Programs
The U.S. Attorney's Office of the Western District of North Carolina is involved in a number of programs and projects in our community. Some of our major efforts are listed below.
Civil Rights
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to protecting the civil rights of all people in the Western District of North Carolina. The Office’s Civil Rights Team is tasked enforcing federal civil rights laws, prosecuting individuals who commit criminal civil rights violations, and ensuring equal access to justice and equal opportunities for all by pursuing civil enforcement actions.
Environmental Justice
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of North Carolina is committed to ensuring safe living and working conditions for our entire community and protecting natural resources in the Western District of North Carolina. The Office is tasked with advancing environmental justice through the enforcement of federal civil and criminal laws, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and hazardous waste laws. We also protect natural resources and handle cases relating to tribal rights and resources.
Think Again Initiative
The U.S. Attorney’s Office launched Think Again, an informational campaign aimed at educating the public on how to prevent illegal firearms from getting into the wrong hands. Our office partnered with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) in this initiative, in a joint effort to reduce gun-induced violence and to increase reporting of illegal firearms activity.
United Against Hate Initiative
United Against Hate (UAH) is a nationwide Department of Justice initiative created to combat unlawful acts of hate by connecting federal prosecutors and federal, state, and local law enforcement with communities, to encourage the reporting of hate crimes and incidents of hate. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of North Carolina (USAO-WDNC), through its UAH initiative, seeks to empower individuals and communities to stand against racism, discrimination, and intolerance, and build resilient and thriving communities through inclusion and equity.
COVID-19 Fraud
The U.S. Attorney's Office will investigate and prosecute all wrongdoers looking to profit from the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. We have appointed a Coronavirus Fraud Coordinator tasked with tracking emerging schemes and overseeing all the prosecutions related to COVID-19 fraud.
Terrorism
Working with federal, state, local, and tribal partners, the District of North Carolina Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council (ATAC) fosters awareness, education, and training programs as part of the nation's overall terrorism prevention strategy
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN)
Launched in 2001, the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program is a nationwide initiative that brings together federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement officials, prosecutors, community leaders, and other stakeholders to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in a community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. PSN follows four key design elements of successful violent crime reduction initiatives: community engagement, prevention and intervention, focused and strategic enforcement, and accountability.
Elder Justice Initiative
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of North Carolina is committed to combating neglect, abuse, and financial exploitation of seniors. As part of this initiative, the office is actively engaged in efforts to:
- Investigate and prosecute financial scams targeting or disproportionately impacting seniors.
- Provide training and resources to law enforcement to identify and respond to elder abuse.
- Hold hands-on training seminars for elder Americans and caretakers on how to identify and respond to elderly exploitation and financial scams.
- Pursue nursing homes and other facilities that provide grossly substandard care to seniors.
- Promote greater coordination with state and local partners to combat elder financial exploitation and abuse.
For more information about the Department of Justice’s elder justice initiative, please visit elderjustice.gov. There, you will also find Prosecutor Training Resources, the Multidisciplinary Teams Toolkit, and Outreach resources.
Project Safe Childhood
Project Safe Childhood (PSC) is a Department of Justice initiative launched in 2006 that aims to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children. The threat of sexual predators soliciting children for physical sexual contact is well-known and serious; the danger of perpetrators who produce, distribute, and possess child pornography is equally dramatic and disturbing.
USA HEAT
The mission of the U.S. Attorney’s Heroin Education Action Team (USA HEAT) is to reduce the growing harm to North Carolina families and communities caused by heroin/opiate abuse by increasing community understanding of this epidemic. USA HEAT is a partnership between the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina and families who have lost a loved one to opiate overdose. These courageous moms, dads, brothers, sisters and children share their story in order to help others avoid the grief of losing a family member to a drug overdose.
The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF)
specializes in the investigation and prosecution of drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and related criminal enterprises. The primary objective of the OCDETF program is to target, investigate and prosecute individuals who organize, direct, finance or otherwise engage in illegal drug trafficking enterprises, including large-scale money laundering organizations.
Indian Country
The Qualla Boundary, home to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, the largest federally recognized Indian tribe east of the Mississippi River, is located within the Western District of North Carolina. The primary section of the Qualla Boundary spans Swain and Jackson Counties, with smaller out-parcels found in Cherokee, Graham, and Haywood Counties. At its center is the town of Cherokee, which is approximately one hour west of the City of Asheville. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina derives its criminal jurisdiction over cases originating from the Qualla Boundary from Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1152 and 1153.
Human Trafficking
The U.S. Attorney's Office prosecutes all forms of human trafficking. Human trafficking, also known as trafficking in persons, is a crime that involves compelling or coercing a person to provide labor or services, or to engage in commercial sex acts. The coercion can be subtle or overt, physical or psychological. Exploitation of a minor for commercial sex is human trafficking, regardless of whether any form of force, fraud, or coercion was used.
Health Care Fraud
The prosecution and prevention of health care fraud is an important priority of the district, focusing upon fraud matters involving false billings, violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute and other schemes that victimize patients, health care providers, private insurers and government insurers, such as Medicare and Medicare
LECC
The Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee sponsors and co-sponsors training seminars for federal, state and local law enforcement agencies addressing a variety of subjects.
Funding
Identify funding opportunities and Learn about the Federal Government Funding Process.
Summer Law Camp
Our Summer Law Camp is an opportunity for high school students interested in pursuing a career in the law to learn more about the American criminal justice system and the legal profession.