Spokane, WA: U.S. Attorney Vanessa R. Waldref, the chief federal law enforcement officer for the Eastern District of Washington, announced today that her office has received authorization and funding from the Department of Justice to hire seven new full-time Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs) and two full-time support staff. The new positions – which will be spread throughout the District’s three offices in Spokane, Yakima, and Richland – will be dedicated to combating terrorism, fraud, drug trafficking, and violent crime, including in Indian Country. The U.S. Department of Justice allocated these positions to U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the country from funding approved in last year’s federal budget.
“We are excited for these additional resources to further our mission to build safer and stronger communities in Eastern Washington,” U.S. Attorney Waldref said. “In the next month, we will have, for the first time ever, full-time AUSAs serving in our Richland branch office. With the addition of the nine new positions announced today, we will be able to further enhance our efforts to protect neighborhoods, families, and communities in the Tri-Cities, Spokane, Yakima, and throughout our beautiful district.”
U.S. Attorney Waldref continued, “With these new positions, we will have forty AUSAs serving in the Eastern District of Washington. This means that our team – which includes attorneys, critical support positions, administrative officers, victim witness advocates, forfeiture personnel, etc. – will grow to approximately ninety civil servants dedicated to DOJ’s mission to seek justice for all.”
“We’re especially grateful to have additional resources devoted to the important work we do in Indian Country, where we prosecute major crimes arising on the District’s four reservations – the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, the Spokane Tribe, and the Kalispel Tribe. In fact, one of the AUSA positions is specifically devoted to cases involving Missing and Murdered Indigenous People. We recognize that indigenous communities suffer violence, especially domestic violence, at much higher rates than many other demographics. We are committed to addressing violent crimes in Indian country and elsewhere and holding perpetrators accountable.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington currently has more than thirty AUSAs serving in its Criminal and Civil Divisions in Spokane, Yakima, and Richland. The hiring process for the new positions is already underway and additional listings will be posted in the coming weeks. All of the Office’s openings will be made available at http://www.usajobs.gov.