AAPI attorney withdraws nomination for DOJ's No. 3 spot

JESSIE KONG LIU

It's an example of the Republican Party eating its young when the GOP's radical right wing turns against the moderate right wing of the party.

Jessie Kong Liu, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, withdrew her name Thursday for consideration to be third-in-command at the Justice Department because some members of the GOP believed she was not conservative enough.

The seasoned lawyer overseeing the largest district in the country with over 300 attorneys, pulled out of consideration for the job because she reportedly did not want to be a distraction at a critical time for the DOJ.

Liu faced opposition from Utah GOP Sen. Mike Lee, among others, because of her association with the National Association of Women Lawyers, which sent a letter to the Senate opposing the nomination of of Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court.

As vice president, Liu's name was on the letterhead but she did not sign the letter. She, in fact, signed another letter in support of Alito's nomination.

Justice Department officials were reportedly upset at the opposition to Liu. They noted that she's a well-regarded conservative, in some ways more conservative than Lee.

"Only a moron like Mike Lee would tank President Trump's nominee, an Asian woman, for the department's No. 3 job," a senior DOJ official told CNN. "This is beyond politically stupid."

Opposition from radically right Republicans combined with Democrats who believe Liu is too conservative, effectively killed any hope that she could muster enough votes to win the nomination.

Attorney General William Barr issued a statement Thursday afternoon praising Liu and saying she "would have made an outstanding associate attorney general."

"Jessie Liu is one of the finest, most impressive people serving in the Department of Justice," Barr said the statement, adding that he would appoint her to be chairwoman of his advisory committee.

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Nuclear engineer sentenced for violating Atomic Energy Act

A TAIWANESE/AMERICAN nuclear engineer was sentenced last week to 24 months in prison and one year of supervised release for producing nuclear material in China in violation of the Atomic Energy Act. He was also ordered to pay a $20,000 fine. 

Szuhsiung Ho, aka Allen Ho, 66, a naturalized U.S. citizen, pleaded guilty in January 2017 to conspiracy to unlawfully engage or participate in the production or development of special nuclear material outside the U.S., without the required authorization from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), violating the Atomic Energy Act.

Szuhsiung  'Allene' Ho

“Today, (Aug. 31) Allen Ho is being held accountable for enlisting U.S.-based nuclear experts to provide assistance in developing and producing special nuclear material in China for a Chinese state-owned nuclear power company. He did so without the required authorization from the U.S. Department of Energy,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Dana J. Boente.

An April 2016 indictment charged Ho; China General Nuclear Power Company (CGNPC), the largest nuclear power company in China and Energy Technology International (ETI), a Delaware corporation with these offenses. 

At the time of his indictment, Ho was a nuclear engineer, employed as a consultant by CGNPC and was also the owner of ETI. CGNPC specialized in the development and manufacture of nuclear reactors and was controlled by China’s State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.

According to documents, beginning in 1997 and continuing through April 2016, Ho conspired with others to engage or participate in the development or production of special nuclear material in China.

The DOJ said in a press release that Ho aided China by recruiting engineers and other experts to advise it on faster ways to design and build components for some types of nuclear reactors.

RELATED: Civil Rights Commission asks for probe of possible racial profilng of Asian American scientsts

The intellectual and engineering aid he helped funnel toward China helped it reduce costs and cut development time for novel reactor types, said the Justice department.

Ho came to the US in 1973 to attend the University of California, Berkeley and married his wife Anne a year later. He received a PhD in nuclear engineering from the University of Illinois in 1980, and became a naturalized U.S. citizen three years later.

Ho's lawyer, Peter Zeidenberg, has defended several Asian/American scientists facing espionage-related charges, and he says his clients have been targeted because of their ties to China.

"If their ties were to France or their ties were to Italy or Scandinavia, their conduct would never come under the radar of the [Justice] Department. It's a bright red flag," he says.

