Reports

A federal grand jury this afternoon indicted a Huntington Beach man on fraud charges that allege he solicited people around the nation to invest in a companies that would market pills he claimed would prevent coronavirus infections and produce an injectable cure for those already suffering from COVID-19.

Seattle—The U.S. Attorney’s Office Western District of Washington and the U.S. Department Justice today filed a statement of interest in Roque v. Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) as part of DOJ’s work to safeguard the civil rights of all Americans, announced U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran.

The Justice Department today announced that Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Eric Dreiband sent a letter to Montgomery County Maryland executives expressing First Amendment concerns regarding county orders. The letter urges County Executive Elrich and the County Council to ensure that the county’s executive orders and enforcement of them respect both the right of residents to assemble and practice their faith.

The United States faces two simultaneous nationwide public health emergencies: the opioid epidemic and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Recently released Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data identified that in 2018, there were nearly 47,000 opioid-related overdose deaths in the United States. In addition, as of May 28, 2020, over 100,000 U.S. citizens had died from complications related to COVID-19. Because of the widespread transmission of COVID-19, Federal, State, Tribal, and local government agencies have recommended and implemented extensive community mitigation activities, including issuing orders to residents to stay at home and practice social distancing, to help slow and contain the spread of the virus. We plan to identify the challenges that opioid treatment programs (OTPs) are encountering during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, we will identify the actions that OTPs are taking to address those challenges while ensuring the continuity of needed services and protecting the health and safety of their clients and staff.

U.S. Attorney Bill Powell of the Northern District of West Virginia today announced that Ohio County received $58,008 in Department of Justice grants to respond to the public safety challenges posed by the outbreak of COVID-19.