Nick Trutanich on election integrity, unemployment fraud and what’s next after two years as US attorney – The Nevada Independent
Posted By admin on February 23, 2021
Just two years into his service as the U.S. attorney for the District of Nevada, Nick Trutanich is hanging up his hat at the end of the week.
Trutanich was one of 56 Trump-nominated and Senate-confirmed Department of Justice officials who were asked to resign by the incoming Biden administration. Its a typical move during the transfer of presidential power but bittersweet for Trutanich, whose career has included several years at the U.S. attorneys office in Los Angeles and a stint for the DOJ in Iraq.
It's something that, obviously, I was expecting, but I would have loved to have more time in the office to continue the great work that we've been doing over the last several years, he told The Nevada Independent.
Trutanich plans to announce a move into the private sector in Nevada next month, and says he has no intentions of running for office. He served four years as chief of staff for Republican former Attorney General Adam Laxalt and was nominated by a Republican president but declined to reveal his party affiliation in an interview on Monday, saying the job puts him at the service of all Americans and not one party or the other.
The appointment jobs ... are fantastic because you get to do work and serve, he said. But all of the other stuff associated with politics really is not in the mix. And it's fantastic. And that's why it's been such a privilege and an honor to serve in this role.
The U.S. attorney is similar to the state attorney general, but prosecutes federal criminal cases and represents the U.S. in court when the federal government is sued. Another key difference is that the job is not subject to the typically feisty elections that define the state attorney general role, although he had to wait six months from his nomination to the point of confirmation.
It's tough on the family. It's tough on the person going through it, he said. It's just a lot of waiting and hoping that the Senate, with all of the priorities of the day, takes time to get a confirmation up for a vote.
Asked about his biggest accomplishment, he points to internal organization helping to professionalize the office and hire a good group of prosecutors to carry out the day-to-day work and being flexible enough to respond to the emergent issues in the state, including extremism, the opioid epidemic and human trafficking.
The thing that I'm most proud of is that the office had its priorities right. We were nimble enough to sort of stay on the heartbeat of what was going on in Nevada, he said.
Election fraud
Trutanich declined to say whether there are any ongoing investigations stemming from the 2020 election in Nevada, although his office has a role in looking into it.
Our job is to prosecute voter suppression, should it occur, and prosecute voter fraud, should it occur, he said.
A longstanding non-interference policy from the DOJ clarifies that elections even ones for federal races are run by state and county officials and the U.S. attorneys offices do not get involved until the results are certified. That means announcements about indictments are made after certification except in limited circumstances, and that addressing fraud in real time, and ensuring the election is free and fair, is the job of state and local authorities.
The department's job ... is very discrete. And sometimes people misinterpret that, he said. But it is to charge cases looking backwards so that in the next election cycle, the public is aware that the department is going after those types of cases.
His office is part of an election integrity task force that involves the secretary of states office, the FBI and other state officials. Trutanich also appointed a district election officer announced in October something he said happens in all districts and every election and assigned the task to another prosecutor in the office after she moved on.
The task force evaluated claims as they came in before and after the election. He hasnt charged any cases yet and said he cant confirm or deny whether any more are coming, but he said he thinks his office fulfilled its mission during a highly charged election.
The job in this office is to be a steady hand and sort of chart a course through rough waters and make sure that the department carries out its mission, he said. That's exactly what we did, and sort of tune out what's going on in the media and put our heads down and do the work.
Pandemic aid fraud
Nevada is one of 11 districts in the country assigned a special prosecutor because the state has been designated a hotspot for unemployment fraud. So far, Trutanichs office has prosecuted a handful of Paycheck Protection Program cases and several unemployment fraud cases involving a total of 15-20 defendants.
He expects there will be more, and that prosecutions could be continuing for years to come.
We're full with pandemic-related fraud, he said. There's more work than there is resources for it.
Cases of unemployment fraud so far have been happenstance encounters with law enforcement, that then our investigators at the FBI, Secret Service worked with our prosecutors to sort of pull on those threads and build more complex cases, he said.
One example is a defendant found with unemployment benefit debit cards that werent his, and further investigation led authorities to question his girlfriend, a mail carrier, for further suspicious activity.
He said he has every confidence that DETR employees are doing their best under the circumstances, and are battling fraud, but acknowledges that that is cold comfort for Nevadans foiled from getting the benefits they need.
