastern State College, Tahlequah, Oklahoma, in 1971. He taught high school and worked as a personnel recruiter before attending law school in 1976.

Prior to his appointment as United States Attorney, Mr. Sperling served over fifteen years with the United States Department of Justice, first as an Assistant United States Attorney from May 1985 until his appointment in January 1989 as First Assistant United States Attorney and Chief of the Criminal Division. In November 2000, he assumed the duties of interim United States Attorney, which he retained until his confirmation.

Before joining the United States Department of Justice, Mr. Sperling spent over two years as an Assistant District Attorney for the State of Oklahoma, covering Adair, Cherokee, Sequoyah, and Wagoner counties. He was engaged in the private practice of law in Tulsa for three years after his admission to the Oklahoma Bar Association.

Mr. Sperling has been a member of the Oklahoma Bar Association since 1979. He is a member of the Bars of the Eastern District of Oklahoma and the Northern District of Oklahoma and the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He was a member of the National Association of Assistant United States Attorneys from 1994-2001, where he served as NAAUSA Executive Director, and NAAUSA Regional Director, and NAAUSA delegate. He was a member of the Tulsa County Bar Association from 1979-82, the American Bar Association from 1979-86, the Oklahoma District Attorney's Association from 1983-85, and the National District Attorney's Association in 1984. He is a member of the law school fraternity Delta Theta Phi, national scholastic fraternity Rho Theta Sigma, and national junior college forensic fraternity Phi Rho Pi.  He is a former state high school and junior college national debate champion and a two-time national jet ski slalom champion.

Mr. Sperling has been the recipient of numerous awards including a special commendation from FBI Director Louis J. Freeh in February 1998; Director’s Award for Superior Performance as an Assistant U.S. Attorney from the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, EOUSA Director, and Deputy EOUSA Director on November 17,1994; numerous special achievement awards from the Department of Justice; special commendations from FBI Director William S. Sessions in 1993 and FBI Director Robert S. Mueller, III, in 2002 and 2004; Meritorious Achievement Award from the South Central Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force on April 28, 1993; from the Oklahoma Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association in 2006; and from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol in 2006.

Mr. Sperling and his wife, Marvetta, have been married for over thirty-seven years and are the proud parents of two sons, the elder a medical school graduate in his internship and the younger a chemical engineer.