Civil Rights Division

  • White Supremacist Sentenced For Federal Hate Crimes For Conspiracy Targeting Black, Jewish People

    In a legal development on June 4, 2024, a Michigan man received a 26-month prison sentence followed by three years of supervised release for his involvement in a hate crime conspiracy targeting Black and Jewish individuals. Nathan Weeden, 24, from Houghton, was found guilty in January of conspiring with members of a white supremacist group…

  • Former San Diego Sheriff’s Deputy Charged For Fatally Shooting Unarmed Man

    A federal grand jury in San Diego returned a two-count indictment charging former San Diego Sheriff’s Deputy Aaron Russell for fatally shooting Nicholas Bils on May 1, 2020. Russell is charged with depriving Bils of his right to be free from officers using excessive force and with discharging a firearm in relation to a crime…

  • DOJ Sues Texas Department of Criminal Justice for Religious Discrimination

    On May 3, 2024, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) for denying an employee’s religious accommodation request to wear a head covering. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, alleges that TDCJ’s refusal to accommodate the employee’s religious practice…

  • Man Sentenced For Obstructing Justice In Murder Of A Black Transgender Woman

    A South Carolina man was sentenced today to obstructing an investigation into the December 2019 murder of a transgender woman. Xavier Pinckney, 24, was sentenced to 45 months in prison for providing false and misleading information to state authorities investigating the murder of Dime Doe. He previously pleaded guilty on Oct 26, 2023. “The defendant’s…

  • Readout Of Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division’s Meeting with Jewish Community Stakeholders

    Marking the first day of Jewish American Heritage Month, the Justice Department convened an interagency meeting with Jewish community stakeholders. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland spoke with those at the meeting and underscored the Department’s commitment to addressing antisemitic hate crimes. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division outlined the…

  • Former Law Enforcement Officer Sentenced To Prison For Beating, Pepper Spraying Restrained Inmate

    A former Pike County, Ohio, Sheriff’s Office deputy, Jeremy C. Mooney, has been sentenced to 100 months in prison and three years of supervised release for federal civil rights violations involving excessive force. Mooney, 49, was convicted by a federal jury in August 2023 of two counts of violating a victim’s constitutional rights by pepper…