A former federal prosecutor, Zeidenberg adds that he understands the challenge presented by Chinese economic espionage. But he believes his former colleagues are overreacting. "They have been way too quick to pull the trigger on these cases and others," he says. "They see conspiracies and patterns and malevolent conduct, when there isn't any."

A lawsuit brought by Xiaoxing Xi, a Temple University scientist whose charges of espionage were dropped, was filed in May this year, alleges the FBI of racial profiling.

The FBI, which investigates cases of espionage, did not want to comment on specific cases, but denied the allegations of racial profiling. "The FBI does not initiate investigations based on an individual's race, ethnicity, national origin or religion," said the FBI in response to a query from NPR.

Ho's case was a multi-agency investigation by the FBI, Tennessee Valley Authority-Office of the Inspector General, DOE-National Nuclear Security Administration and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations and other government agencies.
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Indian American pleads guilty to plotting to kill a judge, aiding terrorists

AN INDIAN/AMERICAN MUSLIM pleaded guilty to conspire to have a federal judge killed and for providing and concealing material support or resources to terrorists. 

Yahya Farooq Mohammad, 39, awaits sentencing but could receive up to 27 years behind bars followed by deportation from the U.S., according to a press release from the Department of Justice.

Yahya Farooq Mohammad

“The defendant conspired to provide and did provide material support to Anwar Al-Awlaki in response to his calls to support violent jihad,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Dana J. Boente.  “The National Security Division’s highest priority is counterterrorism and we will continue to pursue justice against those who seek to provide material support to terrorists.”

“This defendant conspired to attack our service members abroad as well as a judge in Toledo,”said Acting U.S. Attorney David A. Sierleja for the Northern District of Ohio. 

Mohammad is an Indian citizen who was an engineering student at Ohio State University between 2002 and 2004. He married a U.S. citizen in 2008. 

He and three other defendants – his brother, Ibrahim Mohammad, Asif Ahmed Salim, and Sultane Room Salim – were indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2015. The case against the remaining three defendants is pending. They have pleaded not guilty.

Mohammad admitted to conspiring with his co-defendants to travel to Yemen to provide thousands of dollars, equipment, and other assistance to Anwar Al-Awlaki, in an effort to support violent jihad against U.S. military personnel in Iraq, Afghanistan and throughout the world. Al-Awlaki was later designated as a global terrorist in 2010 and identified as a “key leader” of al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula, according to court documents.

On July 22, 2009, Mohammad travelled with two associates to Yemen to meet Awlaki and deliver the $22,000 that they had raised. Although they were unable to meet Awlaki in person, Mohammad and his associates did ensure that Awlaki received the money through a courier.

In addition to pleading guilty to conspiring to provide and conceal material support to terrorists, Mohammad also admitted to soliciting an undercover FBI employee, posing as a “hitman,” to kidnap and murder U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary. 

In or about April 2016 – while the terrorism case was pending and assigned to Judge Zouhary – Mohammad told another inmate in the Lucas County Corrections Center in Toledo, Ohio that he wanted Zouhary kidnapped and murdered and that he was willing to pay $15,000 to have this carried out. 

The inmate provided Mohammad with the contact information for the undercover agent and stated that the supposed killer would need a $1,000 down payment before the murder could occur. The inmate also provided Mohammad with an agreed upon code to use when discussing the planned murder over the jail telephone.

On or about April 26, 2016, Mohammad called the FBI undercover agent from the Lucas County Corrections Center. Using the agreed-upon code, Mohammad told the agent he wanted to have Judge Zouhary killed. Mohammad agreed to provide the $1,000 down payment. When asked when he wanted the murder committed, Mohammad stated, “The sooner would be good, you know.”  

Over the days that followed, Mohammad arranged to have a relative provide the $1,000 in cash to the uncover agent. On May 5, 2016, that family member met with the agent posing as the hitman and provided the agent with $1,000 in cash. Mohammad later informed the inmate that the rest of the money for the murder was coming, according to court documents.

