The United States Attorney for the Northern District of California is the

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 ...

responsible for representing the

federal government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

in the

United States District Court for the Northern District of California The United States District Court for the Northern District of California (in case citations, N.D. Cal.) is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Del ...

. The

Northern District of California The United States District Court for the Northern District of California (in case citations, N.D. Cal.) is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Del ...

encompasses 15 Northern California counties from Del Norte in the north to Monterey in the south. The District contains three major metropolitan areas in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, 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 List of Ca ...

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

, and San Jose; an expanse of suburban and rural area; and more than 300 public companies centered on

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...

. Nearly 9 million people live, work, and raise their families in the

. In an effort to help protect these individuals, the United States Attorney’s Office prosecutes violations of federal law and represents the United States in civil litigation in the

District A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

. The

Assistant United States Attorneys An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

(“AUSAs”) who work in the U.S. Attorney's Office prosecute criminal violations, defend civil lawsuits against the United States, and litigate actions to collect judgments and restitution on behalf of victims and taxpayers. the Acting United States Attorney is Stephanie Hinds. The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California has offices in

, and San Jose.

Divisions

*Criminal Division: Responsible for prosecutions of

federal crime In the United States, a federal crime or federal offense is an act that is made illegal by U.S. federal legislation enacted by both the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives and signed into law by the president. Prosec ...

s, including bank and bankruptcy fraud; consumer, elder, government, and health care fraud; child exploitation and human trafficking; civil rights; criminal immigration; cybercrimes; environmental crimes; national security; narcotics; public corruption; securities fraud; tax; trade secrets theft; and violent crimes. Sections within the Criminal Division are: Appellate; Asset Forfeiture; General Crimes; Corporate Fraud Strike Force; Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF); Organized Crime Strike Force; Special Prosecutions. *Civil Division: Responsible for representing the United States in civil suits. The Civil Division includes Civil Defensive, Affirmative Civil Enforcement, and the Financial Litigation Unit. *Administrative Division: Responsible for providing a full range of office support and employee services.

Formed

The U.S. Attorney’s Office was formed by Act of September 28, 1850, Chap. 86, P.L. 81-36, 9 Stat. 521.

Historical list of U.S. Attorneys for the Northern District of California

{, class="wikitable sortable" , - ! U.S. Attorney !! Type of Appointment !! Date of Commission , - , Calhoun Benham , , Presidential , , September 28, 1850 , - , Samuel W. Inge , , Presidential , , April 1, 1853 , - , William Blanding , , Presidential , , July 15, 1856 , - , Peter Della Torre , , Recess , , May 19, 1857 , - , Peter Della Torre , , Presidential , , May 11, 1858 , - , Calhoun Benham , , Presidential , , May 11, 1860 , - , William H. Sharp , , Recess , , April 9, 1861 , - , William H. Sharp , , Presidential , , July 22, 1861 , - , Delos Lake , , Presidential , , August or September 1864 , - , F.M. Pixley , , Recess , , May 11, 1868 , - , Lorenzo D. Latimer , , Presidential , , December 21, 1869 , - , Walter Van Dyke , , Presidential , , December 18, 1873 , - , John M. Coghlan , , Presidential , , April 19, 1876 , - , Philip Teare , , Presidential , , June 15, 1878 , - , Samuel G. Hilborn , , Presidential , , January 4, 1883 , - , John T. Carey , , Recess , , November 20, 1886 , - , John T. Carey , , Presidential , , January 13, 1887 , - , Charles A. Garter , , Recess , , October 14, 1890 , - , Charles A. Garter , , Presidential , , December 11, 1890 , - , Samuel Knight , , Court , , December 11, 1894 , - , Henry S. Foote , , Presidential , , February 20, 1895 , - , Frank L. Coombs , , Presidential , , February 14, 1899 , - , Marshall B. Woodworth , , Presidential , , March 2, 1901 , - , Robert T. Devlin , , Presidential , , March 8, 1905 , - , Robert T. Devlin , , Presidential , , April 25, 1910 , - , John L. McNab , , Presidential , , April 9, 1912 , - , Benjamin L. McKinley , , Court , , June 26, 1913 , - , Annette Abbott Adams , , Court , , July 25, 1913 , - ,

John W. Preston John White Preston (May 14, 1877 – February 18, 1958) was an associate justice of the California Supreme Court from December 27, 1926, through October 1935. Biography Born in Woodbury, Tennessee, his parents were Hugh L. Preston and Thankful C. ...

