Justice Department Announces Departure of Criminal Division Leader Marshall L. Miller

After more than 13 years of service as a federal prosecutor, including 16 months as Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General and Chief of Staff of the Criminal Division, Marshall L. Miller will leave the Justice Department.  His last day will be Friday, July 31, 2015.  David Bitkower has been selected to assume the position following Miller’s departure.

“Marshall Miller is an outstanding attorney, a remarkable public servant, and an unwavering advocate for the principles of justice,” said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch.  “Throughout his career in law enforcement – from the Eastern District of New York to Washington, D.C. – he has taken on some of America's most pressing challenges.  He has strengthened our country and empowered our communities.  And he has demonstrated his commitment to fair application of the law.  I commend him for his extraordinary service to the Department of Justice and to the American people, and I look forward to all that he will continue to achieve in the days and years ahead.”

“Throughout his career as a prosecutor, Marshall has inspired his colleagues with his unfailing commitment to the pursuit of justice,” said Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “He has been a real force in the Criminal Division, and has had a strong voice in all the key decisions we have made during my tenure.  While Marshall’s departure is a great loss to the department, I am grateful to have someone with David’s experience, intellect and dedication to help guide me in leading the Criminal Division.”

Miller was appointed to his current position on April 17, 2014, from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of New York, which Miller joined in 1999 as an Assistant U.S. Attorney.  While in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Miller served as Chief and Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division, Chief and Deputy Chief of the Violent Crimes and Terrorism Section and Deputy Chief of the General Crimes Section.  He conducted and supervised numerous significant and complex investigations and prosecutions, including cases involving terrorism, organized crime, violent crime, political corruption and financial fraud.

For his work, Miller received a number of the department’s highest awards, including the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Furthering the Interests of National Security and the Director’s Award for Superior Performance.  He also received the Henry L. Stimson Medal from the New York City Bar Association, the National Intelligence Merit Award from the Director of National Intelligence and a Federal Prosecutor of the Year Award from the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation.  In 2009, Miller was recognized for the most outstanding performance by an Assistant U.S. Attorney by the National Association of Former U.S. Attorneys.

Miller has also significantly engaged in the teaching of law.  He has served as a professor at New York University (NYU) School of Law, where he founded the NYU Federal Prosecution Clinic at the Eastern District of New York.  He also served as an adjunct professor at Fordham University School of Law.  

Before joining the department, Miller clerked for U.S. District Judge Allyne R. Ross of the Eastern District of New York.  He earned both his undergraduate and law degrees from Yale University. 

Since April 2013, David Bitkower has served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division, overseeing the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and the Organized Crime and Gang Section.  He has represented the Department of Justice at Congressional hearings and in international fora, including the United Nations Committee against Torture in Geneva.   

Prior to joining the Criminal Division, Bitkower was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of New York.  He served most recently as the first Chief of the National Security and Cybercrime Section, and previously served as Chief and Deputy Chief of the Violent Crimes and Terrorism Section.  From 2008 to 2009, Bitkower also served on detail to the Justice Department’s Counterterrorism Section of the National Security Division and to the President’s Guantanamo Bay Review Task Force. 

Bitkower has received several notable awards, including the Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Service.  Before joining the Department of Justice, Bitkower was a law clerk for U.S. Circuit Judge Pierre N. Leval of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and for U.S. District Judge Leonard B. Sand of the Southern District of New York.  He is a graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law School, where he served as an editor of the Harvard Law Review.