Under the terms of his plea agreement, Mohammad is expected to be sentenced to 27 ½ years in federal prison. Mohammad will be deported from the U.S. upon completion of his sentence, under the terms of his plea agreement.

“Conspiring to have a judge killed is not the way to avoid being prosecuted – now Mohammad will be held accountable for additional serious federal charges,” said Special Agent in Charge Setephen D. Anthony.

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New Jersey town agrees to allow construction of mosque

YAHOO

Muslim leader Ali Chaudry (center) addresses the media.

 IT TOOK SOME arm-twisting, but a New Jersy town's effort to stymie the construction of a mosque has come a halt after a six-year bureaucratic battle that wound up in the courts.

The U.S. Department of Justice May 30 announced an agreement with Bernards Township, New Jersey, to resolve allegations that the Township violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) when it denied zoning approval to allow the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge to build a mosque. In a separate agreement between the Islamic Society and the Township, the Township agreed to pay $3.25 million in damages and attorney’s fees.

The lawyer who represented the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge applauded the settlement. “Municipalities around the country should pay close attention to what happened in Bernards Township,” said Adeel Mangi in a statement. “The American Muslim community has the legal resources, the allies, and the determination to stand up for its constitutional rights in court and will do so.”

“Bernards Township made decisions that treated the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge differently than other houses of worship,” acting U.S. Attorney William Fitzpatrick of the District of New Jersey said in a statement. “The settlement ... corrects those decisions and ensures that members of this religious community have the same ability to practice their faith as all other religions.”

The agreement also resolves allegations that, while the zoning application was pending, the Township revised its zoning code to unreasonably limit any house of worship from building in the Township.

The agreement resolves a lawsuit the DOJ filed in November 2016, after the Islamic Society applied to build on property owned that permitted places of worship as-of-right. A separate agreement resolving a similar lawsuit brought by the Islamic Society against Bernards Township has also been reached.

Rendering of proposed mosque in Barnards Township, NJ.

RELATED: Justice Department sues township for denying Islamic center

The U.S. Department of Justice complaint alleged that Bernards Township discriminated against the Islamic Society based on its religion and the religion of its members when it denied the zoning application; applied standards and procedures on the Islamic Society that it had not applied to other religious and non-religious assemblies in the past; and imposed a substantial burden on the Islamic Society’s religious exercise. The DOJ also alleged that Bernards Township’s revised zoning code imposes unreasonable limitations on all religious assemblies in the Township, in violation of RLUIPA.

“Several New Jersey Muslim communities have been targeted by local anti-Muslim opponents to new mosque construction who attempted to hide their bigoted intentions behind zoning technicalities,” said  James Sues, Executive Director of Council of Arab-Islamic Relations-NJ. “In the case of Basking Ridge, these intentions were plain to see once this case went to court. We hope this case sends a message to other communities that freedom of religion is a guaranteed constitutional right, and that the Muslim community is prepared to rigorously defend its rights."

As part of the agreement, Bernards Township will allow the Islamic Society to build the mosque. The Township also has agreed to provide training on the requirements of RLUIPA to its officials and employees and publicize its non-discrimination policies, among other remedial measures. Additionally, the Township will amend its zoning ordinance to limit the zoning restrictions placed on houses of worship.

Township spokesperson Michael P. Turner released a statement that continues to deny the claims of religious discrimination and assures residents that the settlement payment will be satisfied via insurance, not taxes.

“The Township maintains that the denial of the planning board was based on accepted land use criteria only. Indeed, Bernards Township is a diverse and inclusive community, where for years the ISBR congregation have practiced their religion along with their neighbors unimpeded, using township facilities at the Bernards Township Community Center and at Dunham Park,” Turner said.

“We are very pleased by this resolution and hope to receive prompt approval to build our mosque,” ISBR president Mohammed Ali Chaudry told NJ.com. “We look forward to welcoming people of all faiths and backgrounds to our mosque.”

