United States Attorney D. Michael Dunavant Announces Beth C. Boswell as Chief of the Criminal Division for the Western District of Tennessee

Memphis, TN – United States Attorney D. Michael Dunavant is pleased to announce the appointment of Beth C. Boswell as Chief of the Criminal Division for the Western District of Tennessee. This position was vacated when Joseph "Joe" Murphy was appointed as First Assistant United States Attorney.

Beth Boswell is a graduate of Cumberland University, Middle Tennessee State University, and South Texas College of Law. She started her path as a career prosecutor immediately after law school by working for the Harris County District Attorney’s office in Houston, Texas, one of the largest DA offices in the country. During her time there, Beth served as the Deputy Chief of the Misdemeanor Division, supervising and training over 50 Assistant District Attorneys.

Prior to joining the Department of Justice, Boswell served as the Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney General for the 24th Judicial District Attorneys General Office in Paris, Tennessee for 16 years. During her service there, she was the Senior Trial Prosecutor covering a five-county district for all violent crimes and major drug cases.

U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, "Beth Boswell is a talented and dedicated career prosecutor who has extensive experience in all types of cases across West Tennessee. She has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the supervision and training of prosecutors and law enforcement, and I am confident that she will manage the Criminal Division of our office with effectiveness and integrity. I have had the pleasure to serve with Beth as both a state and federal prosecutor, and I am proud to have her lead our Criminal Division to aggressively and fairly carry out the priorities of the Department of Justice in the Western District of Tennessee."

In 2011, she served as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, responsible for federal criminal narcotics, firearm and Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) prosecutions. From 2014 to 2016, Beth was hired as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force unit responsible for prosecuting large-scale, complex narcotics conspiracy cases, including cases connected to drug cartels and criminal street gangs.

Appointed in 2016 as OCDETF Chief/Assistant United States Attorney, Boswell currently supervises five AUSAs. Her responsibilities include managing the OCDETF program by working closely with regional and national counterparts. She also approves indictments, prosecution memoranda, plea agreements, cooperation agreements, and Title III applications and affidavits for the unit. In addition, she handles her own caseload, including violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering, and long-term investigations into drug trafficking organizations. In November 2017, Beth was designated as the Opioid Coordinator for the Western District of Tennessee.

In 2016, Beth was the recipient of the United States Attorney Award, for outstanding performance and distinguished service to the Western District of Tennessee. Beth has been a regular speaker and instructor in various areas of public safety, and has provided training to prosecutors, law enforcement, correctional officers, medical professionals, and the public.

During her career as a prosecutor, Beth Boswell has tried well over 300 felony cases to verdict, including large narcotics prosecutions, firearms violations, murders, rapes, robberies, and other violent crimes.