, , Presidential , , December 22, 1913 , - ,

, , Presidential , , January 8, 1918 , - , Annette Abbott Adams , , Presidential , , August 5, 1919 , - , Frank M. Silva , , Recess , , June 10, 1920 , - , Frank M. Silva , , Court , , March 7, 1921 , - , J.T. Williams , , Recess , , August 27, 1921 , - , J.T. Williams , , Presidential , , September 27, 1921 , - , Sterling Carr , , Court , , July 11, 1924 , - , George J. Hatfield , , Recess , , September 26, 1925 , - , George J. Hatfield , , Presidential , , December 14, 1925 , - , George J. Hatfield , , Presidential , , December 18, 1929 , - , I.M. Peckham , , Court , , January 3, 1933 , - , Henry H. McPike , , Presidential , , May 13, 1933 , - ,

Frank J. Hennessy Frank James Hennessy (November 19, 1880 – March 18, 1957) was an American politician and lawyer, best known for being United States Attorney for the Northern District of California in the 1940s and early 1950s. His office was located in the S ...

, , Presidential , , August 14, 1937 , - ,

, , Presidential , , July 25, 1940 , - ,

, , Presidential , , November 7, 1941 , - , Chauncey F. Tramutolo , , Presidential , , April 19, 1951 , - , Lloyd H. Burke , , Presidential , , April 16, 1953 , - , Lloyd H. Burke , , Presidential , , May 24, 1957 , - , Robert H. Schnacke , , Court , , August 6, 1958 , - , Robert H. Schnacke , , Presidential , , August 8, 1958 , - , Lynn J. Gillard , , Court , , June 1, 1959 , - , Lynn J. Gillard , , Presidential , , August 29, 1959 , - , Lawrence E. Dayton , , Presidential , , May 19, 1960 , - ,

Cecil F. Poole Cecil Francis Poole (July 25, 1914 – November 12, 1997) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District ...

, , Presidential , , June 28, 1961 , - ,

, , Presidential , , June 9, 1966 , - , James L. Browning, Jr. , , Presidential , , December 24, 1969 , - , James L. Browning, Jr. , , Presidential , , May 21, 1974 , - , G. William Hunter , , Presidential , , November 7, 1977 , - , Rodney H. Hamblin , , Court , , October 1, 1981 , - , Joseph P. Russoniello , , Presidential , , January 6, 1982 , - , Joseph P. Russoniello , , Presidential , , November 5, 1986 , - , William T. McGivern, Jr. , , Attorney General , , March 17, 1990 , - , William T. McGivern, Jr. , , Court , , July 15, 1990 , - , John A. Mendez , , Attorney General , , August 10, 1992 , - , John A. Mendez , , Court , , December 7, 1992 , - , Michael J. Yamaguchi , , Attorney General , , July 4, 1993 , - , Michael J. Yamaguchi , , Presidential , , October 27, 1993 , - , Robert S. Mueller, III , , Attorney General , , August 24, 1998 , - , Robert S. Mueller, III , , Court , , December 21, 1998 , - , Robert S. Mueller, III , , Presidential , , October 13, 1999 , - , David W. Shapiro , , Attorney General , , September 4, 2001 , - , David W. Shapiro , , Court , , January 2, 2002 , - ,

Kevin V. Ryan Kevin V. Ryan (born 1957) is a former United States Attorney for the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, Northern District of California. He was one of the attorneys whose name was mentioned in connection to the Dismissal of ...

, , Attorney General , , July 16, 2002 , - ,

, , Presidential , , August 2, 2002 , - , Scott N. Schools , , Attorney General , , February 17, 2007 , - , Scott N. Schools , , Court , , October 13, 2007 , - , Joseph P. Russoniello , , Presidential , , January 4, 2008 , - , Melinda Haag , , Presidential , , August 13, 2010 , - , Brian J. Stretch , , Acting (Vacancies Reform Act) , , September 1, 2015 , - , Brian J. Stretch , , Attorney General , , March 30, 2016 , - , Brian J. Stretch , , Court , , July 26, 2016 , - ,

Alex Tse Alex Tse (born 1976) is an American screenwriter who wrote the 2004 gangster film ''Sucker Free City'', co-wrote the 2009 superhero film ''Watchmen'', and wrote the 2018 film '' Superfly''. He is also a writer and executive producer for the 2019 ...

, , Acting (Vacancies Reform Act) , , January 7, 2018 , - ,

, , Court , , August 5, 2018 , - , David L. Anderson , , Presidential , , January 15, 2019 , - , Stephanie Hinds , Acting (Vacancies Reform Act) , March 1, 2021 , - , Stephanie Hinds , Attorney General , December 26, 2021

External links

Official website