Today, the U.S. Attorney’s office announced that the District of North Dakota has been allocated five additional federal prosecutors from the United States Department of Justice — some of the whom will be dedicated to addressing the needs of ND’s Native American reservations.
Three of the new Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs) will be assigned to what a release from the U.S Attorney’s Office describes as “Indian Country” — a term that defines all land within the limits of Native American reservations under the jurisdiction of the United States Government according to the Department of Justice. This will allow the office to double the number of prosecutorial resources they currently have in the areas, better helping them promote public safety in North Dakotan tribal communities.
In addition to these “Indian Country” prosecutors, the office will also be hiring an additional AUSA to prosecute in Cass County and its surrounding areas, as well as another to take the helm of the office’s eLitigation (online document and case filing) efforts.
“For decades, the hallmark of the United States Attorney’s Office in North Dakota has been our role as a strong federal partner in promoting public safety across the state, especially in Indian Country,” U.S. Attorney Mac Schneider said in the release. “With this significant investment of additional resources from the Department of Justice, we will be able to play that role even more effectively.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of North Dakota currently has 21 AUSAs working in divisions in Bismarck and Fargo, as well as one in Minot. They are also currently aiming to fill two vacant positions. When these vacancies are filled and the additional five prosecutors are in place, the state will have a total of 28 AUSAs.
Source : KXNET
