United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York
Department overview
FormedSeptember 24, 1789 (1789-09-24) by the Judiciary Act of 1789
JurisdictionSouthern District of New York
HeadquartersManhattan, New York City, New York, U.S.
Department executives
Parent DepartmentUnited States Department of Justice
Websitejustice.gov/usao/nys
Map
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Southern District of New York

The United States attorney for the Southern District of New York is the chief federal law enforcement officer in eight New York counties: New York (Manhattan), Bronx, Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan. Established by the Judiciary Act of 1789, the office represents the United States government in criminal and civil cases across the country. The SDNY handles a broad array of cases, including but not limited to those involving white collar crime, domestic terrorism, cybercrime, public corruption, organized crime, and civil rights disputes.

The Southern District has earned itself the moniker the "Sovereign District of New York".[1][2] Its resources, culture, and accompanying FBI field office have given the SDNY a reputation for being exceptionally aggressive in its pursuit of criminals.[3][4] Due to its jurisdiction over the New York City borough of Manhattan, the preeminent financial center of the United States of America, the office's incumbent is often nicknamed the "Sheriff of Wall Street".[5]

As of October 10, 2021, the United States attorney is Damian Williams.[6]

  1. ^ Weiser, Benjamin; Rashbaum, William K. (March 10, 2017). "With Preet Bharara's Dismissal, Storied Office Loses Its Top Fighter". New York Times. In past presidential transitions, the storied office, long known to be so independent of Washington that some people referred to it as the Sovereign District of New York, has in large measure moved forward unaffected by politics.
  2. ^ Beale, Sara Sun (2011). "What Are the Rules if Everybody Wants to Play?". In Barkow, Anthony S.; Barkow, Rachel E. (eds.). Prosecutors in the Boardroom: Using Criminal Law to Regulate Corporate conduct. NYU Press. p. 206. ISBN 9780814787038. Finally, in some multijurisdictional cases there have been turf battles rather than cooperation. For example, the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York ... Press accounts have noted the perception that the 'Sovereign District of New York' ... doesn't necessar[il]y play well with others.
  3. ^ McDermott, Terry; Meyer, Josh (2012). The Hunt for KSM: Inside the Pursuit and Takedown of the Real 9/11 Mastermind, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. Little, Brown. p. PT42. ISBN 9780316202732. This was sometimes referred to—mockingly, but enviously, too—as the Sovereign District of New York. It was in many ways a separate fiefdom from the rest of the Bureau, creating its own rules and procedures. The agent in charge of the office, unlike all but one other agent in charge, held the rank of an assistant director of the entire FBI.
  4. ^ Ragavan, Chitra (March 26, 2001). "The pardon buck stops in New York: U.S. Attorney Mary Jo White takes the lead". U.S. News & World Report. Vol. 130, no. 12. p. 24. The Bush administration has left the answer largely in the hands of White, a registered independent, whose office, because of its legendary independence and tenacity, is known as the 'sovereign district'.
  5. ^ Relman, Eliza (May 15, 2017). "'History will judge this moment': The 'Sheriff of Wall Street' urges Republican lawmakers to hold Trump accountable". Business Insider. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  6. ^ Berthelsen, Christian (October 11, 2021). "Wall Street Enforcer Becomes First Black U.S. Attorney for Manhattan". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved October 12, 2021.

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