Upon her swearing in, Attorney General Pamela Bondi issued 14 memoranda seeking to deploy Department of Justice enforcement resources in service of the Trump Administration’s priorities.
The memo directs resources toward immigration enforcement, prosecution of human trafficking and smuggling, and disruption of criminal gangs and drug cartels, and away from prior corporate enforcement priorities such as Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) and Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”) prosecutions against corporations and lobbyists, respectively.
The memoranda also indicate a less eye-catching—but nonetheless critical—development: namely, “decentralization” from Main Justice to United States Attorney’s Offices (“USAOs”) of prosecutorial decisions in certain matters. To remove “bureaucratic impediments” to “aggressive” prosecutions of gangs and cartels, AG Bondi suspended certain approvals USAOs previously needed from Main Justice components.
The memorandum also contains a directive for DOJ to advocate for a number of legislative reforms that would make it easier to prosecute conduct associated with the manufacturing and distribution of counterfeit drugs containing fentanyl.
General Policy Regarding Charging, Plea Negotiations, and Sentencing
This memorandum restores a “core principle” of the first Trump Administration that, “in the absence of unusual facts, prosecutors should charge and pursue the most serious, readily provable offense.” Any prosecutorial decision to deviate from this “core principle” must be approved by a U.S. Attorney or Assistant Attorney General (or their designee), with the reasons for the deviation to be documented.
The memorandum also instructs that plea bargaining is “governed by the same fundamental considerations” applied in charging decisions, namely pursuing the most serious, readily provable offense. The memorandum directs that prosecutors cannot “abandon pending charges” in favor of a plea that is inconsistent with the “seriousness of the defendant’s conduct at the time the charges were filed.” As to sentencing, the memorandum advises that “[i]n most cases,” sentences within the applicable Sentencing Guidelines will be appropriate.
Two other memos relate to the federal death penalty.
One lifts the moratorium on federal executions, and instructs federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in cases involving the murder of a law enforcement official and capital crimes "committed by aliens who are illegally present in the United States."
The other relates to President Biden's commutation of death sentences of 37 people on federal death row to life in prison. The memo directs the Justice Department to, among other things assist local prosecutors in pursuing death sentences under state law against the 37 individuals who received commutations.
Other Memoranda and Directives
Reviving the Federal Death Penalty and Lifting the Moratorium on Federal Executions: Rescinds AG Garland’s Moratorium on Federal Executions Pending Review of Policies and Procedures and instructs that DOJ will instead “swiftly implement[]” death sentences.
Return to Full-Time In-Person Work at the Department of Justice: Mandates a return to full-time, in-person work for all DOJ employees by February 24, 2025.