Berman served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York from 1990 to 1994. In January 2018,U.S. Attorney GeneralJeff Sessions announced Berman's appointment as interim U.S. Attorney for a statutory period of 120 days.[1] On April 25,2018,the judges of the Southern District of New York,pursuant to 28 U.S.C.§546(d),unanimously appointed Berman U.S. Attorney for an indeterminate term that extended "until the vacancy is filled",[2] which may or may not include the appointment of a presidential nominee approved by the Senate.[3][2]
On June 19,2020,Attorney General William Barr announced in a press release that Berman was "stepping down" effective July 3 and that Jay Clayton,the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission,would be nominated as his replacement.[4][5] Hours later,Berman stated that he had not resigned and would not resign until "a presidentially appointed nominee is confirmed by the Senate."[6] At the time that Trump and Barr sought his ouster,Berman was reportedly investigating Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani for alleged crimes relating to his activities in Ukraine.[7][8] On June 20,Barr told Berman that he had been fired by Trump at Barr's request and that the deputy U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss would serve as acting U.S. Attorney. Berman then agreed to resign immediately.[8][9][10]
Berman was subsequently engaged by Mudge Rose and Latham &Watkins,where he worked as a monitor to rid the New York Carpenter’s Union of the influence of organized crime.[14] From 1994 to 1997,Berman represented,pro bono, Maureen and Richard Kanka,defending the constitutionality of Megan’s Law in state and federal litigation. He married Joanne Karen Schwartz on August 20,1994.[19]
Berman is a resident of New York,where he previously lived from 1984 to 2002. He then moved to Princeton,New Jersey,where he lived for 14 years. Berman was a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig,as was Rudy Giuliani.[20] It was reported that Giuliani supported Berman for U.S. Attorney in New Jersey,but that Giuliani supported a different candidate for U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.[21][22]
After President Donald Trump fired Preet Bharara as U.S. Attorney,Trump interviewed Berman for the position.[25] Berman had performed some part-time volunteer work for the Trump transition.[26] On January 3,2018,Attorney GeneralJeff Sessions announced Berman's appointment as U.S. Attorney,along with 16 other former prosecutors to various offices around the country on an interim basis until the Senate could confirm them.[27][28]
The Trump administration never nominated Berman or most of the other interim appointments. On April 25,2018,the Chief Judge of the Southern District of New York entered an order on behalf of a unanimous court appointing Berman U.S. Attorney pursuant to its authority under 28 U.S.C Section 546(d). Berman had the appointment indefinitely,until the Senate confirmed someone nominated by the president.[2] The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York,often called the "Sovereign District of New York",is known as highly independent.[29] Berman oversaw investigations into some of Trump's associates.[30][31][32][33]
In April 2018,Berman's office issued a search warrant of the office and hotel room of Michael Cohen,Trump's former lawyer,for possible bank fraud and campaign finance violations.[34][35][36] Since Berman was recused by the U.S. Attorney General's Office from the investigation,he was apparently not involved in the decision to raid Cohen's office.[37] That search was presumably conducted under the authority of Robert Khuzami,Berman's top deputy.[38]
On August 8,2018,U.S. Representative Chris Collins,his son Cameron,and the father of Cameron's fiancée,Stephen Zarsky,were arrested by the FBI and charged by Berman with insider trading and making false statements.[39][40][41] Following the charges,House Speaker Paul Ryan kicked Collins off of the House Energy and Commerce Committee,and Collins suspended his reelection campaign.[42][43][44] Collins subsequently pleaded guilty to insider trading and lying to the FBI and was sentenced to 26 months in prison.[45]
On October 26,2018,Berman charged Cesar Sayoc with sending a string of homemade incendiary packages to several present and former federal officials,including former President Barack Obama,former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.[46] Sayoc pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.[47]
