Tag: U.S. Attorney’s Office

Will Thompson Ends Term As Trump Ousts Biden-Appointed US Attorneys

A U.S. attorney who represented southern West Virginia since 2021 concluded his term Tuesday amid President Donald Trump’s effort to terminate all sitting officeholders tapped by former President Joe Biden.

Will Thompson announced Tuesday that he has concluded his term as United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia.

Thompson was nominated for the office by former President Joe Biden in August 2021, and formally took office that October. Before that appointment, the West Virginia native served as a circuit court judge and practiced law in Boone County. He is also an alumnus of West Virginia University (WVU) and the WVU College of Law.

Thomspon’s announcement comes as President Donald Trump has moved to oust U.S. Attorneys appointed during the Biden administration. This week, Trump told the U.S. Department of Justice to terminate those that remain.

Several Biden-tapped U.S. Attorneys have already stepped down, including William Ihlenfeld. Ihlenfeld served as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia from August 2010 to December 2016, then assumed the office again in October 2021. But he stepped down from the role last month.

U.S. Attorneys often step down at the start of a new presidential administration. But Reuters reports that former Justice Department lawyers say outgoing U.S. Attorneys are typically asked to step down, not threatened with termination.

The president has the authority to appoint judges to vacant U.S. Attorney offices.

In a statement Tuesday, Thompson thanked Biden and former Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va., for their roles in his appointment to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He said his proudest accomplishments from his tenure include a decrease in overdose deaths in southern West Virginia, a reduction in overall crime and a “vigorous review process” in his office’s cases.

“The people of this office are the true backbone of federal prosecution and representation in this district,” Thompson said. “They all serve with dignity and respect for the rule of law.  They are vital to the mission of the Department of Justice, which is to keep our communities safe.”

W.Va. Logging Firm Accused Of Stealing Timber From National Forest

Federal authorities accuse the logging company of cutting down valuable trees like these.

Ten acres of timber from the Monongahela National Forest near Slaty Fork has been stolen, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia. 

The civil complaint charges John Fox and Fox Logging, LLC, of Valley Bend, with trespassing and taking nearly $28,000 of mature trees. 

U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld’s office investigated a complaint in the case and filed suit this week.

“We do not believe this was an innocent mistake. What we believe is that he was just adjacent to the national forest. He observed large, healthy and valuable trees, and decided to take advantage of being deep in the forest, in an area that’s hard to get to, and timber 10 additional acres,” Ihlenfeld said.

He also said the secret logging was done in a destructive manner that can harm wildlife and the public. 

“There’s a greater impact than just the removal of 100-year-old trees. It causes sediment to run off and go into streams, and ultimately impacts the wildlife that are found in those streams,” Ihlenfeld added.

Many of the trees cut down were estimated to be 100 years old – not easy to replace or repair the damage. But any punitive damages collected from the case could be used toward restoration efforts.

Ihlenfeld To Chair Washington-Baltimore Drug Trafficking Board

In 2022, the units disrupted the sale of more than $100 million of drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine.

U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld has been appointed chair of the Washington-Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) executive board.

That board supports 43 drug task forces in West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia. In addition to drug seizures, they also bolster treatment and prevention efforts.

In 2022, the units disrupted the sale of more than $100 million of drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine.

Ihlenfeld, the U.S. attorney for the northern district of West Virginia, said he’d work to strengthen the response to the threat of Mexican drug cartels.

Ihlenfeld previously served as chair of the Appalachian High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. That includes parts of West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee.

West Virginia ‘Proud Boy’ Sentenced For Jan. 6 Attack On U.S. Capitol

Jeffrey Finley, 28, of Martinsburg, was sentenced to 75 days in prison and $500 in restitution, with 12 months of supervised release.

A West Virginia man has been sentenced to prison for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump. 

Jeffrey Finley, 28, of Martinsburg, was sentenced to 75 days in prison and $500 in restitution, with 12 months of supervised release.

Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia issued the sentence for Finley, who was instructed to surrender voluntarily.

The U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, who is handling the Jan. 6 cases, had asked for a 90-day sentence for Finley.

At the time of the Capitol attack, Finely was president of the West Virginia chapter of the Proud Boys, a far-right group.

According to the U.S. Justice Department, Finley was part of a group of Proud Boys who rushed the Capitol, stepping over barricades and past U.S. Capitol police.

He pleaded guilty in April 2022.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office has prosecuted hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants, including others in West Virginia.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sworn Into Office

A new assistant U.S. attorney has been sworn into office in West Virginia.

Lara K. Omps-Botteicher was administered the oath of office Monday to become an assistant U.S. attorney in the Northern District of West Virginia. Omps-Botteicher has been working in the office since late 2015 as a special assistant U.S. attorney.

U.S. Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld II says she will work in the criminal division in the Martinsburg branch office.

Omps-Botteicher is a 2012 graduate of the West Virginia University College of Law, where she ranked second in her class. Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, she served as an assistant attorney general in the West Virginia Attorney General’s Office in Martinsburg.

Casto Tapped as U.S. Attorney for Southern W.Va.

Acting U.S. Attorney Carol Casto will serve as U.S. Attorney in southern West Virginia, but her stint may be finished in four months or sooner.

A news release says Attorney General Loretta Lynch appointed Casto to U.S. Attorney starting Friday. She will remain in the post until a presidential appointment is made, or until 120 days after the appointment.

If 120 days pass without a presidential appointment, the U.S. District Court in southern West Virginia can appoint a replacement until the vacancy is filled.

Casto has served as acting U.S. Attorney since Jan 1. She accepted the job after former U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin resigned in December to run for a governor, a bid which he lost.

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