WIFREDO A. FERRER CONFIRMED AS UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
Senate votes and unanimously confirms Ferrer
The U.S. Senate voted today and with unanimous consent, confirmed Wifredo A. Ferrer as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. Ferrer will be officially sworn in by a federal judge within the next few weeks. Ferrer, who most recently held the position of Chief of the Federal Litigation Section of the Miami-Dade County Attorney's Office, will lead one of the largest and busiest U.S. Attorney's Offices in the country. The office currently has approximately 460 employees in four locations (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Fort Pierce), and serves more than 6 million residents throughout South Florida, from Key West in the south to Vero Beach in the north.
"I am extremely humbled and honored to serve in this capacity, "Ferrer said after the confirmation vote." The U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Florida prosecutes one of the highest and most diverse case loads in the nation. As an alumnus of the Office, I look forward to returning, and working with what I know first-hand to be extremely professional and experienced attorneys and staff. My goal is to continue to build on the tradition of excellence and commitment to justice that defines this Office. I also look forward to working hand-in-hand with the dedicated men and women in federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies throughout South Florida."
President Barack Obama nominated Ferrer on February 25, 2010. Ferrer succeeds Jeffrey H. Sloman, who was appointed as U.S. Attorney on January 2, 2010, after having been served as Acting U.S. Attorney since June 6, 2009.
Ferrer has a long history of public service. After graduating law school in 1990, Ferrer clerked for then-District (now 11th Circuit) Judge Stanley Marcus. Upon completing his clerkship, Ferrer joined the Miami law firm of Steel Hector & Davis in the fall of 1991. After three years in private practice, Ferrer returned to public service. From August 1994 through September 1995, Ferrer served as a White House Fellow and Special Assistant to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), in Washington, D.C. Thereafter, Ferrer became Deputy Chief of Staff and Counsel to then Attorney General Janet Reno.
After five years at the Department of Justice, Ferrer returned to Miami in 2000 as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. While at the U.S. Attorney's Office, Ferrer served in the Public Integrity and National Security Section, the Economic Crimes Section, the Major Crimes Section, and the Appellate Division of the office. As an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Ferrer handled and tried numerous high profile matters, including international money laundering, health care fraud, narcotics, international human rights abuses, immigration, and firearms cases.
During his career, Ferrer has been recognized as one of the Top Government Attorneys by both South Florida Legal Guide and Florida Legal Elite. In addition, he received the Attorney General's Medal in 2000, and Superior Performance and Special Merit Awards for his work as an Assistant U.S. Attorney.
Ferrer, who was born and raised in Miami, attended Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School, in Hialeah, where he was class valedictorian. Ferrer received his undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Miami, in Coral Gables, where he graduated first in his class. He then attended the University of Pennsylvania Law School and graduated cum laude in 1990. He is married with two sons, ages 11 and 9.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