In October 2018,Berman charged five doctors and one pharmacist with narcotics distribution,including prescribing opioids to individuals who had no medical need for them. Berman said at his press conference:“These doctors and other health professionals should have been the first line of defense against opioid abuse,but as alleged in today's charges,instead of caring for their patients,they were drug dealers in white coats."[48][49][50] Five of the defendants have either pleaded guilty or been convicted.[51]
In November 2018,Berman charged recording artist and performer Daniel Hernandez,better known as 6ix9ine,with six felony counts of racketeering and violence to aid racketeering. The most serious charge against Hernandez was "using or carrying a firearm during and in relation to,or possessing a firearm in furtherance of,a crime of violence,which was discharged",which can result in life in prison.[52] In January 2019 Hernandez pleaded guilty to the charges.[53] He was sentenced to two years in prison.[54]
On November 26,2018,Berman announced the indictment of former Honduran Congressman Tony Hernández on drug trafficking and weapons charges. Hernández is the brother of former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández. On October 18,2019,Tony Hernández was convicted at trial.[55][56]
On January 8,2019,Berman charged Natalia Veselnitskaya,a Russian lawyer,with obstruction of justice in connection with a false and misleading declaration she submitted to a judge in the Southern District of New York. Berman said on announcing the indictment:"Fabricating evidence to affect the outcome of pending litigation not only undermines the integrity of the judicial process,but it threatens the ability of our courts and our government to ensure that justice is done."[57][58][59]
On March 25,2019,Berman charged Michael Avenatti with extortion in connection with his threat to Nike that he would go public with damaging allegations against Nike employees unless Nike paid him over $20 million. Berman said on announcing the charges:"A suit and tie doesn't mask the fact that,at its core,this was an old-fashioned shakedown."[60][61] Avenatti was convicted on all counts on February 14,2020.[62]
In April 2019,Berman brought the first ever drug trafficking charges against a pharmaceutical company and two of its executives,charging Rochester Drug Co-Operative and its former CEO,Laurence Doud III,with conspiring to distribute oxycodone and fentanyl and to defraud the DEA. In announcing the charges,Berman said,"This prosecution is the first of its kind:executives of a pharmaceutical distributor and the distributor itself have been charged with drug trafficking,trafficking the same drugs that are fueling the opioid epidemic that is ravaging our country. Our Office will do everything in its power to combat this epidemic,from street-level dealers to the executives who illegally distribute drugs from their boardrooms."[63][64]
In May 2019,Berman charged Avenatti with another indictment,alleging that he stole $300,000 from his client Stormy Daniels. Berman said:"Far from zealously representing his client,Avenatti,as alleged,instead engaged in outright deception and theft,victimizing rather than advocating for his client."[65]
In July 2019,Berman charged financier Jeffrey Epstein with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors. Berman said at his press conference:"The alleged behavior shocks the conscience. And while the charged conduct is from a number of years ago,it is still profoundly important to the many alleged victims,now young women. They deserve their day in court,and we are proud to stand up for them in bringing this indictment."[66][67] Berman's prosecution resurfaced then-Labor SecretaryAlexander Acosta's handling of Epstein's sex trafficking case a decade earlier. On July 12,Acosta resigned amid pressure from the case.[68]
On August 10,2019,Epstein was found dead in his cell of an apparent suicide. Berman stated:"Today's events are disturbing,and we are deeply aware of their potential to present yet another hurdle to giving Epstein's many victims their day in Court. To those brave young women who have already come forward and to the many others who have yet to do so,let me reiterate that we remain committed to standing for you,and our investigation of the conduct charged in the Indictment—which included a conspiracy count—remains ongoing."[69]
On October 9,2019,Berman announced charges against Lev Parnas,Igor Fruman and two others for campaign violations relating to the illegal use of straw donors and foreign money.[70] Berman said:"They sought political influence not only to advance their own financial interests but to advance the political interests of at least one foreign official—a Ukrainian government official who sought the dismissal of the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine". Berman said the investigation was ongoing.[71]