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Another FilAm attorney joins Trump team; will argue government case for a Muslim ban

TWITTER

George and Kellyanne Conway have four children.

DONALD TRUMP has named another Filipino/American lawyer to a key position in his administration, He named George Conway, husband of Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway, to head the civil division of the Justice Department.

One of the first things George Conway will have to do in his new position is to defend the Trump-ordered Muslim bans in the courts. He will also handle any lawsuits filed against the administration.

Conway is the second FilAm attorney chosen by Trump to play a high-profile role on the president's team. Last week, Trump named Noel Francisco to be his Solicitor General. Conway was also considered a frontrunner for the role that went to Francisco.

“I didn’t realize that he is Filipino/American,” said Rudy Asercion, chairman of the National Organization of Filipino-American Republicans and an elected member of the San Francisco Republican Party Central Committee. “My wife says that his mother is Filipino, but we are still not sure about that.”

Mary Villena of Jacksonville, Florida,believes Conway’s potential nomination will do little to benefit most Filipino/Americans.

“Looking at his biography and his clients—they don’t scream social justice to me,” she added. “I really don’t think his Filipino heritage would be influential or of benefit to us.”

Eric Lachica, a Filipino American advocate and chairman of the Washington, D.C.-based Filipino American Coalition for Filipino Veterans, wanted to give Conway a chance.

He told the Inquirer, a Filipino publication, Conway mignt find solutions to some of the issues that Filipino/Americans face.

“I really don’t know anything about his background, but I would like to see his community participation and find out whether it is going to be an asset or liability,” Lachica said.

Conway is a partner at the New York law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. The law firm’s website says Conway has extensive experience in litigation involving securities, mergers and acquisitions, contracts and antitrust cases. He graduated from Harvard and then Yale Law School. He joined the law firm in 1988, soon after his graduation from law school.

Preferring to remain in the background, Conway's Republican credentials are solid. 

As a partner in the law firm, one of those high-profile suits that he led involved representing tobacco company Philip Morris. “Mr. Conway played a substantial role in prosecuting one of the most prominent defamation cases in recent memory (Philip Morris v. American Broadcasting Cos.),” said the law firm.

The New York Times said of that suit’s result, “In an extraordinary act of contrition, ABC News publicly apologized last night for asserting in a news program that two giant tobacco companies add extra nicotine to their cigarettes.” That apology was criticized by anti-smoking advocates, with The Times quoting one professor as saying, “Philip Morris has bullied a major television network into apologizing for what was essentially a true story.”

Conway’s law firm says he also “represented the National Football League in trademark and antitrust litigation against the Dallas Cowboys” and “won an important appeal under the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 on behalf of the Swiss installation artist Christoph Büchel in the artist’s highly publicized dispute with the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art.”

His work against President Bill Clinton will please conservatives.  He wrote the Supreme Court brief that cleared the way for Paula Jones’ civil suit against President Bill Clinton. When the Jones case led to Ms. (Monica) Lewinsky, (another lawyer) and Mr. Conway searched for a new lawyer for Mrs. (Linda) Tripp,” according to the New York Times.

Chinese National Admits to Stealing Sensitive Military Program Documents From United Technologies

United Technologies helped design jet engines used in fighter craft similar to these jets.

A CHINESE national waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty Monday after being caught giving U.S. military secrets to China three years ago.

Yu Long, a U.S. permanent resident who also is a citizen of China, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in the theft of trade secrets knowing that the offense would benefit a foreign government. He also pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful export and attempted export of defense articles from the U.S.

Long, a former employee of United Technologies, faces maximum sentences of 15 to 20 years for those charges. He made his plea in New Haven federal court in Connecticut.

Yu Long

“Long admitted to stealing and exploiting highly sensitive military technology and documents, knowing his theft would benefit China’s defense industry and deliberately contravene the embargo on U.S. Munitions List technology the United States has imposed on China,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary B. McCord.