I worked in the state government and public servants wake up every morning trying to do their best, he said. What I view my role is in there is to deter fraudsters ... so that that might end up giving some break to those employees that are trying to pull apart legitimate claim versus fraudulent claim.
Beyond the bottom up approach happening in Nevada with not only the special prosecutor but also other staff from a white collar crime unit, he said there is a big data dump at the main Department of Justice office where information from cases at all state unemployment systems is under review to develop organizational cases from top down.
We've been prioritizing those and trying to drag them through that grand jury as quick as possible, he said. But I can't say when we're going to get the full scope because it could be years.
Extremism
Trutanich said his office works with a Joint Terrorism Task Force and fields tips from organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League to address violent extremism. Collaboration is key when 85 percent of law enforcement resources are at the local and state level and the federal system accounts for just 15 percent, he said.
Trutanich pointed out two instances when his office tackled the issue. One is an ongoing case involving alleged members of the Boogaloo movement, who were accused of trying to instigate violence against law enforcement and protesters during Black Lives Matter demonstrations over the summer.
The three individuals were arrested just miles away from those protests, he said. I think that overt action, that disruption, likely saved a significant amount of violence, perhaps lives, that night.
Another was Conor Climo, who was arrested in 2019. The U.S. attorneys office had been monitoring his online activity for months but decided to take action shortly after shootings in Dayton and El Paso and found bomb-making materials in his possession.
Climo pleaded guilty and was sentenced late last year.
That case disrupted somebody that was on the path potentially, if his schematics were to be believed, attack a Jewish synagogue or a LBGTQ bar on Fremont Street, he said.
Whats next
Trutanich said hes most proud of helping address a 40 percent vacancy rate in his office double that of any other district in the country. Hes hired 75 people in the office and believes that early ramp-up is going to put the office in a strong position going forward.
As those prosecutors develop, they're going to bring more complex cases, they're going to bring more impactful cases. And I'm really excited for that, he said.
Hes also proud of bringing in grants from the DOJ into the state, as well as resources for special prosecutors in unemployment fraud, domestic violence and missing and murdered indigenous women.
An important part of being a U.S. attorney, in addition to serving the people of Nevada, is going back to main Justice and fighting for the district and fighting for resources for your office and fighting for resources for nonprofits, service providers that do amazing work, he said. We've been really successful at that. I'd say I'd put our record on that against any other district in the country.
After he leaves, an acting U.S. attorney will take over likely someone from inside the office until a president-nominated and Senate-confirmed pick is finalized. That could be months away.
Trutanich said its key to have a U.S. attorneys office that is firing on all cylinders.
The Department of Justice, through the U.S. Attorney's Office, has the ability to make Nevadans lives better, safer communities, getting high level drug traffickers off the street, getting human traffickers behind bars where they deserve to be, and combating the opioid epidemic, he said. That's why this office needs to run properly because it has a real impact on the people of Nevada.
Continue reading here:
Nick Trutanich on election integrity, unemployment fraud and what's next after two years as US attorney - The Nevada Independent
- How hate and harassment in online gaming influence civic life - Brookings Institution - March 3rd, 2021
- Lowell School Board Member Who Used Anti-Semitic Slur on TV Resigns - NBC10 Boston - March 3rd, 2021
- Opinion | A Rise in Hate Crimes Against Asian-Americans and Others - The New York Times - March 3rd, 2021
- Why Have So Many Recent Extremist Events Involved Ohioans? - WVXU - March 3rd, 2021