On October 15,2019,Berman announced the indictment of Halkbank,the largest state-owned bank in Turkey,for a multi-billion-dollar scheme to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran. In announcing the charges,Berman said:"The bank's audacious conduct was supported and protected by high-ranking Turkish government officials,some of whom received millions of dollars in bribes to promote and protect the scheme."[33][32][31] Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lobbied President Trump to quash Berman's investigation,as Erdogan's family and allies could be implicated by it.[72] In June 2019,Attorney General Barr pressed Berman to allow Halkbank to pay a fine and acknowledge some wrongdoing,and to end criminal investigations into senior Halkbank officials involved in the sanctions evasion.[72] Previously,acting Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker rejected Berman's request to file criminal charges against the bank. Whitaker did so shortly after Erdogan had pressed Trump to quash the investigation.[72]
On November 19,2019,Berman charged guards Michael Thomas and Tova Noel with creating false records,and with conspiracy,after video footage obtained by prosecutors revealed that Jeffrey Epstein had,against regulation,been in his cell unchecked for eight hours before being found dead on August 10,2019.[73]
On January 27,2020,at a press conference sponsored by Safe Horizon at the site of Jeffrey Epstein's New York mansion,Berman was asked whether Prince Andrew was cooperating with the SDNY's investigation into Epstein's coconspirators. Berman responded that to date Andrew had provided "zero cooperation".[74][75] On March 9,2020,Berman said that Andrew had "completely shut the door" on voluntary cooperation and that his office was considering its options.[76][77]
On February 11,2020,Berman announced charges against Lawrence Ray,who sex trafficked and extorted his daughter's college roommates. Berman said:"For so many of us,and our children,college is supposed to be a time of self-discovery and newfound independence,a chance to explore and learn,all within the safety of a college community. But as alleged,the defendant exploited that vulnerable time in his victims' lives".[78][79]
On February 25,2020,it was reported and confirmed by an SDNY spokesperson that a search warrant was executed at the Manhattan offices of Peter Nygård amid a sex-trafficking investigation.[80]
On March 9,2020,Berman announced the indictment of 27 people,including Jason Servis and Jorge Navarro,involved in doping racehorses across the country. Berman said,"The defendants who we charge today engaged in this conduct not for love of the sport and certainly not out of concern for the horses,but for money."[81]
On March 26,2020,Berman announced the indictment of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and other Venezuelan officials on charges of conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism and to import hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States and related weapons offenses. Berman said:"As alleged,Maduro and the other defendants expressly intended to flood the United States with cocaine in order to undermine the health and well being of our nation. Maduro very deliberately deployed cocaine as a weapon."[82]
On April 30,2020,Berman announced drug trafficking and weapons charges against Juan Carlos "The Tiger" Bonillo,the former head of the Honduras National Police. Berman stated that the indictment alleged that Bonillo conspired with convicted former Honduran congressman Tony Hernández and his brother,former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández.[83]
On April 30,2020,Berman announced a deferred prosecution agreement against Bank Hapoalim,Israel's largest bank,for conspiring to hide assets and income in offshore accounts. Bank Hapoalim agreed to pay nearly $875 million. Berman said,"Israel's largest bank,Bank Hapoalim,and its Swiss subsidiary have admitted not only failing to prevent but actively assisting U.S. customers to set up secret accounts,to shelter assets and income,and to evade taxes. The combined payment approaching $1 billion reflects the magnitude of the tax evasion by the Bank's U.S. customers,the size of the fees the Bank collected to provide this illegal service,and the gravity of the illegal conduct."[84]
On June 12,2020,Berman announced the unsealing of a complaint against Inigo Philbrick,an art dealer with galleries in London and Miami,charged with defrauding a client of over $20 million. Berman said:"You can't sell more than 100 percent ownership in a single piece of art,which Philbrick allegedly did,among other scams. When his schemes began to unravel,Philbrick allegedly fled the country. Now he is in U.S custody and facing justice."[85][86]
2020 ouster