“Export laws exist as an important part of our national security framework and disrupting and prosecuting this kind of economic espionage is one of the National Security Division’s highest priorities,” she said.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately May 2008 to May 2014, Long worked as a Senior Engineer/Scientist at United Technologies Research Center (UTRC) in Connecticut. Long’s employment at UTRC included work on advanced fighter aircraft.

In 2013, he made it clear to agents outside of UTRC that he wanted to return to China to do research. During this period, he was able to appropriate UTRC secrets and share them with his colleagues in China, knowing full well their value to the Chinese military.

On Nov. 5, 2014, Long boarded a flight from Ithaca, New York to Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, with a final destination of China. During Long’s layover in Newark, CBP officers inspected Long’s checked baggage and discovered that it contained sensitive, proprietary and export controlled documents from another defense contractor.

Long was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on Nov. 7, 2014.

A review of Long’s digital media seized at the time of his arrest revealed voluminous files of military secrets. In short, the investigation revealed that Long took his laptop and a UTRC external hard drive with him to China in 2014, at which time there was a substantial body of highly sensitive, proprietary and export controlled materials present on that digital media. UTRC has confirmed that the hard drive that Long unlawfully retained and accessed in China contained not only documents and data from projects on which Long worked while employed at the company but also from projects on which he did not work to which he would have had access.

A sentencing date has not been set. Long has been detained since his arrest.

“In an effort to further his own career, this defendant stole an extraordinary amount of proprietary military program information from United Technologies and transported much of that stolen information to China,” said U.S. Attorney Deirdre M.Daly.

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Civil rights will suffer under Trump; we'll miss Vanita Gupta

Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, will be leaving the post.

ONE OF the hallmark's of President Obama's administration has been the rebirth of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.

Under the leadership of Attorneys General Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch, the division has been the tip of the spear in its aggressive defense of civil rights and pursuit of justice.
"For the past eight years, this Civil Rights Division has answered that same call to make the promise of justice real for every person in every community," said Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division, during the division's awards ceremonies today (Dec. 7). 

The Obama administration has pursued a record number of investigations of police departments, taken a more aggressive stance on enforcement of other civil rights laws and fighting for equal rights of LGBTQ people, immigrants, people of color, the disabled, women and children.

It wasn't always that way. During the George W. Bush administration, DOJ attorneys were shifted away from the civil rights work to other divisions thereby weakening its effectiveness in fighting for the rights of, and ensuring equitable justice, for all Americans. It was a shadow of it's former prominence that it enjoyed under President Bill Clinton.

Gupta, an Indian/American attorney who was appointed to her post two years ago, will be replaced when the Trump administration takes over on Jan. 20 of next year. 

RELATED: Vanita Gupta - The criminalization of poverty

"The cause of justice is never static. It is always searching for the next barrier to dismantle, for the next right to vindicate and for the next freedom to secure," said Gupta in what sounded like her farewell speech to the lawyers in her division. 

"You are civil rights leaders in our day; you are trailblazers," said Deputy Attorney General Sally Q. Yates, who was also giving her last speech in front of the career lawyers and staff of the division. 

"You open minds and change hearts through your unshakable commitment to fairness and justice, to opportunity and equality. That commitment is contagious - and your voice as the protectors of our fundamental rights is every bit as potent now and in the years to come as it has been over the years that have passed."

President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Jeff Sessions for his new Attorney General and you can be sure he won't pursue the same policies or have the same priorities as Holder or Lynch.

If Sessions becomes AG, he will most likely provide legal justification for some of the questionable promises that he made during his campaign including the rights, or lack of rights, of undocumented immigrants; the ban of Muslim immigration under the banner of homeland security; overturning the Affordable Care Act; and rationalizing the use of torture.

If Trump and Sessions follows the pattern of past Republican administrations, the Civil Rights Division will see its people transferred elsewhere, its budget cut drastically and the bright lights it enjoyed under Obama will be dimmed to obscurity.