- Democrats draft resolution to condemn Millers role in insurrection - WAVY.com - March 3rd, 2021
- The Ad Council's Love Has No Labels and StoryCorps' One Small Step Bring Americans Together One Conversation at a Time - PRNewswire - March 3rd, 2021
- NBC Pulls Controversial 'Nurses' Episode From Digital, Future Airings Amid Backlash Over Orthodox Jew Storylin - Hollywood Reporter - February 25th, 2021
- Gottheimer Announces New Steps to Combat Violent Extremist Groups, Calls for Proud Boys & Other International Extremist Groups to be Officially... - February 25th, 2021
- George Floyd-themed dance proposal sign sparks investigation, outrage - KABC-TV - February 23rd, 2021
- The Capitol Siege: The Arrested And Their Stories | NPR - Houston Public Media - February 23rd, 2021
- Sacha Baron Cohen: I created characters with the aim of infiltrating Trumps circle - The Irish Times - February 23rd, 2021
- More than $190000 awarded in Community Placemaking Grants - Metro newsfeed - February 19th, 2021
- Deadly inspirations - What their chosen reading says about America's far-right | United States - The Economist - February 19th, 2021
- La-Z-Boy Announces Kurt Darrow to Retire as CEO; Will Remain Chairman of the Board - GlobeNewswire - February 19th, 2021
- With Anti-Semitic Attacks Surging, the Writing of a Fifth-Grader in Prewar Poland Teaches Tolerance - NBC4 Washington - February 16th, 2021
- Fired Former Leader of Disaster Nonprofit Says He Was Let Go Over Diversity Efforts - The Chronicle of Philanthropy - February 16th, 2021
- Solano sheriffs staff accused of supporting anti-government militia group - East Bay Times - February 16th, 2021
- Veteran Sports CEO Ahron Cohen Joins the ADvantage Sports Tech Fund - Business Wire - February 16th, 2021
- Educators work against bigotry and racism in schools - WXYZ - February 9th, 2021
- Capitol Insurrection: More Than 200 People Charged And What We Know About Them - NPR - February 9th, 2021
- As Trump's impeachment trial begins, the Russian network that helped him in 2016 taps his supporters on Gab.com - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists - February 9th, 2021
- Experts say numbers of extremists, hate groups falling even as threats remain in Arkansas - KLRT - FOX16.com - February 6th, 2021
- Capitol Protesters And Rioters From Mass. Vow To Increase Ranks - WBUR - February 6th, 2021
- Merck's CEO Kenneth Frazier to retire after ten years in the role - PMLiVE - February 6th, 2021
- Explained: Who are the far-right group Oath Keepers, members of which were involved in the Capitol Hill siege? - The Indian Express - February 6th, 2021
- Colorado man going to Washington to face riot charges - The Durango Herald - February 1st, 2021
- QACPS trains teachers on issues of race in literature - MyEasternShoreMD - February 1st, 2021
- Sacramento GOP call for resignation of member with ties to Proud Boys - ABC10.com KXTV - January 26th, 2021
- Symbols of white supremacy confront Redmond teen - OPB News - January 26th, 2021
- Story Jan. 22, 2021 Faculty voice: Gaming and toxicity - MSUToday - MSUToday - January 26th, 2021
- Jewish communities in New York City and across the country tighten security protocols as threats mount - SecurityInfoWatch - January 24th, 2021
- FBI and Huntsville Police Announce Reward and Billboard Campaign to Assist in Identifying Person of Interest in Vandalism of Jewish Synagogues FBI -... - January 24th, 2021
- Woodland Park man arrested for US Capitol insurrection - FOX21News.com - January 24th, 2021
- FBI and Huntsville police announce reward in Identifying person of interest in vandalism of Jewish Synagogues - WVTM13 - January 24th, 2021
- Parents outraged over students Confederate flag face mask demand action - WKRN News 2 - January 24th, 2021
- QAnon after Trump: Believers of the conspiracy theory at risk of further radicalization, experts warn - CTV News - January 24th, 2021
- Decoding the extremist symbols and groups at the Capitol Hill insurrection - ABC17News.com - January 12th, 2021
- Lawmakers Fear More Violence Ahead Of Inauguration Day : Insurrection At The Capitol: Live Updates - NPR - January 12th, 2021
- The Big Question: Can the U.S. Defuse Violent Right-Wing Extremism? - BloombergQuint - January 10th, 2021
- Opinion: We have to work together to protect democracy from threats - The Detroit News - January 10th, 2021
- Sacha Baron Cohen on Facebook, Twitter and Trump - Variety - January 10th, 2021