In June 2020,CNN reported that Trump had been thinking about removing Berman from his position for two years. Under Berman,the SDNY investigated and prosecuted Trump's longtime personal attorney and "fixer" Michael Cohen in 2018. Trump also felt Berman's investigation of his personal attorney,Rudy Giuliani,was an effort to damage him politically.[87] That investigation of Giuliani's activities in Ukraine became publicly known in October 2019,and later was reported to include a broad range of potential crimes by Giuliani or his associates.[88][89] In May 2021,the SDNY publicly disclosed in a court filing that in November 2019 it covertly obtained search warrants for Giuliani's iCloud account,and for that of his and Trump's associate,Victoria Toensing,as part of the investigation.[90] In June 2020,the SDNY was also two months from indicting former Trump advisor Steve Bannon on fraud charges relating to fundraising for the Trump wall.[91]
In a late-night news release on June 19,2020,Attorney General William Barr announced that Berman would step down from his position. He said that Trump intended to nominate Jay Clayton,the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission,to take Berman's place as the Manhattan U.S. attorney,and that Trump,on his recommendation,had appointed Craig Carpenito,the U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey,to serve as the acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York,effective July 3,2020,while the Senate takes up Clayton's nomination.[4][92][93]
Shortly after Barr's announcement,Berman denied having resigned and said that he had "no intention of resigning," saying that he was appointed by a court,not the president,and that he would remain in office until the Senate confirmed a replacement. He added that he learned about his supposed intention to step down from press reports. He vowed to ensure that the office’s "important cases continue unimpeded."[94] Because Berman was appointed by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York under 28 U.S.C. Section 546(d),it was unclear whether either the Attorney General or the President could remove Berman as US Attorney without a Senate-confirmed successor in place.[95][96][97][98][99] It was also unclear whether Carpenito is legally eligible to replace Berman on an acting basis.[100]
The next day,June 20,Barr claimed that Trump had fired Berman,writing in a letter to Berman,"Because you have declared that you have no intention of resigning,I have asked the President to remove you as of today,and he has done so."[9][101] Barr wrote in his letter,"Unfortunately,with your statement of last night,you have chosen public spectacle over public service".[10] Barr added "By operation of law,the Deputy United States Attorney,Audrey Strauss,will become the Acting United States Attorney."[102][103] When asked by reporters,Trump said,"That's his [Barr's] department,not mine. ... I'm not involved."[104] Later that day Berman agreed to step down because,he said,Barr had respected "the normal operation of law" by appointing his deputy as interim U.S. attorney.[8] Barr also wrote to Berman,"Your statement also wrongly implies that your continued tenure in the office is necessary to ensure that cases now pending in the Southern District of New York are handled appropriately. This is obviously false."[8]
Senate Minority LeaderChuck Schumer of New York stated that the firing "reeks of potential corruption of the legal process."[105] Schumer said from the Senate floor,"But for Mr. Berman’s principled stand,the White House and the DOJ would have subverted the chain of succession at the SDNY to install a pliant U.S. Attorney from New Jersey in Mr. Berman’s place. Thankfully,due to Mr. Berman’s courage that plan was thwarted".[106] On June 20,2020,House Judiciary Committee chair Jerry Nadler announced that the committee would "immediately open an investigation into this incident,as part of our broader investigation into Barr’s unacceptable politicization of the Department of Justice" and invited Berman to join two whistleblowers at an upcoming hearing about "a larger,ongoing,and wholly unacceptable pattern of conduct."[107]Speaker of the HouseNancy Pelosi said that Berman's firing “cannot be explained by cause and instead suggests base and improper motives. ... Judiciary Chairman Nadler’s renewed call for Barr to testify before the House Judiciary Committee and the Committee’s decision to open an immediate investigation into this incident are justified and urgently needed."[108]
On July 9,Berman testified before a closed session of the House Judiciary Committee.[109] After his testimony was released,Representative Adam Schiff said that "Berman’s act of defiance" was a story "of great heroism".[110][111]