Sensing the gloomy future of the division in a Trump administration, Gupta continued, "This work is never easy ... Congress didn’t create the Civil Rights Division in 1957 to solve the easy problems. Congress created this division to tackle the toughest issues, to serve as an independent and forceful agency of justice and hope. You cannot be an agent of change without a deep reservoir of hope. 

"It’s the hope that men and women today can build a more just, more inclusive and more free future for the children of tomorrow. It’s the hope that thanks to all of you in the Civil Rights Division, people will reap the benefits of this work for generations to come – in safer streets, in desegregated schools, in fair markets and in stronger communities. 

"It’s the hope that despite the zigs and the zags of our nation’s history, you will continue to ensure that America marches forward, imperfectly yet inexorably. Hope fuels the struggle and the struggle fills us with hope," she concluded.

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Minnesota man pleads guilty to threatening Islamic center

The FBI reports a spike in anti-Muslim hate crimes.

A MINNEAPOLIS MAN pleaded guilty last week to a federal hate crime for writing and mailing a threatening letter to an Islamic Center. Daniel George Fisher, 57, was charged with obstructing, by threat of force, the free exercise of religious beliefs.

According to the Dec. 1 guilty plea, in September 2015, Fisher wrote and mailed an anonymous letter to the Tawfiq Islamic Center (TIC), located in Minneapolis. In the letter, the defendant threatened to “blow up your building with all you immigrants in it.” The letter also included statements demonstrating strong anti-Muslim animus. Fisher subsequently admitted to the FBI that he wrote the letter to scare and intimidate the TIC’s Muslim members. 

“America protects the free exercise of religion for all people in every community,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

“Threats of violence that target religious communities violate federal law; corrode the ideals of our democracy; and threaten the foundation of an inclusive, free and open society. The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute hate crimes that target people because of where they worship.”

“Threatening to blow up a mosque is simply un-American,” said U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger. “It is a bedrock principle of our country, enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution, that all people are free to practice their religion of choice. Tens of thousands of law-abiding Muslims do so in Minnesota. The U.S. Attorney's Office and FBI will not allow any resident of our state to have that most basic freedom jeopardized by the threat of violence.” 

U.S. District Judge Wilhelmina M. Wright of the District of Minnesota accepted Fisher’s plea. Fisher faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. 

A recently released report by the FBI confirmed an uptick in anti-Muslim hate crimes. Another report by the Southern Poverty Law Center shows a sharp increase in anti-Muslim incidents since the Nov. 8 election attributed to the hateful rhetoric of the Donald Trump campaign.

REPORT:

• Trump inspired hate continues to ooze out of America's sewers
• Hate crimes vs. Muslims spike, reports FBI

A photocopied letter received by the Islamic Center of Ann Arbor on Nov. 30 was also sent to mosques across the country this week, addressing Muslims as "children of Satan" and declaring President-elect Donald Trump as the "new sheriff in town." It is the same letter sent to three mosques in California last week.

"Mr. Trump, for an entire year, stirred up xenophobia and racism in our community to give a level of public acceptability for expressing those things," said Dawud Walid, executive director of the Michigan Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations. "I blame him for this more caustic climate we live in right now. If he is to be a real leader, he should be much more robust in speaking out against all these different expressions of hate that are being done in his name."

DOJ files suit vs. New Jersey township, for blocking construction of a mosque

The design of the mosque is intended to blend into the neighborhood.

THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE filed a lawsuit today (Nov. 22) against Bernards Township, New Jersey, alleging that the township violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) when it denied zoning approval to allow the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge to build a mosque on land it owns. 

At the time of the Islamic Society’s zoning request, the site for the proposed mosque permitted the construction of places of worship as a matter of right.

"Township officials kept moving the goalposts by using ever-changing local requirements to effectively deny this religious community the same access as other faiths,” said U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman of the District of New Jersey. 

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, alleges that Bernards Township’s denial of approval for the mosque discriminated against the Islamic Society based on its religion and the religion of its members; applied standards and procedures on the Islamic Society that it had not applied to other religious and non-religious assemblies in the past; and imposed a substantial burden on the Islamic Society’s religious exercise. 