- Extremists intensify calls for violence ahead of Inauguration Day - WDJT - January 10th, 2021
- Trump Helped Take Extremist Views From The Fringes Of Society To A Mob Attacking The Capitol - FiveThirtyEight - January 10th, 2021
- US Capitol: Q-Anon, Confederate flag man, and Baked Alaska - here are the people who stormed the building - Sky News - January 10th, 2021
- Domestic terrorism and hate exploded in 2020. Here's what the Biden administration must do. - ABC News - January 1st, 2021
- Arizona hate crimes bounced back in 2019, experts fear a surge in 2020 - Cronkite News - January 1st, 2021
- Weeks-Old Statue of Breonna Taylor Is Battered in Oakland, Calif. - The New York Times - January 1st, 2021
- Hanover police need help identifying possible menorah vandals - The Union Leader - December 27th, 2020
- Boycott urged on firms that assist Israel's occupation - Triple Pundit - December 27th, 2020
- After Dartmouth menorah was vandalized, Hanover police seek more information - Concord Monitor - December 22nd, 2020
- New York bans display of Confederate flag and other hate symbols on state grounds - WDJT - December 22nd, 2020
- 'We're against everything they stand for': LGBTQ-owned clothing company Verillas pushes back after Proud Boys wear its kilts - USA TODAY - December 22nd, 2020
- Thomas O'Brien on Boston's Newest Luxury High-Rise Residential Tower, Bulfinch Crossing Development, Pandemic and 2021 - Boston Real Estate Times - December 22nd, 2020
- Hate groups receive millions of dollars in federal funds - WVTM13 - December 14th, 2020
- 'Is this what we're becoming?': Anne Frank memorial in Idaho, the only one in US, defaced with swastika stickers - USA TODAY - December 14th, 2020
- Opposition Mounts Against Proposed Appointment of Far-right Chairman to Israeli Holocaust Museum - Hyperallergic - December 14th, 2020
- Only yesterday - The Hudson Reporter - December 14th, 2020
- Chelsea FC launches exhibition about Jewish Athletes and the Holocaust - Chelsea FC - December 14th, 2020
- Evergreen Mill Elem. student named 'Kid of the Year' finalist - Loudoun Times-Mirror - December 14th, 2020
- Conservatives flocked to Parler after the election. But its explosive growth is over - KCTV Kansas City - December 14th, 2020
- Anti-Defamation League to honor health secretary Levine ... - December 5th, 2020
- The Anti-Defamation League Is Not What It Seems | Boston ... - December 5th, 2020
- Travel Fairness Now Hosts Webinar with Health Care, Consumer and Travel Experts to Improve Traveler Access to Vital Information During Covid-19 and a... - December 5th, 2020
- ADL and Aspen Institute Announce Two Civil Society Fellowship Classes in Response to the Heightened Need for Civil Discourse in a Divided America -... - November 17th, 2020
- Tens of thousands rally in DC to support outgoing President Trump; at least 20 arrested as protesters clash with counterprotesters - USA TODAY - November 17th, 2020
- White supremacist jailed for 2 years over plot to bomb Las Vegas synagogue, ADL - The Times of Israel - November 15th, 2020
- ADL webinar addresses election, extremes - Cleveland Jewish News - November 13th, 2020
- Jewish orgs. react to presumptive win of Dem. nominee Joe Biden - The Jerusalem Post - November 13th, 2020
- Sharon L. Klein Named to Working Mother's Top Wealth Advisor Moms 2020 - PRNewswire - November 13th, 2020
- Facebooks redoubled AI efforts wont stop the spread of harmful content - VentureBeat - November 13th, 2020
- Proceed with eyes open - Isthmus - November 13th, 2020
- Tip lines allow voters to report intimidation, extremism at the polls - Chicago Sun-Times - November 3rd, 2020
- Hate Speech on the Rise - PBS39.org - November 3rd, 2020
- 100-year-old Jewish cemetery in Michigan vandalized with red paint - New York Post - November 3rd, 2020
- Who are the 'Proud Boys'? Photos of Austin protesters circulating online - KIIITV.com - November 3rd, 2020
- In Texas, Jewish Republicans step in against lawsuit seeking to reject 127,000 drive-through votes - Haaretz.com - November 3rd, 2020
- Uncomfortable Conversations: Fighting racism against Asian Americans in wake of COVID - AdAge.com - November 3rd, 2020
- Suspect In Ithaca String Of Hate Crimes Arrested - WSKG.org - November 3rd, 2020
- The risk of violence and protests on Election Day - Vox.com - November 3rd, 2020
- The Color Of Water | Opinion | coronadonewsca.com - Coronado Eagle and Journal - November 3rd, 2020
Comments