On August 20,2020,the SDNY announced the indictment of Steve Bannon,Trump’s former campaign CEO,on wire fraud and money laundering charges.[112][113] The charges were based on his taking for his personal use funds that were supposed to be dedicated to the building of a wall on the southern border. Several articles questioned whether the charges would have been brought if Berman had not blocked Barr's attempt to appoint an ally to replace him. On January 20,2021,Trump granted Bannon a pardon from the federal charges.[114][115][116] Berman refused to resign until his deputy was named to succeed him,which he said would ensure that the important cases of his office would continue without delay or interruption.[117][118]
On July 15,2020,Stanford Law School announced Berman's appointment as the Edwin A. Heafey Jr. Visiting professor of Law for the fall 2020 term.[119][120]
On November 19,2021,at Damian Williams's investiture ceremony as the new U.S. Attorney for the SDNY,Williams praised Berman’s service. As reported by the Associated Press,Williams "sparked sustained applause when he mentioned Geoffrey S. Berman,a Republican who served as U.S. attorney during much of Donald Trump’s presidential term. Berman became known in what prosecutors like to affectionately call the 'Sovereign District of New York' for standing up to Washington’s demands and left office in June 2020 after a standoff with then-Attorney General William Barr over investigations into Trump’s allies. Williams said Berman promoted him and 'when the hour demanded true courage and independence and a demonstration of what it means to be a Southern District of New York prosecutor,he showed all of America what that means.'"[121]
Return to private life
In December 2020,Fried,Frank,Harris,Shriver &Jacobson announced that Berman was joining the firm to head its white-collar defense,regulatory enforcement and investigations practice.[122][123]
In September 2022,Berman published a memoir,Holding the Line:Inside the Nation’s Preeminent US Attorney’s Office and its Battle with the Trump Justice Department. In it he describes numerous instances in which he says the Justice Department took politically motivated actions,such as suppressing investigations into Trump's allies or demanding investigations into people considered Trump's enemies.[124] As one example,he says that in September 2018 a senior Justice Department official told Berman's deputy that because the Southern District had pursued prosecution of two Trump loyalists,the office should issue charges against a prominent Democratic lawyer "to even things out",and should do so before Election Day.[125] The Senate Judiciary Committee announced plans to investigate Berman's allegations that the Justice Department during the Trump administration made politically influenced decisions to initiate criminal investigations against some people and block them against others.[126]
Notable civil cases and criminal prosecutions announced by Berman
Holding the Line: Inside the Nation's Preeminent US Attorney's Office and Its Battle with the Trump Justice Department. Penguin. September 13, 2022. ISBN978-0-593-30030-5. OCLC1338025853.
The United States attorney for the Southern District of New York is the chief federal law enforcement officer in eight contiguous New York counties: the counties of New York (Manhattan) and Bronx, and the counties of Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan. Established by the Judiciary Act of 1789, the office represents the United States government in criminal and civil cases across the country. The SDNY handles a broad array of cases, including but not limited to those involving white collar crime, domestic terrorism, cybercrime, public corruption, organized crime, and civil rights disputes.
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal trial court whose geographic jurisdiction encompasses eight counties of the State of New York. Two of these are in New York City: New York (Manhattan) and Bronx; six are in the Hudson Valley: Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Jeffrey Edward Epstein was an American financier and sex offender. Born and raised in New York City, Epstein began his professional life as a teacher at the Dalton School despite lacking a college degree. After his dismissal from the school in 1976, he entered the banking and finance sector, working at Bear Stearns in various roles before starting his own firm. Epstein cultivated an elite social circle and procured many women and children whom he and his associates sexually abused.
William Pelham Barr is an American attorney who served as United States attorney general in the administration of President George H. W. Bush from 1991 to 1993 and again in the administration of President Donald Trump from 2019 to 2020.
