Speeches

Good morning. I’m Nicole Argentieri, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General and Head of the Criminal Division. I’d like to thank the Center for Strategic and International Studies and our own Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) for the opportunity to address this symposium.

Good afternoon. Joining me are Ryan Buchanan, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia; Peter Leary, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia; and Jill Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Our hearts go out to those here across Georgia and other parts of the country impacted by Hurricane Helene.

I am pleased to talk with you today about the Civil Rights Division’s cold case initiative.

Good afternoon.

We are here today to announce the results of the fourth phase of Operation North Star, a five-month initiative undertaken by the U.S. Marshals Service and law enforcement partners to target the most dangerous fugitives and violent offenders in 10 metropolitan areas across the country.

We are here today to announce the findings from our pattern or practice investigation into the City of Lexington, Mississippi, and the Lexington Police Department.

Good morning. Thank you, Jonathan, for that warm welcome.

I am very happy to be here in Arkansas.

Thanks, Todd, and thanks for the warm welcome.

Thank you, Liz Ryan, for that introduction and thank you also to Director Karhlton Moore and the Bureau of Justice Assistance for putting together this week’s conference. This inaugural conference has brought together grantees of the Justice Department’s hate crime grants, which includes law enforcement agencies, states, community-based organizations, and national civil rights organizations, for important discussions on best practices for investigating and prosecuting hate crimes, supporting victims of hate, and preventing hate crimes and hate incidents.

Good morning. Thank you, Adair, for that warm welcome.

Thank you, Fraser, for that kind introduction and thank you to the World Affairs Council for organizing this panel. A big thank you to Jared Kimball and our colleagues with the Criminal Division’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) for inviting the Office for Access to Justice to partner in this engagement.

This afternoon, the Justice Department filed a monopolization lawsuit about a financial network we do not see but cannot escape. Every year, this financial network processes 157 billion debit transactions. Whether at the grocery store, the pharmacy, the gas station or online, millions of Americans give merchants their debit credentials, allowing them to pay for goods and services directly from their bank accounts. And for Americans of all stripes, they either need or prefer this payment option.