The complaint also alleges that the township violated RLUIPA by amending its zoning ordinance in a manner that imposes unreasonable limitations on all religious assemblies.

“Sixteen years ago, Congress passed RLUIPA unanimously – with diverse religious and ideological support – because it recognized the fundamental right of all religious communities to build places of worship free from discrimination,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. 

“No congregation or community should ever face unlawful barriers to practicing their religion and observing their faith,” said Gupta.

“As alleged in the complaint, Bernards Township has treated the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge differently than other houses of worship,” said U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman of the District of New Jersey," said Fishman.

RLUIPA contains multiple provisions prohibiting religious discrimination and protecting against unjustified burdens on religious exercise. Persons who believe that they have been subjected to religious discrimination in land use or zoning may contact the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section at (800) 896-7743.

U.S. Attorney General issues statement on hate crimes

Attorney General Loretta Lynch

ATTORNEY GENERAL Loretta E. Lynch released a statement Nov. 18 on the FBI’s newly announced 2015 hate crime statistics as well as on recent media reports of alleged hate crimes and harassment around the country. 

“Earlier this week, the FBI released its statistics on hate crimes committed in 2015," said Lynch. "These numbers should be deeply sobering for all Americans. Among other alarming trends, the report showed a 67 percent increase in hate crimes committed against Muslim Americans. It also showed increases in the number of hate crimes committed against Jewish people, African Americans, and LGBT individuals. 

When the administration of Donald Trump takes office, we can expect fewer statements and investigations of hate crimes and civil rights violations. Trump has named arch-conservative Sen. Jeff Sessions, who was once denied a judgeship because of his racist views, to become the new U.S. Attorney General.

RELATED:

• Jeff Sessions nomination is troubling to civil rights, immigration activists
• Hate crimes against Muslims spike
• Trump's America off to a scary start

The statement reminds individuals to report these incidents to both local law enforcement and the Justice Department in order to ensure that career investigators and prosecutors are able to enforce hate crime statutes at the local, state and federal level.

"Overall, the number of reported hate crimes increased six percent – a number that does not account for the many hate crimes that may go unreported out of shame or fear," said Lynch.

“Beyond these 2015 statistics, I know that many Americans are concerned by a spate of recent news reports about alleged hate crimes and harassment. Some of these incidents have happened in schools. Others have targeted houses of worship. And some have singled out individuals for attacks and intimidation. 

"The FBI is assessing, in conjunction with federal prosecutors, whether particular incidents constitute violations of federal law. We need you to continue to report these incidents to local law enforcement, as well as the Justice Department, so that our career investigators and prosecutors can take action to defend your rights. "

Information about federal hate crimes laws – and other civil rights laws that the department enforces, including protections for students in schools – on the Civil Rights Division’s website. The DOJ site also contains resources for communities working to prevent and respond to hate crimes.

“But despite the tremendous progress we have made," continued Lynch, "we cannot lose sight of how much remains to be done. Nearly two decades after Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. were brutally murdered simply for being who they were, we still have a long way to go to ensure that every American can live free from the fear of violence or harassment based what they look like, how they worship, or whom they love.

“That work is not just about enforcing the law. It’s about staying true to our highest ideals and most cherished principles. It’s about making sure that all Americans receive the protection of the law. And it’s about giving real meaning to our shared belief that all people are created equal.

“Put simply, this work is the right – and just – thing to do. And I want the American people to know that as long as that work is necessary, the Department of Justice will continue to carry it forward. 

"We will continue to enforce our nation’s hate crimes laws to the fullest extent possible. We will continue to uphold our conviction that all men and women deserve to lead lives of safety and dignity. And we will continue to champion the values of diversity and inclusion that have always been the bedrock of our nation’s progress, and that point the way to a brighter future,” she concludes.

We'll miss you AG Lynch.