John Henry Durham is an American lawyer who served as the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut from 2018 to 2021. By April 2019, the Trump administration assigned him to investigate the origins of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. elections, and in October 2020 he was appointed special counsel for the Department of Justice on that matter.
Gregory Bestor Craig is an American lawyer and former White House Counsel under President Barack Obama, from 2009 to 2010. A former attorney at the Washington, D.C. law firm of Williams & Connolly, Craig has represented numerous high-profile clients. Prior to becoming White House Counsel, he served as assistant to the President and special counsel in the White House of President Bill Clinton, where he directed the team defending Clinton against impeachment. Craig also served as a senior advisor to Senator Edward Kennedy and to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.
Halkbank is a Turkish bank, first incorporated in 1933 as a state-owned bank. After growing throughout much of the twentieth century, it began absorbing smaller-sized state banks around the turn of the millennium. Halkbank is now a publicly traded company, although the majority stakeholder remains the Turkish government. Halkbank is a bank that offers vehicle loans, housing loans, consumer loans and commercial loans. A number of scandals and controversies involving the bank emerged in the 2010s, some of which culminated in arrests of its executives.
Edward Casey O'Callaghan is an American attorney and former U.S. Department of Justice official.
Cyrus Roberts Vance Jr. is an American attorney and politician who served as the District Attorney of New York County, New York. He was previously a principal partner at the law firm of Morvillo, Abramowitz, Grand, Iason, Anello, & Bohrer, P.C. He is the son of Cyrus Vance Sr., former Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter. Vance did not seek reelection as District Attorney in the 2021 election, and was succeeded by Alvin Bragg. He is currently a partner at Baker McKenzie.
Preetinder Singh Bharara is an Indian-born American lawyer and former federal prosecutor who served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York from 2009 to 2017. He is currently a partner at the law firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr. He served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for five years prior to leading the Southern District of New York.
The Robert Mueller special counsel investigation was an investigation into 45th U.S. president Donald Trump regarding Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections and was conducted by special prosecutor Robert Mueller from May 2017 to March 2019. It was also called the Russia investigation, Mueller probe, and Mueller investigation. The investigation focused on three points:
Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections
Trump associates and their connection to Russian officials and espionage
Possible obstruction of justice by Trump and his associates
Michael John Avenatti is an American former attorney currently incarcerated in federal prison for felony fraud and extortion. He is best known for his legal representation of adult film actress Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against then U.S. President Donald Trump, and his multiple convictions for attempting to extort sports apparel company Nike and defrauding and embezzling settlement money from a series of other clients. In the late 2010s, Avenatti appeared extensively on television and in print as a legal and political commentator, and as a representative for prominent clients.
The Stormy Daniels–Donald Trump scandal involves an alleged one-night sexual encounter in 2006 between businessman and later U.S. president Donald Trump and pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels, a conspiracy on the part of Trump to cover up the story in the month prior to the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and Trump's falsification of business records as part of the conspiracy. The story broke in 2018, when The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen paid US$130,000 to Daniels for her silence during the 2016 Trump campaign.
This is a timeline of events in the first half of 2019 related to investigations into the many suspicious links between Trump associates and Russian officials and spies relating to the Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. It follows the timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections, both before and after July 2016, until November 8, 2016, the transition, the first and second halves of 2017, the first and second halves of 2018, and followed by the second half of 2019, 2020, and 2021.
The Special Counsel investigation was a United States law enforcement and counterintelligence investigation of the Russian government's efforts to interfere in United States politics and any possible involvement by members of the 2016 Trump presidential campaign. It was primarily focused on the 2016 presidential election.
On August 10, 2019, guards found American financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein unresponsive in his jail cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City, where he was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. After prison guards performed CPR, he was transported in cardiac arrest to the New York Downtown Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:39 am. The New York City medical examiner and the Justice Department Inspector General ruled that Epstein's death was a suicide by hanging. Epstein's lawyers challenged the medical examiner's conclusion and opened their own investigation, hiring pathologist Michael Baden.
