FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE USA
MONDAY, JANUARY 13, 1997 (202) 616-2771
TDD (202) 514-1888
ATTORNEY GENERAL ANNOUNCES 1997 AG ADVISORY COMMITTEE
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Attorney General Janet Reno has
appointed eight new members to her 1997 Attorney General's
Advisory Committee of United States Attorneys. The Committee,
created in l973, advises the Attorney General on law enforcement
issues and gives the U.S. Attorneys a key voice in Department
policy. Each of the new members will serve two-year terms
effective January 8, l997.
The new members are:
Karen Schreier, Vice Chair, District of South Dakota
Alan Bersin, Southern District of California
Zachary W. Carter, Eastern District of New York
Veronica Coleman, Western District of Tennessee
Harry D. Dixon, Jr., Southern District of Georgia
Paul M. Gagnon, District of New Hampshire
Kristine Olson, District of Oregon
William D. Wilmoth, Northern District of West Virginia
"These individuals have had impressive tenures as U.S.
Attorneys in their districts and will bring a significant amount
of expertise to the Committee," Reno said. "In making these
appointments, we have tried to achieve a balance of office size,
judicial districts and diversity."
Schreier, U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota,
has also been appointed as Vice Chair of the l997 Committee. She
is Chair of the Advisory Committee's Juvenile Justice
Subcommittee, and is a moving force in leading the Department's
efforts to crack down on dead beat parents who fail to pay child
support. Schreier also serves on the Advisory Committee's
Subcommittees on Native American Issues, Environmental Crimes,
and Justice Programs. Schreier, a native of South Dakota, was an
Associate and Partner with Hagen, Wilka, Schreier and Archer in
Sioux Falls before being Presidentially appointed as U.S.
Attorney in September l993.
Bersin, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of
California, has been reappointed to serve as a member of the
Attorney General's Advisory Committee. He has been a member of
the Committee since l995. Bersin, an expert on immigration
issues, serves as the Attorney General's Special Representative
on Southwest Border issues, and chairs the Advisory Committee's
Border Issues Subcommittee. He also has made major contributions
as a member of the Advisory Committee's Health Care Fraud
Subcommittee. Bersin was Presidentially appointed U.S. Attorney
in November l993. He has held the positions of Executive
Assistant to the Board of Police Commissioners for the City of
Los Angeles; Associate Partner at Munger, Tolles & Olsen; and
visiting professor at the San Diego School of Law and the
University of Southern California.
Carter, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York,
served as a member of Reno's first Advisory Committee in l993-l994.
Carter is invaluable on civil rights issues and chairs the
Advisory Committee's Civil Rights Subcommittee. He also serves
on the Advisory Committee's Subcommittees on Office Management
and Budget, Asset Forfeiture, Controlled Substances/Drug Abuse
Prevention and Education, and Investigative Agencies. Carter, a
native of Washington, D.C., served as U.S. Magistrate Judge for
the Eastern District of New York before being Presidentially
appointed U.S. Attorney in l993. Other positions he has held
include Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New
York; litigation associate at the law firm of Patterson, Belknap,
Webb and Tyler; Executive Assistant District Attorney for the
Kings County District Attorney's Office; Executive Assistant to
the Chief Administrative Judge for all New York City courts; and
Judge of the Criminal Court of the City of New York.
Coleman, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of
Tennessee, has been a moving force in developing the Department's
gang initiatives. She also serves on the Juvenile Justice
Subcommittee. Before being Presidentially appointed U.S.
Attorney in October l993, Coleman held the positions of Referee
for the Juvenile Court of Memphis in Shelby, Tennessee; Senior
Attorney for the Federal Express Corporation; Assistant to the
President and Legal Counsel, Memphis State University; Assistant
District Attorney, Shelby County, Tennessee; an Associate with
Minnie Sims, and Roman and Franklin; Partner with Coleman, Sorak
and Williams; and Assistant Public Defender for Shelby County.
Dixon, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia,
serves on the Department's Executive Working Group. He is also a
key member of the Advisory Committee's Subcommittees on Office
Management and Budget, Environmental Crime, Health Care Fraud,
and White Collar Crime. Dixon, a native of Waycross, Georgia,
has held the positions of Assistant District Attorney
and District Attorney for Waycross, Georgia, Judicial Circuit,
and Associate Attorney for Bennett, Pedrick and Bennett. He was
Presidentially appointed U.S. Attorney for the Southern District
of Georgia in February l994.
Gagnon, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Hampshire, was
Presidentially appointed U.S. Attorney in February l994. Under
Gagnon's leadership, the District of New Hampshire successfully
prosecuted the Honda commercial bribery case which was reported
to be the largest commercial bribery case in the country.
Twenty-two individuals were charged and convicted, including two
senior vice presidents of American Honda Motor Company.
Before becoming U.S. Attorney, Gagnon held positions as
Assistant and County Attorney for Hillsborough County, New
Hampshire, and Associate Attorney for Malloy and Sullivan. He
was also in private practice. Gagnon retired from the New
Hampshire Air National Guard in the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
Olson, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, is a key
member of the Advisory Committee's Subcommittees on Native
American Issues, Environmental Crimes, Civil Rights, and Domestic
Safety. Before being Presidentially appointed U.S. Attorney in
March l994, Olson was Associate Dean and Professor at Lewis and
Clark Northwestern School of Law; served in private practice; and
was Commissioner of the Columbia River Gorge Commission. Olson
was an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon from
l974-l984.
Wilmoth, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of West
Virginia, has been a moving force in the Department's Alternative
Dispute Resolution Initiative. He chairs the Advisory
Committee's Civil Issues Subcommittee and serves on the Advisory
Committee's White Collar Crime and Investigative Agencies
Subcommittees. Wilmoth held the position of Associate with the
Wheeling law firm of Bachmann, Hess, Bachmann & Garden from l976-
l977. He was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Northern District
of West Virginia from l977 to l980, and then joined the Wheeling
law firm of Schrader, Byrd, Byrum and Companion, where he was a
Partner until he was Presidentially appointed as U.S. Attorney in
September l993.
The remaining members of the Committee are:
Donald K. Stern, District of Massachusetts, Chair
J. Michael Bradford, Eastern District of Texas
Christopher F. Droney, District of Connecticut
Peg Lautenschlager, Western District of Wisconsin
Stephen C. Lewis, Northern District of Oklahoma
Don C. Nickerson, Southern District of Iowa
Charles J. Stevens, Eastern District of California
Janet Napolitano, District of Arizona, ex officio
Eric Holder, District of Columbia, ex officio
Shirah Neiman, AUSA, Southern District of New York
Terry Derden, AUSA, District of Idaho
Those United States Attorneys whose appointments expired
are:
Gregory Sleet, Vice Chair, District of Delaware
Janice McKenzie Cole, Eastern District of North
Carolina
Kathryn Landreth, District of Nevada
Sherry S. Matteucci, District of Montana
Thomas J. Monaghan, District of Nebraska
P. Michael Patterson, Northern District of Florida
Michael R. Stiles, Eastern District of Pennsylvania,
ex officio
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