Joseph P. Russoniello (born October 12, 1941) is an American attorney who served two terms as the
U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California
The United States Attorney for the Northern District of California is the United States Attorney responsible for representing the federal government in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
The Northern Dis ...
. Russoniello served his first term from 1982 to 1990 and his second term from 2008 to 2010.
Fairfield University
Fairfield University is a private Jesuit university in Fairfield, Connecticut. It was founded by the Jesuits in 1942. In 2017, the university had about 4,100 full-time undergraduate students and 1,100 graduate students, including full-time ...
in 1963 and a J.D. degree from
New York University Law School
New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in New ...
in 1966. After graduating from law school, Russoniello was appointed a Special Agent with the
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
, and later served as an Assistant District Attorney for the
City and County of San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
before joining
Cooley Godward Kronish LLP
Cooley Limited liability partnership, LLP is an American international law firm, headquartered in Palo Alto, California, with offices worldwide. The firm's practice areas include corporate, litigation, intellectual property, fund formation, pub ...
in 1975.
U.S. Attorney: first term (1982–1990)
From January 1982 to March 1990, Russoniello served his first term as the
U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California
The United States Attorney for the Northern District of California is the United States Attorney responsible for representing the federal government in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
The Northern Dis ...
. He personally prosecuted Larry Layton of the Peoples Temple for his part in the murder of Congressman
Leo Ryan
Leo Joseph Ryan Jr. (May 5, 1925 – November 18, 1978) was an American teacher and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the U.S. representative from California's 11th congressional district from 1973 until his assassinati ...
in Jonestown, Guyana, and tried several other high profile criminal and civil cases.
His office prosecuted the
Hitachi
() is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...
and
Mitsubishi
The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries.
Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...
corporations for their theft of IBM secrets; Jerry Whitworth and James D. Harper Jr. in separate espionage cases; and dozens of white collar crime cases involving financial institution fraud, money laundering, securities fraud, public corruption, defense procurement fraud, other government contract fraud, export control violations, copyright infringement and trademark counterfeiting.
Until his resignation, he was a member of the United States Attorney General's Advisory Committee, served as chairman of its White Collar Crime Subcommittee and was a member of the Economic Crime Council of the
Department of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...
.
Private practice and dean: (1990–2007)
Before returning to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Russoniello was Senior Counsel and resident in the San Francisco office of
Cooley Godward Kronish LLP
Cooley Limited liability partnership, LLP is an American international law firm, headquartered in Palo Alto, California, with offices worldwide. The firm's practice areas include corporate, litigation, intellectual property, fund formation, pub ...
where he was a member of the Litigation department and the practice group for Business Crimes & Regulatory Defense. Russoniello also served as Dean of the
San Francisco Law School
San Francisco Law School is a private, for-profit law school in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest evening law school in the Western United States.
The school became non-profit in 1941 and moved to Haight Street in 196 ...
for five and a half years until his resignation in July 2007.
U.S. Attorney: second term (2008–2010)
In 2008, Russoniello was nominated again to serve as the
U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California
The United States Attorney for the Northern District of California is the United States Attorney responsible for representing the federal government in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
The Northern Dis ...
(which encompasses the 15 counties from the Oregon-California border to Monterey, including the San Francisco Bay Area). Upon taking office, Russoniello indicated that his priorities during his second term would include
national security
National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military atta ...
, helping to get guns off the street and prosecuting Internet
child pornography
Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a chi ...
distribution. He is also overseeing his office's prosecution of
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Bonds was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1986 to 1992 and the San Francisco Giants f ...
, former
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
outfielder and all-time
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
home run king, on
perjury
Perjury (also known as foreswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an inst ...
charges, as well as
Ed Jew
Edmund Jew (born 1960) is an American former politician and businessman, who was convicted of extortion, bribery, and perjury in 2008.
He graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in economics and later earned a master's degree ...
, former Member of the
San Francisco Board of Supervisors
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is the legislative body within the government of the City and County of San Francisco.
Government and politics
The City and County of San Francisco is a consolidated city-county, being simultaneously a c ...
, on
extortion
Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...
and
bribery
Bribery is the Offer and acceptance, offering, Gift, giving, Offer and acceptance, receiving, or Solicitation, soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official, or other person, in charge of a public or legal duty. With reg ...
charges.
Russoniello was succeeded in August 2010 by Melinda Haag.
Other affiliations
Russoniello is a member of the
American College of Trial Lawyers
The American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL) is a professional association of trial lawyers from the United States and Canada. Founded in 1950, the College is dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, especially tria ...
, the Edward McFetridge Inn of the
American Inns of Court
American Inns of Court (AIC) are designed to improve the skills, professionalism and ethics of the bench and bar. An American Inn of Court is an amalgam of judges, lawyers, and in some cases, law professors and law students. Each Inn meets approx ...
, the American Board of Trial Lawyers, the
American Law Institute
The American Law Institute (ALI) is a research and advocacy group of judges, lawyers, and legal scholars established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of United States common law and its adaptation to changing social needs. ...
and numerous civic and legal organizations.
Russoniello was, until his recent appointment as
United States Attorney
United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...
, a member of the National Review Board of the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...