Michael Rafi Sherwin is an attorney who served as the acting United States Attorney for the District of Columbia from 2020 to 2021. He was appointed by Attorney General William Barr during the Trump administration. He is partner at the law firm Kobre & Kim where he handles international government investigations.
Audrey Strauss is an American attorney who served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York from June 20, 2020, to October 10, 2021. Previously the deputy U.S. Attorney, Strauss became the acting U.S. Attorney after the previous U.S. attorney, Geoffrey Berman, was fired by President Donald Trump at the request of Attorney General William Barr. On December 22, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, effective January 16, 2021, and pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 546(d), unanimously appointed Strauss as U.S. Attorney for an indeterminate term.
Alvin Leonard Bragg Jr. is an American politician and lawyer who serves as the New York County District Attorney, covering Manhattan. In 2021, he became the first African American elected to that office. Bragg had previously served as Chief Deputy Attorney General of New York and as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York. In 2024, he became the first and only district attorney to secure a conviction of a former United States president.
Holding the Line: Inside the Nation's Preeminent US Attorney's Office and Its Battle with the Trump Justice Department is a nonfiction book by former Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman and published by Penguin Press on September 13, 2022. Berman was fired by former President Trump. In the book, Berman discusses "a range of conflicts he encountered with the [U.S.] Department of Justice during his tenure leading the Southern District of New York." Hence, Berman chronicles the improprieties that were applied by the Trump administration to pressure his U.S. Attorney's office. The author also gives in-depth specifics about cases, which his office prosecuted, such as Michael Cohen; Chris Collins; Michael Avenatti, and Jeffrey Epstein.
1 2 Smythe, Christie; Dolmetsch, Chris; Larson, Erik (January 4, 2018). "Giuliani Law Partner Named Top New York Federal Prosecutor". Bloomberg News. Retrieved January 7, 2018. A native of Trenton, New Jersey, where his father was a real estate developer, Berman graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1981 and its Wharton School.
↑ Jackson, Herb (August 7, 2017). "Report: NJ attorney Berman being considered for top federal prosecutor in Manhattan". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved January 7, 2018. Geoffrey Berman of Princeton was listed as a potential U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York in a package of proposed candidates for New York judicial and prosecutorial vacancies sent to the state's U.S. senators in July, Buzzfeed said, citing a source familiar with the process.
↑ Beale, Sara Sun (2011). "What Are the Rules if Everybody Wants to Play?". In Barkow, Anthony S.; Barkow, Rachel E. (eds.). Prosecutors in the Boardroom: Using Criminal Law to Regulate Corporate conduct. NYU Press. p.206. ISBN9780814787038. Finally, in some multijurisdictional cases there have been turf battles rather than cooperation. For example, the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York ..... Press accounts have noted the perception that the "'Sovereign District of New York'...doesn't necessar[il]y play well with others."
↑ Bharara, Preet (June 19, 2020). "Live Interview with Preet Bharara, Former US Attorney". CNN Tonight with Don Lemon at 11:49 PM ET. The legal question is not crystal clear.
↑ Vladeck, Steve (June 19, 2020). "Tweet of Law Professor Steve Vladeck". Twitter. Retrieved June 20, 2020. Berman is the Acting U.S. Attorney by dint of a *judicial* appointment. There's a pretty good argument that, per the plain language of 28 U.S.C. § 546(d), he gets to keep serving in that post until the *vacancy* is filled (through Senate confirmation of a permanent successor).
↑ Vladeck, Steve (June 20, 2020). "Tweet of Law Professor Steve Vladeck". Twitter. Retrieved June 20, 2020. Because Berman was appointed under 546(d), even if the President can remove him, he can only be replaced by: 1) Someone nominated by the President & confirmed by the Senate; or 2) Someone *else* appointed by judges under 546(d). Carpenito is neither of those.
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